Santee, CA Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Section 4.23.030 makes it unlawful for any person to act as a solicitor in the City without first having procured a business license under Chapter 4.02, a regulatory permit under Chapter 4.03, and an identification card issued under this chapter. "Solicitor" is defined in Section 4.23.020 to include peddlers, hawkers, transient dealers, salespersons and other itinerant vendors, an interviewer, or anyone who sets up a temporary stand or goes to a house or public place to sell goods, take orders, or distribute items redeemable for goods; roaming and stationary sidewalk vendors are also treated as solicitors.

Applicants must furnish the issuing officer with their name, physical description and three photographs, local and permanent addresses, and a description of the business, and the application fee is set by City Council resolution to defray investigation and enforcement costs. Section 4.23.040 exempts charitable solicitations conducted solely on premises the organization owns or occupies, or among its own members, and any applicant who documents registration with the Attorney General's Registry of Charitable Trusts and State and Federal tax-exempt status. Section 4.23.070 gives the issuing officer 30 days to act on a charitable solicitor application once it finds the applicant reliable, not engaged in fraud, and not operating for private profit; the issued card must show the permittee's photograph, name, address and expiration date.

Section 4.23.090 requires every permitted solicitor to display the identification card on the front of the person at all times while soliciting and to exhibit it on demand to any peace officer. Section 4.23.100 confines solicitor business hours to 8:00 a.m. through 8:00 p.m. unless the visit is by appointment. Section 4.23.120 exempts students engaged in school-sponsored activities, wholesalers calling on retail businesses, farmers or ranchers selling their own products, lawful swap meet or farmers' market vendors, and newspapers and their employees.