SOLICITATION PERMITS
W
ith the onset of warmer weather,
you may notice an increase in
door to door solicitation in your
neighborhood. Plum Borough
Ordinance 914-17 requires that
all door to door solicitation be registered with the
Plum Borough Police Department and that all those
conducting the solicitation undergo a criminal
background check. Additionally, all persons granted
a permit to solicit must carry a copy of that permit
along with photo identification on their person
while engaged in solicitation from house to house.
Solicitation hours established under the ordinance
are from 9 am to 9 pm May 1 through September
30, or 9 am to 6 pm October 1 through April 30.
Some individuals or organizations are exempt from
permitting, to include the manufacturer, producer
or distributor of raw or prepared foods providing
that the vendor has an established route with
established customers along the route; persons
representing political or religious groups, as well
as any youth organization such as the Boy Scouts
or Girl Scouts. Door to door solicitation permits are
not valid for longer than a sixty (60) day period,
although vendors may apply to renew their permit
once per calendar year. If you have any questions
or concerns related to a door to door solicitor who
comes to your home, you may contact the police
department by dialing 911, and the responding
officer will confirm that the vendor is properly
permitted. Penalty for violation of this ordinance is a
summary offense and upon conviction, carries a fine
of not more than $600 and/or imprisonment of not
more than 90 days.
TRANSIENT/SEASONAL VENDOR PERMITS
In addition to door to door solicitation, Plum
Borough also requires permitting for transient
or seasonal businesses. These are defined as any
business or individual selling, soliciting or taking
orders for any goods, wares or merchandise from a
fixed location within Plum Borough on a temporary
basis, to include, but not limited to activities
conducted at the time of special occasions or
celebrations, for season purposes, or in advance of
specific yearly holidays. Examples of these types
of vendors include tents that sell fireworks and
roadside stands selling flowers for Easter or Mother’s
Day. Seasonal vendors include any business or
individual selling, soliciting or taking orders for any
agricultural products grown or produced on the
subject property where the sales will occur. These
vendors include roadside stands which sell corn or
other produce. Like the door to door solicitation
28
PLUM
ordinance requirements, these vendors are also
required to submit to a background check before
the permit is issued and must conspicuously display
a copy of their permit at their vending location.
Unlike the door to door vendor, the transient/
seasonal vendor must also include a site plan with
their application to ensure that all established safety
requirements for the temporary vending location
are being met. Permits for transient/seasonal
vending may be issued by the day, week or month,
but are never issued for a period of more than one
year.
Applications for door to door solicitation or
transient/seasonal vendor permits can be obtained
by contacting the police records department at
412.795.680 extension 4370 during regular business
hours.
ALARM PERMITS
Plum Borough also requires by ordinance that all
residential and business alarm systems be registered
with the police department. Registration forms are
available from the Police Departments’ Records
Administrator during regular business hours or may
be printed from the Borough’s website. To print the
form, please go to the downloadable forms section
on the police department page of the Borough’s
website and select either Business or Residential
Alarm Registration. Failure to register an alarm
system with the police department is a summary
offense and upon conviction, carries a fine of not
more than $300 and/or imprisonment of not more
than 30 days
For more specific information about alarm
registration requirements, please contact the police
records department at 412.795.6800 extension 4370.
LEAVING FOR A VACATION THIS SUMMER?
The Plum Borough
Police Department
does not offer
physical checks of
residences; however,
if you are going on
vacation or leaving
your home for an
extended period of
time, you may
contact the police department during regular
business hours at 412.795.6800 extension 4371 to
provide emergency contact information in the event
a problem should arise at your residence while you
are away.