Wichita, KS Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Charter Ordinance No. 192, Section 3, sets the licensing framework: no person may operate as a secondhand dealer in Wichita without a City Treasurer-issued license, renewed annually for a $100 fee, distinct from the $500 pawnbroker fee and $150 precious metal dealer fee. As amended by Charter Ordinance No. 238 (2023), Section 2 defines a "secondhand dealer" as any person or business "engaged in the business of buying, selling, trading, exchanging or otherwise dealing in secondhand merchandise of any sort or description," but exempts businesses limited exclusively to categories such as antiques, books and collectibles; grocers buying recyclable containers; charitable resale institutions; licensed pawnbrokers, precious metal dealers or scrap processors; and dealers limited to clothing, furniture, media formats, or heavy equipment and motor vehicle parts.

Section 19 requires every dealer to obtain a signed statement from each seller attesting they are the legal owner or an authorized agent, on forms approved by the Wichita Police Department, and to redeliver stolen or converted property to its rightful owner on demand. Section 20, as amended by Charter Ordinance No. the next business day; records must be kept for two years. Section 21 requires purchased goods to sit untouched on the licensed premises for 14 calendar days before resale or salvage, and lets an officer with reasonable cause place a 60-day investigative hold on any item believed stolen.

Section 22 bars any purchase from a person under 18 unless a parent or guardian signs a written consent kept on file, and separately bars knowingly receiving stolen property. Dealers must also admit police to inspect their books and premises at any time under Section 23.