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STATE AND LOCAL REGULATION <br /> OF • <br /> PAWNBROKERS <br /> I. INTRODUCTION <br /> State and local regulation of pawnbrokers has a long history in Minnesota. <br /> Regulating pawnshops is one of the oldest exercises of local police powers in the <br /> state. Initially confined to central cities, such regulation is now becoming more <br /> common in suburban and rural areas, as entrepreneurs open pawnshops in these <br /> areas. At least one national pawn company's stock is traded publicly on a national <br /> exchange, and several franchise operations are in existence throughout the country. <br /> Since 1990, Bloomington, Minnesota, a city with a population of 87,000 has gone <br /> from having no pawnshops to litensing three, one of which claims to be the largest <br /> in the upper midwest. <br /> What follows is a survey of cases and statutes from Minnesota and other <br /> jurisdictions relating to the licensing of pawnbrokers. Included in the materials are <br /> examples of ordinances regulating pawnbrokers, as well as an overview of <br /> ordinances adopted by several cities in the state. <br /> IL LICENSING PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE TO THE REGULATION OF <br /> PAWNBROKERS <br /> A. "A Privilege Subject to Conditions" <br /> In Minnesota, the case law still provides that a license confers the licensee <br /> with only the "privilege" to operate a licensed business for the period <br /> specified in the license and subject to specified conditions outlined in a <br /> • <br /> 2 <br />