Solicitors Must Register With Township Under Ordinance Revisions

Peddlers and solicitors must register with the township and undergo a background check before they are allowed to operate in Manchester, now that revisions to an existing ordinance were approved.

The existing ordinance only addressed solicitations from Manchester's first aid squads and fire departments. The revisions to chapter 301 of the township code amend the existing law to include rules for individuals who want to solicit or peddle door to door within the township.

"If you want to do something like that, you're going to have to come to get a permit," said council president Craig Wallis when the revisions were introduced in January. "The police will have to do a slight background check to make sure you're valid and that you don't have the wrong people doing it for you."

The resolution states that it is unlawful for a person to sell good, solicit funds, subscriptions or contributions without applying for an receiving a permit from the clerk's office. 

The police department brought it to the council's attention that the current ordinance did not give officers any grounds for enforcement, Wallis said. The permitting process is something the township wants to enforce in part because a Toms River woman was murdered a few years back by a door-to-door solicitor.

On Jan. 24, council members decided to table the ordinance until the Feb. 13 meeting because it was not clear in its definitions, said township attorney Steven Secare.

One of the changes requested was that the ordinance should exclude certain solicitors from a permit charge.

"One of the things that [the police department] would like in here — and it think it is legally acceptable — is we can't charge people who are doing, for example, religious or environmental house-to-house calls," Secare said. "The reason they are exempt on fees is a First Amendment issue." 

Though those types of organizations cannot be charged, Wallis said, the township would "still want to make sure [they are] valid" by running a check.

Secare affirmed that stance, as the township would be within its rights to investigate a prospective solicitor prior to issuing a permit.

"The First Amendment would not prevent a background check," he said.

The types of types of acceptable organizations that can be permitted should be considered and better defined, Secare said.

"You could have the Church of Steve, is that an acceptable organization?" he questioned. 

The ordinance states that the permit costs $150 and sets forth guidelines for proper identification and signage, times solicitors may work, and establishes a fine of up to $1,000 and up to 90 days in jail or community service for violators.

Wallis said that the council and police wanted the ordinance in place before Spring, when better weather will be more inviting to solicitors.