[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of
the Town of Stratford 7-13-1992. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Loans on intangible property are excepted.
B.
No person, corporation or partnership shall engage
in or carry on the business of loaning money upon deposits or pledges
of wearing apparel, jewelry, ornaments, household goods or other personal
property, or of purchasing such property on condition of selling the
same back again at a stipulated price, unless such person, corporation
or partnership is licensed as a pawnbroker.
[Amended 3-12-2007 by Ord. No. 07-03]
The Mayor may grant licenses to suitable persons
to be pawnbrokers and to carry on the business of lending money on
the pledge of personal property, or of purchasing such property on
condition of selling it back again at a stipulated price, and may
revoke such licenses for cause. The person so licensed shall pay a
license fee of $50, and $25 per year thereafter for renewal of such
license, and shall, at the time of receiving such license, file a
bond with competent surety in the penal sum of $2,000 and conditioned
for the faithful performance of the duties and obligations pertaining
to the business so licensed. Each such license shall designate the
place where such business is to be carried on and shall continue one
year unless sooner revoked.
A.
Any license issued pursuant to this chapter shall
remain on public display at all times and shall be readily accessible.
All employees of such licensee shall be at least 18 years of age and
shall not have been convicted of any criminal offense. A current list
of all such employees shall be provided to the Chief of Police at
least annually, or upon reasonable demand, which list shall include
such employees' full name, address, date of birth, social security
number and telephone number.
B.
Record of pledges and borrowers. Each such pawnbroker
or person carrying on such business of loaning money on the pledge
of personal property shall keep a book, to be furnished by the Chief
of Police, in which shall be written in English, at the time he receives
any article of personal property by way of pledge or pawn, a description
of such article, the name and residence and a general description
of the person, including the means or method of positive identification
of such person from whom, and the day and hour when, such property
was received. Such book and the place where such business is carried
on and all articles of property therein may be examined at all times
by any police officer, and it shall be the responsibility of the licensee
to maintain said records, including each page within the book required
to be maintained pursuant to this section.
C.
Memorandum to pledgor. Each such pawnbroker shall, at the time of making any loan on a pawn or pledge, deliver to the person who pawns or pledges any goods, article or thing a memorandum or note containing the entry required to be made in his book by the provisions of Subsection B. No charge shall be made or required by any pawnbroker for such entry, memorandum or note.
D.
Weekly reports; penalty. Each such pawnbroker shall
make, weekly, a sworn statement of his transactions, describing the
goods received and setting forth the name and residence and a description
of the person from whom the goods were received, to the Town Clerk
each week on Monday no later than 12:00 noon. Any such pawnbroker
who willfully fails to make the report required by this section shall
be fined $100.
E.
Rates of interest.
(1)
No pawnbroker or loan broker or person who loans money
on the pledge of personal property shall take or receive, directly
or indirectly, for the use of money loaned on personal property, any
more than the following rates:
(2)
Such rates shall be prominently displayed to the public
at the place of business of such licensee at all times.
F.
Pledges to be kept six months. No such lender shall
sell or dispose of any personal property left with him in pledge for
money loaned in less than six months from the day when the same is
left in pledge as aforesaid. All such property shall be sold or disposed
of at a public or private sale only after advertisement in a newspaper,
having a circulation within the Town of Stratford, at least once two
days before the date of the sale or sales, which advertisement shall
state the numbers of the pledge tickets representing the property
offered for sale and the date or dates when such tickets were issued.
Such advertisement shall also be provided to the Chief of Police.
G.
Notice. A notice shall be prominently displayed at
all times within the licensed premises stating that no one under the
age of 18 years shall pawn or sell items. Items may be sold or pawned
only by a natural person who has proper identification, which shall
include a full face photograph of such person.
Any person, corporation or partnership which
engages in the business of a pawnbroker, unless licensed according
to law, or after notice that its license has been revoked, or which
violates any of the provisions of this chapter, or neglects to keep
a book in the English language or to make the entries therein as provided
by law, or refuses to allow the same to be inspected by the proper
officers, or receives an article of personal property by way of pawn
or pledge from any minor, knowing or having reason to believe him
to be a minor, shall be fined not more than $50 for the first offense
and not more than $100 for the second offense and, for the third offense,
shall be fined not more than $500 or imprisoned not more than six
months, or both, and also shall forfeit treble the amount loaned on
the property so pledged to any person injured thereby who sues therefor.
