Blaine, Minnesota: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes — a city license before anyone, including an employee or contractor, does business as a solicitor (22-234(b)). A solicitor goes door to door taking orders for goods or services delivered or performed later, with or without samples (22-204). The City Clerk's page says one application per business: the business or on-site supervisor applies and pays for everyone going door to door, and each rep gets a City ID badge. Solicitors working by appointment need no license (22-234(h)(2)) but must register (22-238). Any county license under M.S.A. ch. 329 comes first (22-234(a)).
• Where it comes from: The Blaine City Clerk, through the city's online business licensing system; the Clerk orders the background checks (22-234(e)).
• Fee: The code leaves the fee to the city licensing fee schedule (22-234(d)). The City Clerk's page lists the application fees: 12 Month License Fee - $600 (Jan-Dec), or 6 Month License Fee - $300 (Jan-June or July-Dec), plus a Background Investigation Fee = $35/person, non-refundable.
• Hours you may knock: No business before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. (22-239(a)(4)).
• What the rep carries: A city-issued photo identification license, worn visible to everyone the rep contacts, showing the rep's name, the business and the expiration date, and shown to any police officer, city officer or resident on request (22-234(g)).
• What takes the time: Apply at least 14 regular business days before starting (22-234(c)). The Clerk checks completeness within two regular business days, orders background checks, and must issue or deny within ten regular business days of a complete application (22-234(e)). Every rep uploads a signed Background Investigation Release Form and a color copy of the front of their driver's license (Clerk's page). More than three consumer complaints in the preceding 12 months can count as a bad business reputation and block the license (22-235(7)). No license runs past December 31 (22-234(f)).
• Code: Blaine Code of Ordinances, Chapter 22, Article V — Peddlers, Solicitors, and Transient Merchants (22-203 to 22-241), last amended by Ord. No. 25-2596 (January 5, 2026). Municode shows the code codified through Ordinance No. 26-2605, enacted May 4, 2026 (Supp. No. 3).
• Worth knowing: No entering property with a reasonably sized sign reading "No Peddlers, Solicitors or Transient Merchants" or a comparable statement unless invited (22-240). No claiming city endorsement because the city issued the license, and no staying after being asked to leave (22-239). Suspending or revoking a license that covers multiple persons suspends every person working under it (22-236(b)).
• Read it yourself: Blaine Code of Ordinances, Chapter 22 — Businesses (Article V — Peddlers, Solicitors, and Transient Merchants) · City of Blaine — Solicitor/Peddler/Transient Merchant License · Blaine Code of Ordinances — landing page · checked 22 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• Whether the $600 or $300 license covers any number of reps under one business application, or is charged per person
• Whether Anoka County requires a ch. 329 license for door-to-door solicitors, which the city makes a condition of the license
• Whether the 14-business-day lead time applies when reps are added to an existing business license

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________