Peddlers Ordinance

Johnson County Code Chapter 24: 2-24-3

2-24-3: License Required
No person shall engage in the business of peddler, solicitor or transient merchant outside the corporate limits of cities and towns in Johnson County, Indiana, without a license.

This ordinance shall not apply to the selling of personal property at wholesale to dealers of such articles; to newsboys; to merchants or their employees in delivering goods in the regular course of business; to vendors of milk, bakery products, groceries or ice who distribute their products to regular customers on established routes; or to farmers or truck gardners who vend, sell, dispose of, or offer to sell, vend or dispose of products from farms or gardens occupied and cultivated by them. This ordinance does not prohibit any sale required by statute or by court order, or prohibit any auction sale conducted pursuant to law.

2-24-4: Application for License
Applicants for a license under this ordinance shall file with the Johnson County Auditor, on a form provided by him/her, a sworn application in writing which provides the following:

• Name and physical description of the applicant
• Permanent home and local address of applicant; and in the case of transient merchants, the local address from which proposed sales will be made.
• A brief description of the nature of the business and the goods to be sold.
• The name and address of employer, if any.
• The length of time for which the right to do business is desired.
• If employer is a corporation, the state of its incorporation, whether it is authorized to do business in the State of Indiana, and evidence that the corporation has designated a resident agency in Indiana upon whom legal service may be made and that the corporation will be responsible for the acts of its employees in Johnson County.
• A statement as to whether or not the applicant has been convicted of any crime, misdemeanor or violation of any municipal ordinance, other than traffic violations, the nature of the offense, and any penalty imposed.
• The last cities, counties, cities or towns, not exceeding three, where applicant conducted business immediately proceeding the date of the application, and the addresses from which such business were conducted.

2-24-5: Investigation of Applicants
Upon receipt of each application, it shall be referred to the Johnson County Sheriff who shall investigate the business and moral character of the applicant. If upon investigation, the applicant’s character is found unsatisfactory, no license shall be issued.

2-24-6: Approval or Denial of License
The approval of the Johnson County Sheriff must be presented to the Johnson County Auditor before any license is issued.

No license shall be approved by the Johnson County Sheriff or issued by the Johnson County Auditor if it appears that the activity for which the license is sought will be contrary to the health, safety, welfare of the public, or in violation of any regulation, law or ordinance applicable to such activity.

2-24-7: Bond
An applicant for a license under this ordinance shall file with the Johnson County Auditor a surety bond in the amount of $500.00, prior to the license being issued, conditioned that the applicant shall comply fully with all ordinances of Johnson County and statutes of the State of Indiana regulating peddlers, solicitors and transient merchants, and guaranteeing to any Johnson County resident that all money paid as a down payment will be accounted for and applied according to the representations of the licensee, and further guaranteeing to any County resident doing business with the licensee that the property purchased will be delivered according to the representations of the licensee. Action on such bond may be brought by the person aggrieved and for whose benefit, among others, the bond is given.

2-24-8: Fees
The fee for a license under this ordinance is $10.00 per day, or $50.00 per week. A bona fide County resident may obtain a license for six months for $75.00.

2-24-9: License Form
The license shall show the date of issue, activity licensed, and term of license, and shall be signed in the name of Johnson County, by the County Auditor, and bear the county seal. The Auditor shall maintain a record of all licenses issued.

2-24-11: Exhibition of License
Every licensee shall carry his license upon his person at all times when engaged in the activity for which the license was granted; except that where such activity is conducted at a fixed place or establishment, the license shall be exhibited in some conspicuous place in his place of business. The licensee shall exhibit the license when applying for a renewal and upon demand of any Johnson County Police Officer or person representing the Johnson County Auditor.

2-24-17: Violations and Penalties
Any person who violates one or more of the provisions of this ordinance shall be guilty of a violation and upon conviction, may be fined not more than $2,500.00 for each such violation.

This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after 8th day of August 1983.

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