§ 44-1702 — Powers of Mayor and Council.

(a) The Mayor and the Council of the District of Columbia are authorized and empowered:

(1) To administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter;

(2) To investigate the allegations of any application for a certificate of registration;

(3) To have access to and inspect and make copies of all the financial books, records, and papers of any person making any solicitation or on whose behalf any solicitation is made;

(4) To investigate at any time the methods of making or conducting any solicitation;

(5) To issue a certificate of registration to any person filing an application pursuant to this chapter;

(6) To suspend or revoke any certificate of registration or solicitor information card, on the ground that the holder of such certificate or card has violated any provision of this chapter or any regulation promulgated pursuant thereto. The Mayor shall give to the interested person or persons an opportunity for a hearing after reasonable notice thereof before suspending or revoking any such certificate or card;

(7) To prescribe by regulation the form of and the information to be contained in the solicitor information cards required by this chapter, and to prescribe the manner of reproduction and authentication of such cards; and

(8) To publish, in any manner he deems appropriate, the results of any investigation authorized by this chapter. The Mayor shall, in publishing the results of any such investigation, have power to publish information concerning the officers and members of the governing board of any organization coming within the purview of this chapter; provided, that such information shall not include membership and contribution lists of any such organization.

(b) The Mayor is authorized to prescribe and collect fees for the filing of applications, issuance of certificates of registration, and any other service which this chapter authorizes to be performed by the Mayor. The Mayor shall fix such fees in such amounts as will, in his judgment, approximate the cost to the District of Columbia of such services. In fixing such fees the Mayor may, in his discretion, prescribe either uniform fees or varying schedules of fees based on actual or estimated amounts solicited or to be solicited by registrants or applicants for certificates of registration. No fees may be fixed pursuant to this section until after a public hearing has been held thereon pursuant to reasonable notice thereof.

(c) Licenses or certificates of registration issued under this section shall be issued as a General Business endorsement to a basic business license under the basic business license system as set forth in subchapter I-A of Chapter 28 of Title 47 .

Legislative History

July 10, 1957, 71 Stat. 278, Pub. L. 85-87, § 3; Apr. 20, 1999, D.C. Law 12-261, § 2003(b), 46 DCR 3142; Oct. 28, 2003, D.C. Law 15-38, § 3(gg), 50 DCR 6913