Ordinance - 1475•
ORDINANCE NO. 1 475
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF WEST COVINA AMENDING THE WEST
COVINA MUNICIPAL CODE BY ADDING THERETO
A NEW ARTICLE IX RELATING TO CHARITY
SOLICITATIONS AND REPEALING DIVISION 2 OF
ARTICLE VII (URGENCY MEASURE).
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST COVINA DOES
HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The West Covina Municipal Code is hereby
amended by the addition of a new Article IX to read as
follows:
"ARTICLE IX. CHARITY SOLICITATION
DIVISION 1. GENERALLY
• SECTION 14-250. Definitions. As used in
this Article, the following terms shall have the
indicated meanings:
City License Collector shall mean and include
the person exercising the function or any city employee..
designated by the City License Collector to perform
such functions hereunder.
Contributions means and includes the words
alms, food, clothing, money, property, subscription
or pledge, and also donations under the guise
of loans of money or property.
Person means any individual, firm, partnership,
corporation, company, association, society, organiza-
tion, church, congregation, assembly or league.
Charitable purpose shall mean any charitable,
benevolent, philanthropic, patriotic, or eleemosynary
purpose.
Charitable organization shall mean any benevolent,
philanthropic, patriotic, not -for -profit, an eleemo-
synary group, association or corporation, an organiza-
tion purporting to be such, which solicits and collects
funds for charitable purposes.
Solicit and solicitation mean the request,
directly or indirectly, of money, credit, property,
financial assistance or other things of value on the
plea or representation that such money, credit,
property, financial assistance or other thing of
value will be used for a charitable purpose as those
purposes are defined in this section, conducted door
• to door, in any place of public accommodation, in any
place of business open to the public generally, on
the city streets and sidewalks, in the public parks,
on the public beaches or in any public places.
These words also mean and include the following
methods of securing such money, credit, property,
financial assistance or other thing of value, when
conducted in the manner stated above:
(1) Any oral or written request;
(2) The local distribution, circulation,
posting or publishing of any handbill, written
advertisement or other local publication;
(3) The sale of any goods or services.
"Solicitation," as defined herein, shall be deemed
to have taken place when the request is made, whether
or not the person making the request receives any
contribution referred to in this section.
SECTION 14-251. Limitations on Solicitation.
Solicitation pursuant to permit under Division 2 of
• this Article:
(1) Shall take place only between the hours of
9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
(2) Shall not be made at any house, apartment
or other dwelling to which is,affixed a sign indica-
ting 'No Solicitors' or similar indication that no
solicitation contact is desired by the occupant
thereof.
(3) No person convicted of a felony or under
indictment for a felony may be used as a solicitor.
SECTION 14-252. Credential •Card, .of Solicitors.
All persons to whom permits have been issued under
Division 2 of this Article shall furnish proper
credential cards to their agents and solicitors for
such solicitation. The credential card shall include
the name of the permit holder, the date, a statement
of the charitable purpose of the solicitation,
signature of the permit holder or its executive
officer and the name and the signature of the soli-
citor to whom such credential card is issued and the
specific period of time during which the solicitor
• is authorized to solicit on behalf of the permit
holder, attached to which card shall also be a copy
of the permit issued under Division 2 of this Article.
No person shall solicit under any permit granted
under Division 2 of this Article without making
available to the person being solicited for review
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the credential required under this section.
SECTION 14-253. Receipts. Any person
receiving money or anything of value in excess of
five dollars ($5.00) from any contributor by means
of solicitation made pursuant to a permit shall
• give each contributor a written receipt signed by
the solicitor showing plainly the name and the
permit number of the person under whose permit the
solicitation is conducted, .the date and the amount
received; provided, however, this section shall not
apply to any contribution collected by means of a
closed box or receptacle where it is impractical to
determine the amount of such contributions.
SECTION 14-254. Manner of Solicitation.
No person to whom a permit has been issued nor any
agents or solicitors of such person shall:
(1) Affix any, object to the person of any
contributor or member of the public without first
receiving express permission therefor;
(2) Persistently and importunately request any
donation from any member of the public after such
member of the public expresses his desire not to
make a donation; and
(3) Intentionally and deliberately obstruct
the free movement of any person on any street,
• sidewalk or other public.place or any place open to
the public generally.
