(a) Definitions. As used in this article:
1. “RUMMAGE SALE” means any charitable, religious, eleemosynary, fraternal, benevolent, civic, or other nonprofit organization or any individual purporting to act on behalf of such an organization which gathers, collects, sells or offers for sale to the public any secondhand property or junk, including reclaimed or salvaged goods, for the real or purported purpose of devoting the proceeds to charitable, religious, fraternal, benevolent, civic or other nonprofit uses. The term includes occasional or temporary sales, as well as continued or permanent activities at a fixed place of business.
2. “DEPARTMENT” shall mean the Los Angeles Police Department. (Added by Ord. No. 173,283, Eff. 6/26/00, Oper. 7/1/00.)
(b) Permit Required. (Amended by Ord. No. 173,283, Eff. 6/26/00, Oper. 7/1/00.) No person shall conduct or advertise a rummage sale open to the public without a permit therefor. Issuance of annual permits shall be under the jurisdiction of the Board of Police Commissioners. The Department may permit, without fee, the holding of three-day rummage sales by applicants qualified to receive an Information Card pursuant to Section 44.03 hereof.
(c) Advertising – Restrictions. No permittee shall advertise any goods for sale which are not actually for sale at the premises at the time the advertisement is inserted in the newspaper or medium.
Within 24 hours after any goods advertised for sale are sold, the permittee shall withdraw or cancel such advertisement.
(d) Hold-Order by Police. A police officer may place a hold-order upon any property acquired by the permittee in the course of the permittee’s business for a period of 90 days, and upon release of such property may require the permittee to keep a record of the disposition of such property. It shall be unlawful for any person to dispose of any property contrary to any hold-order issued by a police officer.
(e) Investigation. (Title and Subsec. Amended by Ord. No. 173,283, Eff. 6/26/00, Oper. 7/1/00.) Each application for a permit as provided for in this section shall be transmitted to the Department for investigation and report within 10 days after receipt of the application. If the Department fails to report upon the application within 10 days it shall be deemed that said Department has no objection to the issuance of the permit. The report of the Department shall include a finding as to whether there is reasonable cause to believe that the profits of the proposed rummage sale will be devoted to religious, benevolent, fraternal, educational, civic or other nonprofit purposes.
(f) Board Finding – Issuance of Permit. If the Board finds that the proceeds from the operation of the rummage sale are to be used for religious, benevolent, fraternal, educational, civic, or other nonprofit purposes, the Board may issue a permit to conduct a rummage sale.