Woodland, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Woodland regulates secondhand dealers together with pawnbrokers, recyclers and junk dealers under Municipal Code Chapter 5.24. Section 5.24.100 makes it unlawful to open or operate a store, shop or place doing business as a dealer in secondhand goods, wares, merchandise or commodities other than household furniture without a valid City license issued under Article 2 of the chapter. Section 5.24.010 limits business hours to 7:00 a.m. through 7:00 p.m., closed entirely on Sundays, with an extension to 11:00 p.m. during December and on nights preceding legal holidays.

Every secondhand dealer must keep a bound record book, written in English in ink, recording an exact description of each article purchased, the date, price, and the seller's name, address and signature, open to inspection by any peace officer at any time (§ 5.24.040). Section 5.24.040 also bars a secondhand dealer from purchasing or acquiring an article from a person known, or who reasonably should be known, to be under 18 years old. Purchased articles must be tagged with a number matching the record book entry, held intact for at least five days before resale, and paid for only by check or draft after a minimum 15-day hold (§§ 5.24.040, 5.24.050).

Dealers must report the prior day's purchases to the Chief of Police before 10:00 a.m. daily except Sunday, including sellers' fingerprints (§ 5.24.070). The sale only of secondhand clothing and shoes is exempt from these Article 1 operating rules (§ 5.24.020). Violating any Article 1 provision, including operating unlicensed, is a misdemeanor under § 5.24.110, punishable per the City's general penalty provision, § 1.08.070.