Newark, OH Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Chapter 840 of the Newark Code of Ordinances, carried over from the 1969 Code, is the city's licensing rule for dealers in used and waste materials. Section 840.01 defines a junk shop as a building or parcel of real estate in the City kept and maintained for dealing in waste materials and the purchase and sale of used materials, including papers, rags, rubber, bones and waste materials of every kind.

Section 840.02(a) bars operating or maintaining a junk shop without a license. The annual fee is seventy-five dollars ($75.00), payable on or before January 31 of each year. Section 840.02(c) has the Mayor issue every license and collect the fees, and Section 804.03 adds that each license issued under the Business Regulation Code must be signed by the Mayor. Location is a legislative decision: under Section 840.02(b), no license is granted for a junk shop at a new location within the City unless Council approves the application by a three-fourths vote of all of its members, not just those present.

Operating conditions sit in Section 840.03. A junk shop cannot keep any material offensive to public health, peace or morals, cannot use any street for keeping materials temporarily or otherwise, and must be kept and maintained in a clean and wholesome manner. A violation is grounds to revoke the license or refuse to grant one. Section 840.04(a) adds that any violation of State law in connection with the junk shop business is also grounds for revocation or refusal.

Revocation follows the hearing procedure in Section 804.02: no suspension or revocation is effective until a hearing is held at which the licensee can be heard, by himself or by counsel, and can examine and cross-examine witnesses. The chapter's cross references point to Chapter 844 for junk yards, which is a separate license, and to Ohio R.C. Chapter 4737 on secondhand dealers.