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HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 7-VAN ORDINANCE AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR LICENSING AND REGU- LATING THE SALE AT PUBLIC AUCTION OF JEWELRY, DIAMONDS OR OTHER PRECIOUS OR SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES, WATCHES, CLOCKS, PICTURES, GOLD OR SIL- VER WARE OR PLATED WARE, PAINTINGS, TRUNKS, SUITCASES, CURIOS, GLASSWARE, PORCELAIN, OR BRIC-A-BRAC; AND PROVIDING THE MODE AND MANNER SUCH AUCTION SALE SHALL BE CONDUCTED; PROVIDING FOR A LICENSE THEREFOR; PROVIDING FOR FIXED AND PRESCRIBED PENALTIES. WHEREAS, The City of Beaumont does not now have in ef- fect an ordinance regulating auction sales; and, WHEREAS, in many auction sales in the past there have been many acts of fraud, extortion and oppression growing out of misrepresentations and deceit practiced at said auction sales on the public by unregulated persons engaged in the selling of the goods above described at auction; and, WHEREAS, the City Council of The City of Beaumont is of the opinion that there exists an urgency in behalf of the preserva- tion of the public peace, health and safety because of such acts, and that, therefore, this ordinance regulating auction sales becomes necessary and should be enacted; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, TEXAS: Section 1. That it shall hereafter be unlawful for any person, firm, or corpor- ation to sell, dispose of, or offer for sale in The City of .'Beaumont at a public auction, or cause or permit to be sold, disposed of or offered for sale at public auction within The City of Beaumont,jew- elry, diamonds, or other precious stones or semi-precious stones, watches, clocks, pictures, paintings, gold or silver ware or plated ware, trunks, suitcases, curios, glassware, porcelain, or bric-a-brac, whether the same shall behis own property or whether the sale of the sameshall be made by or through him as agent or employee of the owner thereof, or in any capacity, without first complying with the provisions of this ordinance and obtaining and having a license from the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of The City of Beaumont, and making an application therefor as herein provided; provided, however, that this ordinance shall not apply to judicial sales or sales made by executors or administrators, nor to sales by trustees, mortgagees or assignees, under the terms of any instrument given to secure a bona fide indebtedness under which he exercises the power of sale, nor to sales made by or on behalf of licensed pawnbrokers of unredeemed pledges, nor to sales of unclaimed freight or express, as provided by law, nor to sales by sheriffs, constables, or other officers, as provided by law, nor to any other particular kind of auction sale expressly authorized by the laws of Texas, or by the laws of the United States. Section 2. Any person desiring to hold an auction sale or sales for the purpose of the sale of any of the goods hereinbefore described shall make application to the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of Beaumont, as herein provided, for a license therefor., and the said Assessor and Collector of Taxes shall_ issue to any such person a license upon his complying with the terms of this ordinance, such a license to be made for a period of time to be designated therein, provided that no license shall be issued for a longer period than one year from the date thereof. Section 3. The application for a license shall be in writing, signed and sworn to, stating the name of the applicant, his residence, the street and number of the proposed place of sale or sales, the length of time for which the license is desired, whether the applicant was - 2 - previously engaged in a like or similar business, designating the place where such business or businesses were conducted, and the length of time conducted. Section 4. The application for alicense shall have attached to it a sworn inventory of such goods to be auctioned, describing the quality, quantity, kind, grade, and trade name of each item. In the case of an individual, such affidavit shall be made by him as such; in the ease of a firm, it shall be made by one of the partners; and in the case of a corporation, it shall be made by the president, general manager, secretary, or treasurer. No merchandise shall be sold at such auction sale except that referred to and included in the inventory made a part of the application. Section 5. All' -'-persons desiring a license shall, upon complying with the provisions of this ordinance and before a license shall be is- sued, furnish a bond to The City of Beaumont, duly executed by such applicant as principal in the sum of One Thousand ($1,000.00) Dollars, which bond shall be payable to The City of Beaumont, at Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas, to be approved by the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of this City, and shall be conditioned that the said princi- pal thereon shall pay all loss and damage which may lawfully be claimed against him on account of any material misrepresentation of fact or material suppression of fact concerning the merchandise to be auctioned at any such sale, or auctioned at any such sale, or which may grow out of violation of any of the provisions of this ordinance. Such bond shall enure to the benefit of any and all persons who sus- tain any loss or damage on account of any such misrepresentation or violation of this