(A) County license required. No person shall conduct business as a peddler, solicitor or transient merchant within the city limits without first having obtained the appropriate license from the county as required by M.S. Chapter 329 as amended.
(B) City license required. Except as otherwise provided for by this chapter, no person shall conduct business as either a peddler or a solicitor without first having obtained a license from the city. Solicitors for nonprofit organizations need not be licensed, but are still required to register pursuant to § 114.07.
(C) Application. Application for a city license to conduct business as a peddler or solicitor shall be made before the applicant desires to begin conducting business. Application for a license shall be made on a form available from the office of the City Clerk. All applications shall be signed by the applicant. All applications shall include the following information:
(1) Applicant’s full legal name;
(2) All other names under which the applicant conducts business or to which applicant officially answers;
(3) A physical description of the applicant (hair color, eye color, height, weight, distinguishing marks and features, and the like);
(4) Full address of applicant’s permanent residence;
(5) Telephone number of applicant’s permanent residence;
(6) Full legal name of any and all business operations owned, managed or operated by applicant, or for which the applicant is an employee or agent;
(7) Full address of applicant’s regular place of business (if any);
(8) Any and all business related telephone numbers of the applicant;
(9) The type of business for which the applicant is applying for a license;
(10) Whether the applicant is applying for an annual or temporary license;
(11) The dates during which the applicant intends to conduct business, and if the applicant is applying for a temporary license, the number of days he or she will be conducting business in the city (maximum 14 consecutive days);
(12) Any and all addresses and telephone numbers where the applicant can be reached while conducting business within the city;
(13) A statement as to whether or not the applicant has been convicted within the last five years of any felony, gross misdemeanor, or misdemeanor for violation of any state or federal statute or any local ordinance, other than traffic offenses;
(14) A list of the three most recent locations where the applicant has conducted business as a peddler;
(15) Proof of any required county license;
(16) A general description of the items to be sold or services to be provided;
(17) All additional information deemed necessary by the City Council;
(18) The applicant’s driver’s license number or other acceptable form of identification; and
(19) The license plate number, registration information and vehicle identification number for any vehicle to be used in conjunction with the licensed business and a description of the vehicle.
(D) Fee. All applications for a license under this chapter shall be accompanied by the fee established in the city’s fee schedule as adopted from time to time by resolution of the City Council. Solicitors engaged in interstate commerce are exempt from payment of the fee, but are not exempt from other licensing requirements.
(E) Procedure. Upon receipt of the completed application and payment of the license fee, the City Clerk shall forward the application to the Chief of Police. An application shall be determined to be complete only if all required information is provided. If the City Clerk determines that the application is incomplete, the City Clerk shall inform the applicant of the required necessary information which is missing. The Chief of Police shall review the application and order any investigation, including background checks, necessary to verify the information provided with the application.
(1) The license may be issued by the City Clerk when the foregoing investigation is completed or within seven business days of application, whichever is earlier.
(2) The license shall be denied if it appears that the applicant is ineligible for a license pursuant to § 114.04.
(F) Duration. An annual license granted under this chapter shall be valid until December 31 from the date of issue. All other licenses granted under this chapter shall be valid only during the time period indicated on the license.
(G) License exemptions.
(1) No license shall be required for any person to sell or attempt to sell, or to take or attempt to take orders for, any product grown, produced, cultivated, or raised on any farm.
(2) No license shall be required of any person going from house-to-house, door-to-door, business-to-business, street-to-street, or other type of place-to-place when the activity is for the purpose of exercising that person’s State or Federal Constitutional rights such as the freedom of speech, press, religion and the like, except that this exemption may be lost if the person’s exercise of Constitutional rights is merely incidental to a commercial activity.
(3) Professional fund raisers working on behalf of an otherwise exempt person or group shall not be exempt from the licensing requirements of this chapter.
(4) Any canvassing, soliciting, or fund raising for the purpose of charitable organizations if such organization is registered with the attorney general pursuant to the provisions of M.S. § 309.52 as a charitable organization or exempted pursuant to the provisions of M.S. § 309.515.
(5) Transient merchants operating within a building in an area zoned for retail sales or where permitted by Chapter 155.
(6) Peddling, selling, or soliciting in a park as provided by § 95.03(T).
(Am. Ord. 1069, passed 12-12-10) Penalty, see § 10.99