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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Relating to Auction Sales i w , ORDINANCE NO. '736 AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO AUCTION SALES AND PUBLIC SALES OF MERCHANDISE OF A SPECIAL CHARACTER, SUCH AS BANKRUPT SALES, FI SALES, CLOSING-OUT SALES, AND THE LIKE, PROVIDING FOR THE LICENSING OF THE SANE, AND FIXING A PERMIT FEE THEREFORE: PRE- SCRIBING RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE CONDUCT OF THE SAME: AND PROVIDING FOR A PENALTY FOR VIOLATION THEREOF. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AMES, IOWA: Section 1.: Definitions. The following words and terms as used in this Ordinance respectively, shall be deemed to mean and be construed as follows: "Auction Sale" shall mean the offering for sale or selling of personal property to the highest bidder or offering for sale or selling of personal property at a high price and then offering the same at successive lower prices until a buyer is secured. "New Merchandise:' shall mean all merchandise not previously sold at retail. Wherever the word "merchandise" is used in this ordinance it shall also mean and include new merchandise. "Sales" - The sale or an offer to sell to the public, goods, wares and merchandise of any and all kinds and descriptions on hand and in stock in connection with declared purpose, as set forth by advertising, on the part of the seller that such Sale is anticipatory to the termination, closing, liquidation, revision, windup, discontinuance, conclusion or abandonment of the business in connection with such sale. It shall also include any sale advertised, either specifically or in substance, to be a "fire sale", "smoke and water damage sale , "adjustment sale", "creditorts sale", "trusteets sale", "bankrupt sale", "save us from bankruptcy wale", "insolvent sale", "insurance salvage sale", "mortgage sale", "assigneets sale", adjustorrs sale", "receiverts sale", "loss-of-lease sale", "forced-out-of-business sale", "removal sale", and any and all sales advertised in such manner as to reasonably convey to the public that upon the disposal of the stock of goods on hand, the business will cease and be discontinued. "Publish", "'publishinb' , "advertisements", "advertising", shall include any and all means of conveying to the public notice of sale or notice of intention to conduct a sale, whether by word of mouth, by newspaper advertisement, by magazine advertisement, by handbill, by circular, by pamphlet, by written notice, by printed notice, by printed display, by bill-board display, by poster, by radio announcement, by radio program, by recordings and any and all means including oral, written or printed. "License" - A license issued pursuant to this Ordinance. "Licensee" - Any person to whom a license has been issued pursuant to this ordinance. "City Council" - The City Council of the City of Ames, Iowa. "Inspector" - The City Manager of the City of Ames, Iowa. Section 2. Regulation of Sales. No person shall hereafter publish or conduct any sale of the type herein defined without a license therefor. Section 3. Powers and Duties of the City Councii. The City Council is hereby authorized and empowered to supervise or regulate auction sales or special sales defined in Section 1 of this Ordinance, and to issue appropriate license or licenses therefor, upon properapplication. Section 4: Application. Application for such a license shall be made to the city council in a form to be approved by the Council, and shall be in writing and verified by the applicant. Such application shall contain a description of the place where such sale is to be held, the nature of the occupancy, whether by ownership, lease or sublease, and the effective date of termination of such occupancy, the means to be employed in publishing such sale, together with the proposed language contained in any advertisements. Such application shall furtheri contain, as part thereof, an itemized list of the goods, wares and merchandise to be offered for sale, why such goods, wares and merchandise are to be sold under such descriptive name or title, and in what manner such name is truthfully descriptive of such sale, the place where such stock was purchased or acquired, and if not purchased, the manner of such acquisition and when acquired, and also, the date of delivery thereof to the applicant. Upon recd pt of such application and payment of the fee hereinafter prescribed, the City Council shall I' cause the same to be examined and investigated. Section 5: Place or Location. The City Council reserves the right to deny the application if the place or location where the auction sale is to be held is in violation of the City toning Ordinance, or is in a traffic congested area, or if no adequate means for parking have been provided for or if deemed to disturb the peace and quiet of the neighborhood or for any other reason. Section 6. License. If, upon investigation the facts as represented by the application are found to conform to the representations thereof, and if the place or location where the auction sale or sales are to be held is deemed suitable by the Council, and if the advertising proposed to be used truly represents such facts and is not fraudulent or misleading to the public, the City Council may issue a license permitting the publication and conduct of such sale, or sales. Section 7. Fraudulent or Misleading Advertising. It shall be unlawful for q 9 a licensee to advertise or cause to be advertised, goods, wares or merchandise for a sale, as herein defined, which do not conform to the representations of the advertisement. It shall be unlawful for any person conducting such a sale to add any goods to the inventoried stock thereof, or to sell any goods, except those in the original inventoried stock thereof, or to sell any goods, except those j in the original inventory while representing the same by advertising, inference or otherwise, as being a part of the goods advertised for sale, as herein authorized. Section 8. Period of License. Such license shall be for a period not exceed. ing thirty (30) days, except that upon satisfactory proof by the licensee that the stock itemized in the original application has not been disposed of, upon proper application, the City Council may renew such license for additional thirty (30) day periods upon payment of the prescribed renewal fee. Said renewal application shall contain an itemized list of the original stock on hand, and shall be verified by the applicant. The