SECTION 14-255. Exemption. The provisions of
this Article shall not apply to any person where
charitable solicitations are conducted among the
members thereof by other members.
SECTION 14-256. Penalties; Violations. Any
person, as hereinabove defined or any agent, servant,
employee or officer thereof violating any of the
provisions of this Article, or who aids or abets in
the procuring of a violation of any provision, part
or portion of this Article, or who files or causes
to be filed an application for a permit containing
false or fraudulent statements of fact, shall be
deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction
thereof shall be punished as provided in Section 1-37
of this Code. Each violation shall be deemed a
separate offense and shall be punishable as such.
DIVISION 2. PERMIT
• SECTION 14-267. Required. No person shall,
directly or indirectly, solicit nor authorize any
other person to solicit contributions for any
purposes within the city without a charitable permit
therefor as provided in this Article.
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SECTION 14-268. Filing Application. An
application for a charitable solicitation permit
shall be made to the City License Collector upon
forms prescribed by him. The application shall be
sworn to or affirmed and filed with the City License
Collector not less than fifteen (15) days prior to
the time at which the permit applied for to become
. effective; provided, however, the City License
Collector may for a good cause shown allow such
filing less than fifteen (15) days prior to the
effective date of the permit applied for. .
SECTION 14-269. Information Required in
Application. The application for a permit required
by this Division shall contain the following informa-
tion:
(1) Name, address and principal office of the
person applying for the permit.
(2) If the applicant is not an individual, the
names and addresses of the applicant's principal
officers and executives.
(3) A statement that the purpose for which the
solicitation is made is exclusively for and in
connection with the exercise of charity.
(4) The total amount of funds to be raised by
solicitation and the disposition of said funds,
which information shall include what percentage of
• the proceeds of such solicitations will be used
directly for the charitable purposes of the organiza-
tion. For the purposes of providing this information
the following items shall not be deemed to be used
for the charitable purposes of the organization:
(a) Salaries or commissions paid to
solicitors;
(b) Administrative expenses of the organ-
ization, including but not limited to, salaries,
attorneys fees, rents, telephone, advertising
expenses, contributions to other organizations
and persons, except as charitable contributions,
and related expenses incurred as administrative
and overhead items.
(5) The name and address of the person or
persons who will be in charge of conducting the
solicitation and the names of all fund raisers connected
with or to be connected with the proposed solicitation.
(6) A short outline of the method or methods to
be used in conducting the solicitation.
(7) The time when such solicitations will be
• made, giving the preferred dates and hours of the
date for the commencement and termination of
solicitation and the geographic area in which the
solicitations will occur.
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(8) Whether the uniform or any other identi-
fication worn or carried by the solicitor resembles
that of any other group in the city conducting
solicitation activities.
(9) Proof that the organization has complied
. with all State laws governing charitable solicita-
tions, including the State's approval of the organi-
zation's charitable tax exempt status and proof of
the organization's tax exempt status under the
Federal Internal Revenue Code.
(10) A statement to the effect that if a permit
is granted it will not be used or represented in any
way as an endorsement by the city or any department
or officer thereof. If, while the application is
pending or during the term of any permit granted,
there is a change in fact, policy or method that
would alter the information to be given in the
application, the applicant shall notify the City
License Collector in writing thereof within twenty-
four (24) hours after such change.
SECTION 14-270. Investigation of Application.
The City License Collector shall investigate all
applications for permits required by this Division
to the extent he deems necessary for him to perform
his duties hereunder. Upon request by the City
License Collector, applicant shall make available for
inspection all of applicant's financial books, records,
and papers at any reasonable time before the applica-
tion is granted or during the time the permit is in
effect, which books, records and papers will be
inspected solely for the determination of the
factual accuracy of the information contained in the
application. Failure.to make any such information
available within fifteen (15) days of the City
License Collector's request to inspect same shall
automatically result in revocation of the permit.
SECTION 14-271. Grounds for Denial. The City
License Collector must issue the permit unless any
of the following have been demonstrated:
(1) Any statement in the application is
factually incorrect.
(2) That the proposed solicitation will violate
any of the requirements of Section 14-251 above.
(3) That applicant has not.provided the informa-
tion required by this Article.
SECTION 14-272. Notice Upon Denial. In the
• event the City License Collector denies a permit to
any applicant under this Division, the City Lisence
Collector shall give the applicant a written notice,
stating with specificity the reasons for such denial.
