§ 44-1627 — Licensing; requirements

A. A person shall not act as a pawnbroker until licensed by the sheriff of the county in which the person regularly conducts business.

B. A pawnbroker shall obtain a separate license for each pawnshop owned by that pawnbroker.

C. A pawnbroker license may not be sold or transferred without the approval of the sheriff or the sheriff's designee.

D. A pawnbroker shall not conduct business at a location other than a licensed location except for firearms transactions that are permitted by a federally licensed firearms dealer at an organized gun show.

E. Every pawnbroker shall be a bona fide resident of this state. If a partnership, each partner shall be a bona fide resident of this state. If a corporation, it shall be a domestic corporation or a foreign corporation which has qualified to do business in this state. The corporation shall hold its pawnbroker license through an agent.

F. The sheriff or the sheriff's designee shall require any person, other than a bank or licensed lending institution, having any interest, directly or indirectly, in a pawnshop to submit a full set of fingerprints, together with the applicable fingerprint processing fee, to the sheriff. The sheriff shall submit the fingerprints to the department of public safety for the purpose of obtaining a state and federal criminal records check pursuant to section 41-1750 and Public Law 92-544. The department of public safety may exchange this fingerprint data with the federal bureau of investigation. The sheriff shall forward the fee to the department of public safety.

G. A corporation shall own the entire equitable interest in its license through an agent if the agent is otherwise qualified to hold a pawnbroker license. The agent is subject to the penalties prescribed for any violation of law relating to pawnbrokers. On the death, resignation or discharge of an agent of a corporation holding a pawnbroker license, the corporation shall promptly assign the license to another qualified agent selected by the corporation.

H. The sheriff shall not issue a license to a person who, within one year before the application, has violated any provision of a previously issued pawnbroker license or has had a license revoked. The sheriff shall not issue to or renew a license of a person who, within five years before the application, has been convicted of a felony involving trafficking in stolen property, fraudulent schemes, forgery, theft, extortion or conspiracy to defraud or a felony involving moral turpitude. The sheriff shall not issue to or renew a license of a corporation unless it has on file with the sheriff of the county in which the license is issued a list of its officers and directors and any stockholders who own ten per cent or more of the corporation. The sheriff shall not issue to or renew a license of a corporation if any of its officers or directors or any stockholder who owns ten per cent or more of the corporation has within five years been convicted of a felony involving trafficking in stolen property, fraudulent schemes, forgery, theft, extortion or conspiracy to defraud or a felony involving moral turpitude.

I. The sheriff shall not issue a license to a person or corporation that has knowingly made any false statements or material misrepresentations in the license application.

J. A person shall not use the word "pawn", "pawnshop" or "pawnbroker" in its business name, on any sign or in any advertisement unless the person is licensed as a pawnbroker pursuant to this article.