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Home My WebLink About6.4 Regulate Fortunetelling Ordinance CITY OF DUBLIN AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: December 22, 1986 SUBJECT PUBLIC HEARING - Ordinance Regulating Fortunetelling for Pay EXHIBITS ATTACHED Draft Ordinance; Fortunetelling Permit Form; Application for Fortunetelling Permit RECOMMENDATION Open Public Hearing Receive Staff Presentation Hear Public Testimony Close Public Hearing Waive Reading and Adopt Ordinance FINANCIAL STATEMENT: The cost incurred by the Police Department in issuing a permit would be recovered by a permit fee. The amount of the permit fee will be established later by resolution. DESCRIPTION The attached proposed ordinance is brought to the City Council as part of the comprehensive revision of the City' s ordinances and development of a Municipal Code. The City Council recently adopted an ordinance revising the City' s Zoning Ordinance which permits fortunetelling with the approval of a conditional use permit. In addition to this ordinance, the City Attorney' s Office has prepared a draft ordinance which establishes other regulations for fortunetelling for pay. The proposed draft ordinance provides for the revision of Title 4, Chapter 1, Article 4 of the Alameda County Code which the City adopted by Ordinance No. 13-82. This draft ordinance makes it unlawful for a person to engage . in the business of fortunetelling within the City without first obtaining a permit from the Chief of Police. The Chief of Police has reviewed this ordinance and is in concurrence with its content. The Police Department has also prepared a draft permit form and permit application form which is attached. The City Council introduced this ordinance at its meeting of December 8, 1986 . ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- COPIES TO: ITEM NO. m ..... ..-n..n. .... -.. . ..... Z vc+.� .... ....' i^PT'°�° -xJ T 1 I C"'•,n Ts»r.J _ _ .. ORDINANCE NO. - 86 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN REGULATING FORTUNETELLING FOR PAY The City Council of the City of Dublin does ordain as follows : Section 1 . DEFINITIONS: (a) FOR PAY. "For pay" shall mean for a fee, reward, donation, loan or receipt of anything of value. (b) FORTUNETELLING. "Fortunetelling" shall mean telling of fortunes, forecasting of futures or furnishing of any information not otherwise obtainable by the ordinary process of knowledge, by means of any occult, psychic power, faculty, force, clairvoyance, clairaudience, cartomancy, psychology, psychometry, phrenology, spirits, tea leaves, or other such reading, mediumship, seership, prophecy, augury, astrology, palmistry, necromancy, mindreading, telepathy, or other craft art, science, cards, talisman, charm, potion, magnetism, magnetized article or substance, gypsy cunning or foresight, crystal gazing, oriental mysteries or magic, of any kind or nature for pay. (c) PERSON. "Person" shall mean only natural persons. Section 2 . PERMIT REQUIRED: It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of fortunetelling within the City of Dublin without first obtaining a permit therefor as provided herein. Section 3 . APPLICATION: (a) INFORMATION TO BE SUBMITTED. Applicants for permits must file with the Chief of Police a sworn application in writing on a form to be furnished by the Chief of Police which shall give the following information: (1 ) Applicant' s true name and any other names the applicant has gone by; (2 ) Permanent home address and full local address of applicant for the last five years; (3 ) The address at which the applicant proposes to conduct the business; (4) The fingerprints of the applicant on a form provided by the Police Department; (5 ) The applicant' s social security number; and (6) A statement as to whether or not the applicant has been convicted within the last five (5 ) years of any crime, including violation of any municipal ordinance, involving the elements of fraud. (b) FEES . The application and any renewal application shall be accompanied by a fee to cover administrative costs . No part of such fees shall be refunded whether such permit is issued or not. The application fee and the renewal fee shall be as established by resolution. (c) INVESTIGATION. The Chief of Police shall examine all applications and shall make or cause to be made such further investigation of the application and the applicant as the Chief of Police shall deem necessary in order to perform his duties under this Ordinance. Section 4. ISSUANCE OF PERMIT: (a) Within forty-five (45 ) days of receipt of a complete application for a permit, the Chief of Police shall issue the permit unless he finds that the applicant has not complied with the provisions of this Ordinance or has been convicted of a crime involving the elements of fraud within the last five (5 ) years. (b) TERM OF PERMIT; RENEWAL. The term