Allegany County, MD Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Chapter 342 of the Code of Allegany County, adopted January 24, 1977 under Bill No. 1-77, requires a license before anyone sells or solicits orders for merchandise "from door to door of private residences," under § 342-1. The chapter carves out exceptions for farmers or growers selling their own produce, anyone under 18 who is attending school, and vendors of milk, cream, bread, meat, fuels or petroleum products, fish or seafood, and newspapers, so a typical for-profit door-to-door salesperson selling other goods cannot rely on any of those carve-outs.

Section 342-3 requires the applicant to get the permit from the Clerk of the Circuit Court and to provide a full name and address, the name and home office address of whoever the solicitor represents, and, for nonresidents of the county, the local address where the applicant is staying. Section 342-2 excludes anyone already covered by the licensing provisions of Title 17, Subtitle 9 of the Business Regulation Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, so state-licensed transient merchants are not double-permitted. Once licensed, § 342-5 confines the activity to a narrow window: canvassing or soliciting is not allowed "other than between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.," so early-morning or evening door knocking is off-limits regardless of the license.

Violating any part of the chapter, including soliciting without the license or outside the permitted hours, is punishable under § 342-4 by a fine of up to $100 or up to 30 days in jail, or both.