Tracy, California: door-to-door solicitor permit

Partly read: the permit answer is sourced, but the fee or the hours could not be read from the city’s own pages. The clerk questions below cover the gap.

• The answer: Yes — a written permit from the Chief of Police before anyone peddles or goes "from place to place, or in the streets, to offer to or sell, barter, or exchange anything" (4.12.200). The permit names the person: it is not transferable and does not cover anyone not named on it (4.12.220). The details are left to Police Department rules and regulations adopted by council resolution (4.12.210), and those rules are not posted where they could be found.
• Where it comes from: Tracy Municipal Code Title 4, Chapter 4.12, Article 5, Peddling. Permits are issued by the Chief of Police; the Tracy Police Department is at 1000 Civic Center Dr., non-emergency (209) 831-6550.
• Fee: Not published. The code sets no fee. The Police Department's Service Fees page lists fees for taxi drivers, tow truck drivers, palmistry, card rooms and secondhand dealers, but has no peddler or solicitor line. The code adds that a permit does not excuse any city license fee, which means the business license tax still applies (4.12.210).
• Hours you may knock: Not in the code. Article 5 sets no hours; permits are issued subject to the Police Department's conditions, rules and regulations (4.12.210), which were not found online. The separate solicitation article bans soliciting in parking lots after dark and near banks and ATMs (4.12.1230); it has no door-to-door hours.
• What the rep carries: The permit. The holder must carry it and show it to any city official on request, and produce it for the Chief of Police or deputies and at renewal (4.12.230).
• What takes the time: Not published. The code says only that the Chief of Police issues the permit and keeps a record of its number, holder, kind of business, issue date and expiration date (4.12.210). Any background check or processing time is in the police rules.
• Code: Tracy Municipal Code 4.12.200 to 4.12.240 (prior code 4-3.601 to 4-3.605; 4.12.200 renamed from "Soliciting without permits unlawful" by Ord. No. 1143, 2010), and Article 14, 4.12.1210 to 4.12.1230 (Ord. No. 1143, 2010; Ord. No. 1204, 2015).
• Worth knowing: Article 5 does not apply to salesmen for wholesale houses who take orders from retail dealers for resale (4.12.240). Aggressive solicitation — continuing after a no, blocking someone's path, following them — is a misdemeanor in any public place (4.12.1220).
• Read it yourself: Tracy Municipal Code Title 4, Chapter 4.12, Article 5, Peddling · Tracy Municipal Code Title 4, Chapter 4.12, Article 14, Soliciting and Aggressive Solicitation · Tracy Police Department Service Fees · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• What is the fee for a peddling permit from the Chief of Police, and is it per rep?
• What hours do the Police Department's peddling rules allow for door-to-door sales?
• What does the application need: fingerprints, photos, a background check, a business license first?
• How long is the permit good for? The City Clerk Call Sheet at /permit-call-sheet/ has the script for this call.

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________