of the permit shall be for one (1 ) year . A renewal application shall be filed no later than thirty (30) days prior to the expiration of the permit and shall be processed in the same manner as a new application. (c) TRANSFERABILITY OF PERMIT. Any permit issued under this Ordinance shall be non-transferable. (d) DISPLAY OF PERMIT. The permit shall be displayed at the applicant' s place of business. Section 5. SUSPENSION AND REVOCATION OF PERMITS: Whenever it shall be shown that any person to whom a permit has been issued has violated any of the provisions of this Ordinance, or the provisions of the Dublin Zoning Ordinance, the Chief of Police shall immediately suspend the permit and give the permit holder a written notice in person or by mail of the suspension and of a hearing to be held by the Chief of Police within three (3 ) working days of such suspension, to determine whether or not the permit should be revoked. The notice must contain a statement of the facts upon which the Chief of Police has acted in suspending the permit. Section 6. APPEAL FROM DENIAL OR REVOCATION: Any applicant who is denied a permit or whose permit has been revoked, may appeal in writing by filing his appeal with the City Clerk within seven (7) days after receipt of notification that his application for a permit has been denied, or that his permit has been revoked. Such appeal shall be heard by the City Council at a time and place to be set by the City Clerk. Within twenty-one (21 ) days from the date of filing such appeal, the Council shall, conditionally or otherwise, either grant, deny, reinstate or refuse to reinstate such permit. Section 7 . EXEMPTIONS: (a) ENTERTAINMENT. The provisions of this Ordinance shall not apply to any person engaged solely in the business of entertaining the public by demonstrations of mind-reading, mental telepathy, thought conveyance, or the giving of horoscopic readings at public places and in the presence of and within the hearing of all other persons in attendance, and at which no questions are answered as part of such entertainment except in a manner to permit all persons present at such public place to hear such answers. (b) RELIGIOUS PRACTICE. No person shall be required to pay any fee or take out any permit for conducting or participating in any religious ceremony or service when • such person holds a certificate or ordination as a minister, missionary, medium, healer, or clairvoyant (hereinafter collectively referred to as minister) from any bona fide church or religious association maintaining a church and holding regular services and having a creed or set of religious principles that is recognized by all churches of like faith; provided that the fees, gratuities, emoluments, and profits thereof shall be regularly accounted for and paid solely to or for the benefit of the bona fide church or religious association. Section 8. EFFECTIVE DATE AND POSTING OF ORDINANCE. This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty ( 30 ) days from and after the date of its passage. The City Clerk of the City of Dublin shall cause this Ordinance to be posted in at least three (3 ) public places in the City of Dublin in accordance with Section 36933 of the Government Code of the State of California. PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Dublin on this day of 1986, by the following vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk FORTUNETELLING PERMIT PERMIT ISSUED TO: BUSINESS NAME: BUSINESS ADDRESS: TYPE OF BUSINESS (ORD. ##86- Sec.l [b] ) DATE OF EXPIRATION: CITY OFFICIAL: DATE: Chief of Police (This permit is non-transferable and only applicable to the premises listed above. This permit shall be displayed at the above business address. ) APPLICATION FOR FORTUNETELLING PERMIT 1 . TRUE NAME LAST FIRST MIDDLE 2. OTHER NAMES LAST FIRST MIDDLE LAST FIRST MIDDLE 3. HOME ADDRESS HOW LONG NUMBER STREET APT. NO. ' 4. CITY STATE ZIP (If less than five years please provide previous address) NUMBER STREET APT. NO. 5A. MAILING ADDRESS (IF DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE) 5B. CITY STATE ZIP 6. DRIVERS LICENSE NUMBER State 7. SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER 8. PHONE NUMBER (Area Code) Day (Area Code) Evening 9A. PROPOSED BUSINESS ADDRESS NUMBER STREET 9B. PROPOSED LANDLORD'S NAME LAST FIRST MIDDLE 9C. LANDLORD' S MAILING ADDRESS NUMBER STREET APT. NO. 9D. CITY STATE ZIP 10. Have you been convicted of any crime, including the violation of any municipal ordinance, involving the elements of fraud, within the last five ( 5 ) years? Yes [ ] No [ ] 11 . If yes, please provide details: 12. CERTIFICATE OF APPLICANT: I do swear and affirm that all statements made in this application are true, and I agree and understand that misstatements or omissions of material facts herein may forfeit my rights as contained in Ordinance No. , pursuant to Section 5. Date SIGNATURE