Door-to-door commercial solicitors in Kennewick are required to register under the Kennewick Municipal Code's business-licensing and peddler/solicitor provisions, accessible through the Code Publishing portal. Noncommercial canvassing by religious, political, and charitable groups receives heightened First Amendment protection under Watchtower Bible & Tract Society v. Village of Stratton, 536 U.S. 150 (2002), which struck down a blanket noncommercial-permit requirement. Posted 'No Soliciting' signs are enforceable against entry under standard Washington trespass law (RCW 9A.52).
Kennewick regulates door-to-door commercial soliciting through the peddler/solicitor and business-licensing chapters of the Kennewick Municipal Code, hosted on Code Publishing. Typical Washington municipal practice, which Kennewick follows, requires a commercial solicitor to register with the city, provide identifying information and government-issued photo identification, undergo a background check, and display a city-issued solicitor identification badge while canvassing. The Watchtower Bible & Tract Society v. Village of Stratton, 536 U.S. 150 (2002), decision invalidated a blanket noncommercial canvassing permit requirement on First Amendment grounds; consequently Kennewick's solicitor scheme distinguishes commercial sales (which can be licensed and badge-requiring) from noncommercial religious, political, and charitable canvassing (which can at most be subject to viewpoint-neutral time, place, and manner rules). Posted 'No Soliciting' signs are enforceable against entry as trespass under RCW 9A.52.070 (criminal trespass in the first degree) and RCW 9A.52.080 (second degree). Hours of permitted solicitation are typically restricted to daylight hours, with a common cutoff around dusk or 8:00 p.m. The city's standard business license through the Washington Department of Revenue Business Licensing Service is separately required for any commercial entity operating in Kennewick.
Soliciting without a required commercial solicitor permit, displaying false credentials, or canvassing past the permitted hours is a civil infraction enforceable by Kennewick Police. Entry past a posted 'No Soliciting' or 'No Trespassing' sign is enforceable as criminal trespass under RCW 9A.52, a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor depending on the degree. Operating without a current Washington Business License covering Kennewick is independently enforceable by the Department of Revenue and by the city.
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