6.7. SR 07-10-2000 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Question No. 1 Answer: Question No. 2 Answer: Question No. 3 Answer: Question No. 4 Answer: Question No. 5 Answer: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS REGARDING ELK RIVER'S TRANSIENT MERCHANT ORDINANCE July 2000 Can the City of Elk River ban transient merchants from conducting business within the city limits? No, it may only regulate the conduct of business within the City limits by transient merchants. See, e.g., American Trucking Ass'n v. Scheiner, 483 U.S. 266, 281 (1987). For instance, the City may require transient merchants to obtain a license and pay a reasonable license fee prior to carrying on business within the City. Where does the City's authority to regulate transient merchants come from? As a political subdivision of the State of Minnesota, the City of Elk River is granted its authority to regulate business within the City by the State. Specifically, Minnesota Statute § 329.15 grants municipalities the authority to regulate and license the business of a transient merchant carried on within the municipality. Similarly, Minnesota Statute § 329.06 grants municipalities the authority to regulate and license the business of peddlers and hawkers carried on within the municipality. Does Elk River's Transient Merchant Ordinance unfairly discriminate against interstate commerce? No, the ordinance applies equally to transient merchants doing business in either interstate commerce (between states), or intrastate (completely within Minnesota). This is true regardless of whether the business is based in another metropolitan city, elsewhere in Minnesota, or outside the state. As long as it does not maintain a business location within the City of Elk River, the merchant must obtain a license. Does the City's license fee constitute an unconstitutional tax? No, it is a valid license fee designed to recoup the administrative costs to the City for processing the application and issuing the license. A tax, on the other hand, is imposed to raise revenue. The intent of the Transient Merchant Ordinance is to protect local residents. Is interstate commerce exempt from such local license fees? No, even interstate commerce can be required to pay its "fair share" of the cost of local government. Elk River charges a modest fee, $50, for a license that is good for one year irregardless of the amount of business conducted within the City. It is not a tax. It is not unduly burdensome.