Lodi, California: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes — a certificate of identification from the police for every person soliciting or peddling to residences or businesses, carried while working (9.16.020). A solicitor is anyone taking orders for goods for future delivery or for services to be performed, away from a fixed place of business (9.16.010(B)). Working without it is a misdemeanor (9.16.080).
• Where it comes from: The Lodi Police Department. The chief of police or his designee issues the certificate once the application is complete (9.16.030(E)).
• Fee: $102.00 for a new Solicitor/Peddler permit on the police department's fee table: $32.00 Department of Justice fee plus $70.00 city fee. Renewal is $25.00. The code says the fee is set by council resolution and is on top of any business license (9.16.090).
• Hours you may knock: Not published. Chapter 9.16 sets no knocking hours, and a search of the code for solicitor and peddler found no other hours rule.
• What the rep carries: The certificate of identification (9.16.020). The certificate states its own expiration date (9.16.040(C)).
• What takes the time: A sworn application listing three years of addresses and employers, the three most recent communities worked house to house, and photo ID (9.16.030(A), (B)). Police fingerprinting and a photograph are required (9.16.030(C), (D)). A felony conviction within five years, a past violation of the chapter or a past revocation blocks the certificate (9.16.030(F)). No processing time is published.
• Code: Lodi Municipal Code, Title 9, Chapter 9.16 — Solicitors and Peddlers (9.16.010 to 9.16.090). Municode shows the code codified through Ordinance No. 2030, passed March 19, 2025 (Supp. No. 68).
• Worth knowing: A weatherproof sign at the main entrance reading "No Solicitors/Peddlers Invited," "No Solicitation" or similar means leave at once (9.16.050, 9.16.060), and ringing the bell in defiance of it is unlawful (9.16.070). The fee does not replace the city business license (9.16.090(B)).
• Read it yourself: Lodi Municipal Code, Chapter 9.16 — Solicitors and Peddlers · Lodi Police Department — Fees & Permits · Lodi Municipal Code — landing page · checked 23 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• What hours door-to-door sales are allowed, and the code section
• How long the certificate of identification is good for before the $25.00 renewal
• How long fingerprint clearance usually takes before the certificate is issued

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________