San Clemente, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Approval required
- City Council approval or Ch. 8.72 special event permit
- Application path
- Written petition to City Council (§5.04.090.C.3)
- Fingerprinting
- Applicant/employees may be fingerprinted by police
- Annual license tax
- $100.00 flat rate (§5.08.040)
- Added charges
- Investigation fees and insurance may be required
Summary
Opening a pawnbroker business in San Clemente requires City Council approval, or in some cases a special event permit, before the License Collector can issue any business license, the same gate the code applies to shooting galleries, tattoo parlors, and other uses it treats as potentially dangerous to public health or property. The flat-rate license tax for a pawnbroker is $100.00 a year.
None of the following business shall be conducted within the City unless a person has first obtained either City Council approval or, if appropriate, a special event permit pursuant to Chapter 8.72 of this Code: Recreation or amusement centers, penny arcades, tattoo parlors, shooting galleries, circuses, carnivals, menageries, sideshows, exhibitions, circus processions or parades, boxing, wrestling, sparring exhibitions, billiard or pool room, bowling alley, dance hall, public dance, public dance place, fireworks exhibit, fish market, canning or preserving plant, dairy, livery or feed stable, riding stable, pony rides, lunch stand or street kitchen, junk yard, auto wrecking yard, ambulance service, psychedelic shop, skating rink, outdoor musical or special event, pawnbroker or any other business, as determined by the License Collector, which might be construed to be dangerous or injurious to the public health, safety or welfare or be dangerous or detrimental to surrounding property. ... Pawnbroker . .100.00
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Traffic: Supplement 30 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 66 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
72 if that fits the activity better; the same list of gated businesses includes tattoo parlors, shooting galleries, junk yards, and auto wrecking yards. The applicant petitions the Council directly, stating their name, the character of the business, and the exact location of the premises, and the Council holds a hearing at which it may approve the license outright, approve it with conditions meant to keep the business from harming surrounding property or public health, safety, or welfare, or deny it. The Council can delegate this approval by minute order to City officials instead of hearing every application itself.
090(C)(5) lets the City require the applicant, and potentially their employees, to be fingerprinted by the police department and to answer questions about their business history, and the application can be referred to any other City department or public agency for investigation. 090(D), the Council may also charge reasonable investigation fees, levy charges for special police or fire protection, and require public liability and property damage insurance in an amount it sets. 090.
Violations & Fines
Operating a pawnbroker business without first obtaining City Council approval or a special event permit, or without paying the business license tax, is unlawful under § 5.04.020; a license issued despite noncompliance with this chapter is void, and the license becomes delinquent, and voidable after 30 days, if the tax is not paid on time under § 5.04.080.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I just apply for a regular business license to open a pawnshop?
Will I be fingerprinted to open a pawnshop?
How much is the annual license tax for a pawnbroker?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Clemente
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