(a) License Required. No person shall advertise or conduct a distress merchandise sale without first having obtained a license to do so in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(b) Application. Every person requiring a distress merchandise sale license shall make application in writing to the Director of Public Safety and Service at least thirty days prior to the commencement of the sale, and file ownership documents with the City Income Tax Department. Each application shall be sworn to before a person authorized to administer oaths and shall contain the following information and any other information the Director may deem necessary.
(1) The name and address of the owner of the business and the merchandise.
(2) The designation of the place where the sale is to be held.
(3) The nature of the occupancy of the place where the sale is to be held, whether by lease or otherwise, and the effective date of the termination of the occupancy.
(4) A full and complete statement regarding the distress merchandise sale, including the reason for the sale, the hours and days during which the sale will be held, and the commencement and termination date of the sale.
(5) A complete and detailed inventory of the goods, wares, merchandise and other property to be sold at the sale, including a list of the distress merchandise on order to the business in its present location at the commencement of the sale. The inventory shall contain a sworn statement of the cost and retail value of the goods, wares, and merchandise.
(c) Bond. No license shall be issued for a distress merchandise sale unless there is filed with the Director of Public Safety and Service a bond in an amount equal to ten percent (10%) of the inventory value of all goods, wares, merchandise, or other property to be offered at sale, with sureties thereon approved as to sufficiency by the Director. The bond shall be conditioned upon the faithful observance of all the provisions of this chapter and the indemnifying of any purchaser at the sale who suffers any loss by reason of any misrepresentation made in connection with the sale. The bond shall authorize actions thereunder by the City for the violation of any provision of this chapter, and by any purchaser at the sale for damage or loss incurred by him by reason of any misrepresentation made in connection with the sale. The bond shall be approved as to form by the Law Director.
(d) Issuance. When it appears to the Director of Public Safety and Service that all of the statements of the application are true, and that the proposed sale is of the character represented therein, that the application is in full compliance with the provisions of this chapter and that the required license fee has been paid and the bond filed, the Director shall issue a license to the applicant authorizing the applicant to advertise and conduct the sale as described in the application, subject to the following conditions:
(1) The sale shall be held at the place named in the application and by the particular licensee for a period of not more than sixty consecutive calendar days.
(2) Only the goods, wares and merchandise included in the inventory attached to the application shall be sold at the sale. Upon the commencement of the sale and for its duration, the license issued hereunder shall be prominently displayed in the place of sale by the licensee.
(3) The licensee shall keep accurate records during the sale at the location at which the sale is conducted, which shall be open to examination by the Director or his examiners. These records shall reveal the amount of retail sales, the cost of goods on back order received, and other information relative to the sale which may be reasonably required by the Director.
(4) The Director shall revoke any license issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter if he finds that the licensee has violated any provision of this chapter, has made any material misstatement in his application, has failed to include in the inventory required by the provisions of this chapter all the goods, wares, and merchandise being offered for sale, has added or permitted to be added to the sale any goods, wares, or merchandise not described in the original application and inventory, or has failed to keep suitable records of the sale.
(e) Fee. The fee for a license issued under this chapter shall be one hundred dollars ($100.00). (1993 Code 116.02)