57-63 - Local ordinances.
§ 57-63. Local ordinances.
A. The governing body of any city, town or county may by ordinance notinconsistent with this chapter provide for the regulation and licensing ofcharitable or civic organizations soliciting within the city, town or county,and for penalties for violation thereof, subject to the following limitations:
1. No local license tax or fee in excess of ten dollars shall be required ofany charitable organization.
2. No charitable organization exempt from registration under subdivision A.1., A. 4., A. 6. or A. 7. of § 57-60 shall be required to be licensed. Anysuch organization may obtain a local license, without payment of any licensetax or fee, upon compliance with all such requirements of the local ordinanceas would have been applicable had it been registered with the Commissionerduring each year in which it obtained an exemption letter under subsection Cof § 57-60.
3. No charitable organization that has registered with the Commissioner forthe current and next preceding three years, or exempt for such years under §57-50, shall be required to provide any financial information.
4. No charitable or civic organization that solicits within the Commonwealthfrom a place outside the Commonwealth solely by telephone, telegraph, directmail or advertising in national media, and having no chapter, branch, area oroffice within the Commonwealth, shall be required to be licensed.
5. No museum that has registered with the Commissioner as required by § 57-49and that has been granted tax-exempt status under § 501 (c) (3) of theInternal Revenue Code shall be required to comply with the regulation orlicensing provisions of any local charitable solicitations ordinance.
6. If a charitable or civic organization shall designate by power of attorneyfiled with the Commissioner one or more persons authorized to sign on itsbehalf, the signature, verification or affirmation of any such persons shallbe sufficient for all purposes of any local charitable solicitationsordinance.
B. Any ordinance adopted pursuant to this section may provide, inter alia,for procedures whereby charitable organizations may, for valid reasons, afteran administrative hearing, be denied a local license or whereby a license maybe revoked. Valid reasons for denial or revocation of a local license may bedefined to include, without limitation, the expenditure of charitable assetsfor noncharitable purposes, any misrepresentation to the public or to anyprospective donor, and any violation of state or local law. Any charitableorganization which is denied a license may, within fifteen days from the dateof such denial, apply for relief to the circuit court of such city or countyor of the county in which such town is located. If the court is satisfiedthat the denial was for any reason erroneous, it shall provide such relief asmay be appropriate.
C. No ordinance, or amendment thereto, adopted pursuant to this section shallbe valid for any calendar year beginning after December 31, 1978, unless,before September 1 of that year, there shall have been filed with theCommissioner, on forms to be prescribed by him, information deemed by him tobe sufficient for the purpose of advising charitable or civic organizationsof the necessity for them to be licensed by such city, town or county.
D. No charitable organization shall be required to comply with the provisionsof local ordinances if such organization has registered with the Commissioneror if such organization is a chapter, branch or affiliate included in theconsolidated report of an organization or federated organization registeredwith the Commissioner, except that such charitable organization shall not beexempted from that portion of any local ordinance that requires suchorganization to register its name, the names of its solicitors and the datesand times that they will be soliciting in the locality.
(1974, c. 574; 1977, c. 401; 1979, cc. 55, 595; 1983, cc. 282, 374; 1985, c.82; 1998, cc. 104, 232; 2002, c. 85.)