Dorchester County, SC Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Article III of Chapter 8, adopted by Ord. No. C. ), regulates dealers in secondhand jewelry, gold and silverware. Section 8-101 requires every such dealer to file a daily report with the sheriff, on sheriff's department forms, within 24 hours of each purchase, describing the seller and property well enough for identification, including the seller's name and address, price paid, purchase date, identifying marks, and the seller's driver's license or other government photo ID number. Dealers must also log this information in a bound book retained for three years, and photograph each item purchased using an instant photograph process, listing the seller's name and sale date, with the photo forwarded to the sheriff alongside the daily report.

Records must remain open to inspection by the sheriff or his designee at all times. Section 8-102 bars any purchase of secondhand jewelry, gold or silverware from a minor outright, and bars purchase of other secondhand goods from a minor without the written, provable permission of a parent or guardian. Section 8-103 requires purchased jewelry, gold or silverware to stay in the dealer's possession within the county for 15 days before it can be resold, melted, or altered; if the goods are stored somewhere other than the point of sale, the dealer must file the storage location and the identity of whoever holds the goods with the sheriff within 24 hours of purchase. All held goods stay open to inspection by the chief of police or his designee.