Independence, MO Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- Register threshold
- Items over $150 in value
- Entry method
- Ink, sequentially numbered
- Records kept
- Seller name, age, address
- Access
- Available to Chief of Police
- Resale bar
- None until item is registered
Summary
Independence requires junk and secondhand dealers to keep a numbered, ink-only register of every item bought or sold over $150, including the seller's name, age, address, and price paid.
Every junk or secondhand dealer acquiring for trade or sale any article in excess of a value of $150.00 shall keep a register in which shall be entered, by number, the date and time the article was received and sold by the dealer along with an appropriate description of the article (including any identifying numbers), together with the name, age, and the address of the person leaving the article and the amount of money tendered for the article.B.Register entries will be completed within a reasonable time after the receipt or purchase of any article.C.Every register entry shall be made with ink or indelible pencil and such register entry shall not be erased, obliterated or altered.D.A tag bearing a register entry number shall be attached to each job lot or shipment of merchandise or commodity acquired showing the date received.E.Merchandise or a commodity need not be tagged if by its nature it is in such form as to make it impossible to be appropriately tagged. This exception does not eliminate other record keeping requirements of this article.F.Every junk or secondhand dealer shall deliver or otherwise make available a copy of the dealers register upon request of the Chief of Police or any designee.G.No article acquired by any junk or secondhand dealer shall be disposed of until after proper registration has been made by the dealer.H.The register entry number and date tag shall remain attached to each article that has been tagged until such article is resold.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 13).
Full Breakdown
Article 8 of Chapter 5 covers junk and secondhand dealers alongside pawnbrokers, and requires them to hold a business license under Article 1 of the chapter. For any article acquired for resale worth more than $150, the dealer must log a numbered entry in ink, noting the date and time received, a description of the item, and the name, age, and address of the person who sold it. Register entries cannot be erased or altered, a copy must be produced to the Chief of Police on request, and no acquired article may be resold until it is properly registered.
Violations & Fines
Failing to keep the required register, disposing of an article before registering it, or altering register entries violates Article 8 and is punishable by up to a $500 fine per violation, each day counting separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
What triggers the register requirement for a secondhand dealer?
Can a secondhand dealer sell an item before logging it?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Independence
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Secondhand Dealers in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Jackson County handle secondhand dealers.