Rotterdam storeowners are hoping their elected officials make some tweaks before putting in place a proposed law governing their businesses.
The Rotterdam Town Board on Wednesday, April 11, held a public hearing on the proposed local law that would regulate the acceptance and sale of secondhand items, with a focus on gold and other precious metals. The new law would require dealers to purchase a license from the town, hold purchased items for 10 days and send a detailed daily report to police on what items were acquired.
The Rotterdam Police Department is pushing for swift approval of the law due to an uptick in theft and burglaries, with officials saying it could help make arrests and lead to the recovery of property.
Town officials estimate the law would affect up to 12 businesses in the town.
Matthew Powell, manager of Jewels Fine Jewelry, is one retailer against the law.
“It will do nothing more than create problems for the local businesses that deal with the purchases of precious metals,” Powell said. “The main issue here is that the people of Rotterdam should have the right to sell their gold and precious metals at the full market price value at the time of their choosing.”
Powell said the 10-day waiting period forces the customer and buyer to “hedge the price” offered because the value of gold is subject to market fluctuations. He said price competition between stores is an element of the business and commissions at his store are usually 10 percent or less.
“How do you pay customers for today’s price when you can’t sell it for another 10 days?” he asked. “It would in effect turn gold buyers into gamblers.”
Councilman Robert Godlewski said he understands concerns over the waiting period but questioned how much it would impact businesses. He believes it would only affect profits by a minor amount.
Powell said he typically resells purchased items in one to two days.
Supervisor Harry Buffardi on Tuesday, April 17, said the 10-day rule is the main aspect of the law being discussed for a possible change. He didn’t elaborate on how much the waiting period could be reduced in the final version.
“There has been some discussions about changing and tweaking it but nothing is formulated yet,” Buffardi.
Powell didn’t disagree with sellers taking full identification from buyers and recording a full description of the items to help police recovering stolen property by checking daily reports. He said storeowners should also receive protections under the law, though, requiring the money paid for the stolen goods to be paid back to the buyer from the seller.
“The buyer is just as at risk of loss as the people who have been robbed,” he said. “Both should have equal rights under the law.”
Powell said Jewels has operated since 1996 and typically two to three times a year an issue of stolen property arises. The value of stolen goods at his store ranges from about $2,000 to $3,000 each year, he said. He contended the issue is getting blown out proportion and there isn’t a rise in crimes.
“This proposal seeks out a higher standard of justice for the few at the cost of many,” Powell said.
Sheryll Hoffman, owner of JM Jewelers on Mariaville Road, is supportive of the law but would also like to see some change.
“This is long overdue and it is about time,” Hoffman said. “This is great, however, there is still some fine lines … that need to be clarified.”
Hoffman questioned the amount of detailed information required on every item purchased, a stipulation she said is extensive and unreasonable. She said some people come in with 20 or more pieces of jewelry at once and during busy times it would dramatically slow business and result in losing customers.
“To do that amount of paperwork, in all fairness to us secondhand dealers, is almost impossible,” she said.
She said reports from the police department can also be very vague.
“When we are given that list and that list is very vague it is almost impossible … to say whether I may have taken (a stolen item) in,” she said. “I am all for descriptions, I am all for taking documentation, but there is also a fine line to that.”
Buffardi said after the meeting there are ongoing discussions on the detailed accounting required of buyers, but he said accountability and being able to recover items is an aspect “everyone is really strong on.” He didn’t foresee any changes being made to that portion of the law.
“We see this as a potentially valuable tool for us in solving crimes and thereby preventing crimes and probably most importantly from our perspective is giving us the ability to return stolen property,” Deputy Police Chief William Manikas said. “I certainly understand the concerns raised by most of the business owners and I don’t think we would be admittedly opposed to some minor modifications.”