ordinance, and any such person sustaining any dam- age or loss may bring suit in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the same, and the provisions of said bond shall be construed - 3 - I liberally in favor of all such persons sustaining such loss or damage. All remedies upon or under such bond shall be in addition to and cumulative of all other remedies the parties may have at law or in equity. The bond shall be executed by two or more good and solvent sureties or by some solvent surety company having a permit to do business in Texas. Cumulative recoveries may be had on said bond to the full amount thereof. Section 6. Before any license shall be issued the applicant shall pay to The City of Beaumont a license fee of Twenty -Five ($25.00) Dollars. Section 7. It shall be unlawful.for any person acting as auctioneer to make any material misrepresentation of fact, or any material sup- pression of fact concerning the goods to be auctioned at such sale, or auctioned at such sale, or to make any -other material misrepresen- tation of fact whatsoever as to the quality, quantity, character, cost, or general selling price, or whether new or second-hand, or partly so, of any goods offered for disposal by auction sale, or sold at.auction sale. Section 8. It shall be unlawful for any person to act as a by -bidder or what is commonly known as a "capper" or "Booster" at any such auction or place where any such auction shall take place, or to offer or make any false bid, or to offer any false bid to buy or pretend to buy any such articles offered for sale at any such auction. Section 9. It shall be the duty of the person, firm, or corporation whose goods are thus being sold at public auction to give each and every purchaser of an article,the selling price of which amounts to the sum of $2.50 or more, an invoice containing a full description - 4 - t of the article and the selling price thereof, with a statement giv- ing each and every warranty under which the article was sold, and stating whether or not Federal taxes is included in the selling price. Duplicate copies of said invoices shall be kept. Where diamonds and precious stones, and semi-precious stones, are sold at auction, said invoice shall not only contain a full, complete and accurate description of same, stating its size, grade.and quality, but shall also contain a statement of the weight of such diamond, precious stone, or semi-precious stone. Section 10. The term "person", as used in this ordinance, shall in- clude any person, firm, or association of persons, or any corpora- tion, theiragents, servants, or employees. Section 11. No auction sale shall be held or conducted on any public vacant lot, public street, public sidewalk, public alley, public square, or public plaza in The City of Beaumont. Section 12. Any person violating any of the provisions of this ordi- nance shall, upon conviction in the Corporation Court of Beaumont, Texas, be fined in any sum of not less than Fifty ($50.00) Dollars nor more than Two Hundred ($200.00) Dollars. Each and every sale in violation of this ordinance shall be deemed to be a separate offense. Section 13. In the event the application for a license provided for in this ordinance is refused by the Assessor and Collector of Taxes, the applicant shall have the right to appeal to the City Council of The City of Beaumont. Section l4e This ordinance shall be and is hereby declared to be cumulative of all other ordinances of The City of Beaumont affecting transients, itenerant vendors, and temporary vendors, and shall not - 5 - - • c operate to repeal or affect any such ordinance or ordinances, ex- cept in so far as the provisions of such ordinance or ordinances are inconsistent or in conflict with the provisions of this ordi- nance, in which instance or instances those provisions shall be and they are hereby repealed. Section 15. Should any portion or part of this ordinance be held for any reason invalid or unenforceable, the same shall not be construed to affect any other valid portion hereof, but all valid portions hereof shall remain in full forc.e0d effect. Section 16. All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent or in conflict herewith are hereby expressly repealed. 1949. PASSED by the City Council this 15th day of November, A.D. - Mayor - V Ic � AN ORDINANCE AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR LICENSING AND REGU- LATING THE SALE AT PUBLIC AUCTION OF JEWELRY, DIAMONDS OR OTHER.PRECIOUS OR.SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES, WATCHES, CLOCKS, PICTURES, GOLD OR SIL- VERWARE OR PLATED WARE, PAINTINGS, TRUNKS, SUIT- CASES, CURIOS,. GLASSWARE, PORCELAIN, OR.BRIC-A BRAC; AND PROVIDING THE MODE AND MANNER SUCH -. AUCTION SALE SHALL BE CONDUCTED.AND THE HOUR SAID AUCTION SALE MAY BE CONDUCTED; PROVIDING. FOR A LICENSE THEREFOR:- PROVIDING FOR FIXED AND.PRE- SCRIBED PENALTIES. