Iron County, UT Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- License fee
- General fee under Section 5.04.070
- Core duty
- Investigate merchandise origin, avoid stolen goods
- Grouped with
- Pawnbrokers and swap meet operators
- Enforcement
- License officer, county commission on appeal
Summary
Secondhand merchandise dealers in unincorporated Iron County pay the county's general business license fee and must make a reasonable investigation into the origin of everything they buy, sell or receive to ensure it is not stolen property, the same anti-theft duty imposed on swap meet operators and pawnbrokers.
A.Pawnbrokers, swap meet operators, and dealers in secondhand merchandise shall pay the general license fee required by Section 5.04.070.B.Any person engaged in the business of lending money upon deposit or pledge of personal property or other thing of value, other than securities and printed evidence of indebtedness, or in the business of purchasing personal property or things of value or selling or agreeing to sell the same back to the seller at a price higher than the original purchase price, or who deals in secondhand merchandise, or who operates a swap meet where booths or areas are leased out to peddlers or individuals wishing to sell items of personal property, either new or used, shall be aware of all merchandise purchased, received, sold or otherwise, forming a part of the business transacted on the premises, and shall make reasonable investigation as to the origin of such merchandise to insure that no stolen merchandise is the object of any transaction.
Full Breakdown
Iron County Code § 5.08.020(A) requires dealers in secondhand merchandise, alongside pawnbrokers and swap meet operators, to pay the general license fee set by Section 5.04.070 rather than a fee unique to secondhand dealers. Subsection (B) imposes the operative duty: anyone in the business of purchasing personal property or reselling it at a higher price, or who deals in secondhand merchandise, must be aware of all merchandise passing through the business and make a reasonable investigation into its origin to ensure no stolen property is the subject of any transaction.
Related subsections of the same section impose stricter, separately-cited duties specifically on pawnbrokers, including a five-thousand-dollar bond and an age, citizenship and criminal-history screen, while swap meet operators under subsection (C) must record the names, addresses and driver's license numbers of anyone selling or displaying merchandise at the meet. Because secondhand dealers, pawnbrokers and swap meet operators are grouped in one section, a secondhand dealer's core obligations are the general license fee and the anti-theft investigation duty in subsections (A) and (B).
Violations & Fines
A secondhand dealer who fails to make the reasonable investigation into merchandise origin required by Section 5.08.020(B), or who operates without the license required by subsection (A), is subject to license denial, suspension or revocation under the enforcement procedure in Section 5.04.140 and the general misdemeanor penalty in Section 5.04.150 of a fine up to one thousand dollars, imprisonment up to six months, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
What license fee does a secondhand dealer pay in Iron County?
What must a secondhand dealer do to avoid buying stolen goods?
Are secondhand dealers regulated the same as pawnbrokers in Iron County?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Iron County
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