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SECTION 14-273. Time of Issuance. The City
License Collector shall not unreasonably withhold
either granting or denying the requested permit after
the application is made.
SECTION 14-274. Form. A permit issued under
• this Division shall bear the name and address of
the person to whom it is issued, the number of the
permit, the date issued, the dates within which the
permit holder may solicit and a statement as to the
disposition of the proceeds raised by solicitation
as set forth in Section 14-269(4), and the statement
that the permit does not constitute an endorsement
by the city or any of its departments, officers or
employees of the purpose of or for the person conducting
the solicitation.
SECTION 14-275. Nontransferability. No permit
issued under this Division shall be transferred or
assigned and any such attempt of assignment or
transfer shall be void.
SECTION 14-276. Revocation. Whenever it shall
be shown that any person to whom a permit required
by this Division has been issued has violated any of
the provisions of this Article, the City License
Collector shall suspend the permit after giving
written notice to the permit holder of not less than
two .(2) business days in person or by registered
• special delivery of the proposed revocation, stating
with specificity the reason for such proposed revoca-
tion.
SECTION 14-277. Term. Permits issued under this
Division shall be valid for a period of six (6)
months unless renewed, revoked or.suspended pursuant
to the provisions hereof.
SECTION 14-278. Renewal. On the expiration of
any permit issued under this Division, and if
requested in writing to do so, the City License
Collector must renew the permit if the factual infor-
mation upon which the original application was granted
remains unchanged and no violations have been
committed. Upon such request for renewal, the
applicant must state that no change has occurred
since issuance of the original permit. Said renewal
shall be subject to the same investigation provided
for in Section 14-270.
SECTION 14-279. Denial, Revocation or Refusal to
Renew not to be Based on Disagreement with Philosophy,
Opinions, etc., of Applicant. Nothing in this Article
shall be construed as granting to the City License
Collector or any other person the authority to grant,
deny, revoke, renew or suspend any permit by reason
of disapproval or agreement with the philosophy,
opinion, or belief of the applicant, permit holder or
M
person soliciting therefor, or for any other reason
not specifically provided for herein.
SECTION 14-280. Appeal of Denial, Revocation
or Refusal to -Renew.
• (a) Any applicant or permit holder under this
Division,aggrieved by any action of the City License
Collector to deny, revoke or refusal to renew a
permit, may appeal to the City Council by filing with
the City Clerk a statement addressed to the City Council
setting forth the facts and circumstances regarding
the action of the City License Collector. Such appeal
shall be filed within ten (10) days after the
disputed action of the City License Collector and
the City Council shall hear the appeal at its next
regular meeting, not more than fifteen (15) days
after filing thereof. .,
(b) At the time of the appeal hearing, the
City Council shall hear all relevant evidence and
shall determine the merits of the appeal and render
a decision thereon.
(c) In the event the City Council affirms the
decision of the City License Collector, the appellant
shall be given written notice thereof within two (2)
days thereafter stating with specificity the reasons
for the decision. The action of the City Council
shall be final."
•
SECTION 2. Division 2 of Article VII of the West
Covina.Municipal Code is hereby repealed.
SECTION 3. That this Ordinance is hereby declared to
be an urgency ordinance and shall take effect immediately upon
its adoption by a four -fifths (4/5) vote of the Council. A
statement of facts constituting the basis of such urgency is as
follows:
The City Council has been advised that as a result
of recent court decisions, the present provisions of the Munici-
pal Code relating.to Charity Solicitations would not withstand
legal challenge. In order that there not be a void in the City's
ability to impose and enforce valid regulations with respect to
Charity Solicitations in the City, it is necessary for this
Ordinance to take effect immediately so as to preserve the
public health, safety and welfare.
SECTION 4. The City Clerk shall certify to the
immediate adoption of this Ordinance and shall cause the same
to be published in the manner prescribed by law.
PASSED and APPROVED this 24th day of March , 1980.
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ATTEST:
City Clerk
PASSED AND ADOPTED as an Ordinance of the Citz f
West Covina at a regular meeting thereof held on the 4th
day of March , 1980.
AYES: Councilmen: Miller, Tice, Shearer, Browne, Chappell
NOES: Councilmen: None
ABSENT: Councilment: None
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
04.
City Attorney
9
City Clerk