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, TEXAS: Section 1. That it shall hereafter be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to sell, dispose of, or offer for sale in The City of Beaumont at a public auction, or cause or permit to be sold, dis- posed of or offered for sale at public auction within The City of Beaumont, jewelry, diamonds or other precious stones or semi-precious stones, watches, clocks, pictures, paintings, gold or silver ware or plated ware, trunks, suitcases, curios, glassware, porcelain, or bric- a-brac, whether the same shall behis own property or whether the sale of the same shall be made by or through him as agent or employee of the owner thereof, or in any capacity, without first complying with the provisions of this ordinance and obtaining a license from the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of The City of Beaumont, and making an application therefore as herein provided; provided, however, that this article shall not apply to judicial sales or sales made by execu- tors or administrators, nor to sales made by or in behalf of a licensed pawnbroker of unredeemed pledges which are made in the manner provided by law, nor to sales by sheriffs or constables or other officials, as provided by law, nor to any other particular kind of auction sale ex- pressly authorized by the laws of the State of Texas, or by the laws of the United States. Section 2. Any person desiring to hold an auction sale or sales for the purpose of the sale of any of the goods hereinbefore described shall make application to the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of Beaumont, as herein provided, for a license therefor, and the said Assessor and Collector of Taxes shall issue to any such person a license upon his complying with the terms of this ordinance, such a license to be made for a period of time to be designated therein, provided that no license shall be.issued for a longer period than one year from the date thereof. Section 3. The application for a license shall be in writing, signed and sworn to, stating the name of the applicant, his residence, the street and number of the proposed place of sale, the length of time for which the license is desired, and whether the applicant was prev- iously engaged in a like or similar business, designating the place where such business or businesses were conducted and the length of time conducted, and shall state the period of day the applicant de- sires to hold said auction sale, and shall furnish the Assessor and Collector of Taxes with such further evidence as shall be necessary and seasonable to establish the truth of the statements made in said application, and the right of the applicant to a license. Section L. The application for a license shall have attached to it a sworn inventory of such stock or merchandise to be auctioned, describ- ing the quantity, quality, kind, grade and trade name of each item.and invoice cost thereof; to such inventory there shall be attached an affidavit that such inventory is in all respects true and correct, and if any item in saidinventory is owned by one other than -the applicant for the license, same shall be noted so as to clearly indicate the ownership of all such items as are to be sold. The inventory shall - 2 - V also indicate where each item of merchandise is located at the time said affidavit is executed. In the lase of an individual, such af- fidavit shall be made by him as such; in the case of a firm, it shall be made by one of the partners; and in the case of a corporation, it shall be made by the president, general manager, secretary, or treas- urer. Such inventory and affidavit, when so made, shall be kept on file in the office of the Assessor and Collector of Taxes as a part of the public records pertaining to the sale. No merchandise shall be sold at such auction sale except that referred to and included in the inventory made a part of the application. Section 5. All persons desiring a license shall, upon complying with the provisions of this ordinance and before a license shall be issued, furnish a bond to The City of Beaumont, duly executed by ;such appli- cant as principal in the sum of Five Thousand ($5,000.00) Dollars, which bond shall be payable to the City of Beaumont, at Beaumont, Jef- ferson County, Texas, to be approved by the Assessor and Collector of Taxes of this City, and shall be conditioned that the said principal thereon ;shall pay all losses and damages which may lawfully be claimed against him on account of any material misrepresentation of facts or material suppression of facts concerning the merchandise to be auctioned at such sale, or which may grow out of the violation of any of the provisions of this ordinance; such bond shall enure to the benefit of any and all persons who sustain any loss or damage on account of any such misrepresentation or violation of this ordinance, and shall cover a all auction sales of merchandise described in the inventory made and required to be filed with the Assessor and Collector of Taxes, and any such person sustaining any damage or loss may bring suit in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the same, and the provisions of said bond shall be construed liberally in favor of any such person on account of any loss or damage sustained by any such person, eithOr - 3 - directly or indirectly. All remedies upon or under such bond shall be in addition to and cumulative of all other remedies the patties may have at law or in equity. The bond shall be executed by two or more good and solvent sureties or by some solvent surety company hav- i ng a permit to do business in Texas. Cumul&tive recoveries may be had on said bond to the full amount thereof. Section 6. The Assessor. and Collector of Taxes may inspect and inves- tigate any part or all of such stock or merchandise. coming within the purview of this ordinance before issuing the license, in order to de- termine the truth of the statements made in the application and in the inventory. Section 7. Before any license shall be issued the applicant shall pay to The City of Beaumont a license fee in advance in a sum equal to Five ($5.00) Dollars per day for each of the days for which the auc- tion is entitled to be held, according to the license, provided, how- ever, the total to be paid for one license fee shall not exceed Six Hundred (.