City Council shall cause the same to be examined and investigated, and if satisfied as to the truth of the statements therein contained, the City Council may issue a renewal license for the period of thirty (30) days. Section 9. Weekly Reports. At the conclusion of each week of such auction sale or sales or the continuation thereof, permittee shall report to the City a Inspector, the approximate prdportion of the original inventory of the goods sold, i and if available, shall furnish him with a revised inventory thereof in approximat detail. Section 10. Bond Required. Before a license shall be issued by the City Council under such application, the applicant shall execute and deliver to the City of Ames, a bond in the penal sum of One Thousand Dollars ($ 1,000.00) signed by such applicant, and also signed by a surety company duly authorized to transact business in the state of Iowa, which bond shall be conditioned upon j the faithful observance of the provisions of this ordinance, and also conditioned i to reimburse and indemnify any purchaser at any such sale, as provided for herein, duly held by such licensee for any loss incurred or damage sustained by such purchaser by reason of misrepresentation or fraud in the sale of any such goods, wares or merchandise. In such bond the applicant and the surety shall appoint the Mayor of the City of Ames, Iowa, the agent of the applicant and the surety for the service of legal process. The City Council may waive the bond requirement if it is deemed advisable for the particular type of auction sale or sales to be conducted. Section 11. License Fees Upon Filing. Upon filing an original application i or a renewal application for a license to advertise and conduct an auction sale or special sale, as hereinbefore defined, the applicant shall pay, if the stock of goods on hand inventories at Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or less, a license fee in the sum of Ten Dollars ($ 16.00), if the stock of goods inventories in excess of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), up to and including Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($ 15,000.00), the applicant shall pay a fee in the sum of Twenty Dollars ($20.00), and if the stock of goods inventories in excess of Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($ 15,000.00) the applicant shall pay a fee in the sum of Thirty Dollars ($30.00). If any application or renewal application be disapproved, one-half of said payment shall be forfeited to the City Council as and for the cost of investigating the statements in such application or renewal application. Section 12. Enforcement. Upon commencement of any sale, as hereinbefor defined, the license issued by the City Council shall be prominently displayed nea the entrance to the premises. A duplicate original of the application and stock list, pursuant to which such license was issued, shall, at all times, be available to the City Council or to the inspector and the licensee shall permit such inspector to examine all merchandise in the premises for comparison with such stock list at any and all times during the period of such sale. All advert_se- ments or advertising, and the language contained there n, shall be in accordance with the purpose of the sale as stated in the application pursuant to which a license was issued, and the wording of such advertisements shall not vary from the wording as indicated in the application. Such advertising shall contain a statement in these words: "Sale held pursuant to Permit No. of the City Council, granted the day of 14 ." and in such blank spaces, shall be indicated the perrnit amber and the requisite dates. Books and records of the sale shall be kept by the licensee, and shall at all times be available to the inspector. Section 13. Exemptions. The provisions of this Ordinance shall not apply to or affect the following persons: (a) Persons acting pursuant to an order or process of a court of competent jurisdiction. (b) Persons acting in accordance with their powers anc_ duties as public officers, such as sheriffs, bailiffs, or marshals. (c) Auction sales by individuals of their own personal property, not subject to renewal, not contemplated to last more than one day or to occur more often than once in a calender year and when such auction sales are made with or without the service of a licensed auctioneer. (d) Executors, guardians, assigness of insolvent debtors, bankrupts and/or other persons required by law to sell said property. Section 14. Violations. Any person who shall violate, neglect or refuse to comply with any of the provisions of this Ordinance, or who shall make a false statement in any application for a license as herein required, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than One Hundred Dollars ($ 100.00) or by imprisonment not exceeding thirty (30) days. Section 15. Unconstitutionality. If any section subsection, clause, sentence or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have passed this chapter and each section, sub section, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more of the sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared unconstitutional or invalid. Section 16. All Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict with the provis-_ons of this amendment are hereby repealed. Section 17. This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after passage and publication as provided by law. Passed this 15th day of September, 1953. J. W. Prather, City Clerk . Allan, Mayor Moved by Griffith and seconded by Bauge that Ordinance No. 736 be passed on its first reading. Voting Aye: Griffith, Bauge, De Hart, Iverson and b400re Voting Nay: None Absent: Smith Moved by Iverson and seconded by Moore that the rules governing the passage of ordinances be suspended, the seconded and third readings omitted and Ordinance No. 736 be placed on its final passage. Voting Aye: Griffith, Bauge, De Hart, Iverson and Moore Voting Nay: None Absent: Smith Moved by De Hart and seco ded by Bauge that Ordinance No. 736 do now pass. Voting Aye: Griffith, Bauge, De Hart, Iverson and Moore Voting Nay: None Absent: Smith Mayor Allan declared Ordinance No. 736 duly passed. I, J. W. Prather, City Clerk of the City of Ames, Iowa, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing Ordinance No. 736 was duly and properly passed at a meeting of the City Council on the 15th da;� pf September, 1953 and published in the Ames Daily Tr .bune on the �3 ••..��' day of 1953. �; J. W-41rather, City Clerk