Thornton, CO Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)

City Code Article VII makes it unlawful to engage in pawnbroking without first obtaining the city license (§ 42-473). Under § 42-474, every pawnbroker must keep a numerical register recording each customer's name, address, date of birth, fingerprint, and driver's license number, plus a full description of every item pledged, and must retain that register for at least three years. Goods taken under a contract for purchase (a pawn, capped at a 90-day option period with a fixed price no more than one-fifth of the original price per month) must be held separate and unaltered for ten days after the contract matures; goods bought outright in a purchase transaction must be held 30 days and cannot be displayed to the public during that window.

Pawnbrokers must video record transactions and keep the footage 90 days, or 180 days if it shows pledged property, and must maintain a LeadsOnline subscription so the police department can review activity daily. Section 42-475 limits acceptable customer ID to a Colorado driver's license, state ID card, an out-of-state photo license, military ID, passport, alien registration card, or a non-picture government ID. Section 42-476 bars any contract with a customer under 18 or visibly intoxicated, and requires the pawnbroker to notify the city clerk or police before dealing with anyone known to have a theft or burglary conviction.

The city clerk can revoke a license under § 42-516 for failing to meet licensing qualifications, violating the article, fraud in obtaining the license, or a moral-turpitude conviction the police department finds dangerous to public safety; the clerk may summarily suspend a license for up to 15 days pending a hearing before a city-manager-appointed hearing officer, held within 20 days of a written request.