$600.00) Dollars. Section $. It shall be unlawful for any person acting as auctioneer to make any material misrepresentation of facts, or any material suppres- sion of facts concerning the goods to be auctioned at such sale, or auctioned at such sale, or to make any statements which have a tenden- cy to mislead any person present, or to make any other misrepresenta- tion whatsoever as to the quantity, quality, character, cost, or gen- eral selling price, or whether new or second-hand, or partly so, of any property offered for disposal by auction sale, or sold at auction sale. Section 9. It shall be unlawful for any person acting as auctioneer to sell or offer for sale at auction sale any goods or merchandise - 4 - not included in the inventory filed with the Assessor and Collector of Taxes at the time of application for a license, as provided here- in;, and, further, it sahll be unlawful for anyone to display, either in show cases or inside the place where the auction sale is to be held, or being held, any goods or merchandise which are not to be sold during said auction sale or any goods or merchandise which are not available for sale at the request of any legitimate bidder, pro- vided, however, that any item may be displayed if it is clearly marked that it is not to be sold or offered for sale at said auction. Section 10. It shall be unlawful for any person to act as a by -bidder or what.is commonly known as a "capper" or "booster" at any such auc- tion or place where any such auction shall take place, or to offer or make any false bid, or to offer any false bid to buy or pretend to buy any such articles offered for sale at any such auction. Section 11. It shall be the duty of.the auctioneer to make some descrip- tion of the person making a bid every time a bid is announced, and also to point out or to designate the place of the bidder on the prem- ises. Section 12. It shall be the duty of the person whose merchandise is be- ing sold at public auction to give each and every purchaser -of an article, the selling price of which amounts to the sum of $2.50 or more, an invoice containing a full description of,the article and the selling price thereof, with a statement giving each and every warranty under which the article was sold, and stating whether or not Federal taxes is included in the selling price. Duplicate copies of said invoices shall be kept. Where diamonds and precious stones, and semi-precious stones, are sold at auction, said invoice shall not only contain a full, com- plete and accurate description of same, stating its size, grade and - 5 - quality, but shall also contain a statement of the weight of such diamond, precious stone or semi-precious stone. Section 13. The term "person", as used in this ordinance, shall include any person, firm, or association of persons, or.any corporation, their agents, servants, or employees. Section 14. No.auction sale shall be held or conducted on any public vacant lot, public street, public sidewalk, public alley, public square, or public plaza in The ,City of Beaumont. Section 15. Any person violating any of the provisions of this ordi- nance shall, upon conviction in the Corporation Court of Beaumont, Texas, be fined in any sum of not less than Fifty ($50.00) Dollars nor more than Two Hundred ($200.00) Dollars, and each and every parm say that a violation of this ordinance occurs shall be deemed a separ- ate offense. In addition to the penalty herein provided for, when any such person is convicted in the Corporation Court or upon appeal therefrom, the Judge of said Corporation Court or any judge upon ap- peal therefrom may revoke the license under which the said auction is being held, and it shall be unlawful for any such person whose license is revoked to hold such auction under the terms of this ordinance; provided, however, that any person whose license is revoked may make application to the governing body of The City of Beaumont and after a hearing on such application for a re -issuance of such license, may have a new license granted ;upon the order of the governing body to the Assessor and Collector of Taxes, provided such person shall ;comply with the terms and provisions of this ordinance. Section 16. In the event the application for a'license provided for in this ordinance is refused by the Assessor and Collector of Taxes, the applicant shall have the right to appeal to the City Council of The City of Beaumont. - 6 - Section -17. This ordinance shall be and is hereby declared to be cumulative to all other ordinances of The City of Beaumont affect- ing transients, iterierant vendors, and temporary vendors, and shall not operate to repeal or affect any such ordinance or ordinances, except in so far as the provisions of such ordinance or ordinances are inconsistent or in conflict with the provisions of this ordi- nance, in which instance or instances those provisions shall be and they are hereby repealed. Section 18. Should any portion or part of this ordinance be held for any reason invalid or unenforceable, the same shall not be construed to affect any other valid portion hereof, but all valid portions hereof shall remain in full force and effect. 1949. PASSED by the City Council this 8th day of November, A.D. -7- - Mayor -