An Act To Facilitate the Recovery of Stolen Property
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 1715
Committee: Business, Research and Economic Development
Sponsors: ROTUNDO
Amends: 30-A MRSA §3962, 30-A MRSA §3963

Legislative Document 
No. 1715 
S.P.647 
In Senate, December 17, 2003 
An Act To Facilitate the Recovery of Stolen Property 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203. 
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on December 16,2003. Referred to the Committee 
on Business, Research and Economic Development pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered 
printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401. 
Presented by Senator ROTUNDO of Androscoggin. 
Printed on recycled paper 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §3962, sub-§l, ~C, as amended by PL 1993, c. 
59, §2, is further amended to read: 
C. 
The name and residence of the consumer. 
The pawnbroker 
shall reguire reasonable written proof of the identification 
of the consumer in the form of a motor vehicle operator' s 
license, 
military 
identification 
card, 
adult 
liguor 
identification 
card 
or 
similar 
item 
that 
confirms 
the 
consumer I s identification by date of birth and by physical 
description. 
The pawnbroker shall record the type of proof 
of identification used. 
Sec. 2. 30-A MRSA §3962, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1993, c. 59, 
§2, is further amended to read: 
3. 
List filed with law enforcement agency. 
gefe~e-~Re-l§~R 
aay-ef-eye~Y-ffieB~R Weekly, the pawnbroker shall file with the law 
enforcement agency of jurisdiction, in a form acceptable to that 
agency, 
a summary of the pawn transactions entered into dur ing 
the preceding calendar ffieB~R week, including a description of the 
property. 
Sec. 3. 30-A MRSA §3963, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 1993, c. 59, 
§3, is amended to read: 
4. 
Time 
period. 
The 
initial 
redemption 
or 
repurchase 
period of a pawn transaction, not including an extension under 
subsection 5, may not be less than 10 days nor exceed 60 days. 
Sec. 4. 30-A MRSA c.183, sub-c. 7 is enacted to read: 
SUBCHAPTER 7 
USED GOODS DEALERS 
§3971. 
Definitions 
As 
used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise 
indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. 
1. 
Consignment. 
"Consignment" 
means 
a 
transaction, 
regardless of its form, in which a person delivers goods to a 
merchant for the purpose of sale and: 
A. 
The merchant deals in goods of that kind under a name 
other than the name of the person making delivery; 
B. 
The merchant is not an auctioneer; 
C. 
The transaction does not create a security interest that 
secures an obligation; and 
D. 
Title to the goods does not pass until the sale. 
2. 
Consignment merchant. 
"Consignment merchant" means a 
merchant who 
receives tangible personal property for sale on 
consignment. 
3. 
Junk. 
"Junk" means old iron, chains, brass, copper. 
tin, 
lead or other base metals, 
old rope, 
old bags, 
rags, 
wastepaper, paper clippings, scraps of woolens, clips, bagging, 
rubber and glass and empty bottles of different kinds when less 
than one gross and all articles discarded or no longer used or a 
manufactured article composed of anyone or more of the materials 
mentioned in this subsection. 
4. 
Junk collector. 
"Junk collector" means anyone dealing 
or trading in junk or anyone who 
engages in the collection, 
storage, transfer or sale of junk. 
5. 
Merchant. 
"Merchant" 
means 
a 
person 
who 
deals 
in 
tangible 
personal 
property 
or 
otherwise 
by 
that 
person IS 
occupation holds that person out as having knowledge or skill 
peculiar to the practices or goods involved in a transaction of 
tangible personal property or to whom such knowledge or skill may 
be attributed by that person I s employment of an agent or broker 
or other intermediary who by that agent IS, 
broker I s or other 
intermediary's occupation holds that person out as having such 
knowledge or skill. 
6. 
Secondhand dealer. 
"Secondhand dealer" means a person 
who engages in the purchase, collection, transfer or storage for 
later resale, or who engages in the trading or selling, unless 
such sale is by auction of less than 4 days' duration, of any 
article, vehicle or materiaL or a portion thereof, of which 
prior use has been made in any manner whatsoever. 
"Secondhand 
dealer" does not include pawnbrokers, junk collectors, used car 
dealers or persons primarily engaged in the retail sale of new 
and unused goods who deal with used goods only incidentally, such 
as 
accepting 
such goods 
in trade 
as part of 
a 
transaction 
involving the sale of new goods, but only to the extent that such 
used goods are of the Same type as the new goods. 
7. Tangible personal pro.perty. "Tangible personal property" 
includes 
motor 
vehicles, 
but 
does 
not 
include 
documents 
evidencing title to motor vehicles. "Tangible personal property" 
also does not include checks, drafts or similar instruments or 
real estate. 
8. 
Used 
goods 
dealer. 
"Used 
goods 
dealer" 
means 
a 
consignment merchant, a merchant or a secondhand dealer. 
"Used 
goods dealer" does not include a pawnbroker as defined in section 
3960, subsection 2 or a junk collector. 
§3972. 
Transaction requirements 
1. 
Record of transaction. 
A used goods dealer who receives 
used tangible personal property shall maintain records containing 
the following information: 
A. 
An accurate and detailed description of the properj:s 
received; 
B. 
The date the property was received; 
C. 
The 
name, 
residence. 
date 
of 
birth 
and 
proof 
of 
identification of the person from whom the tangible personal 
property was received; 
D. 
If a merchant or secondhand dealer, the amount paid by 
the merchant or secondhand dealer for the property; and 
E. 
If a 
consignment merchant, 
the amount paid for the 
property. 
2. 
Proof of identification. 
A used goods dealer shall 
require reasonable written proof of the identification of the 
person selling in the form of a motor vehicle operator's license, 
military identification card, adult liquor identification card or 
similar item that confirms the person's identification by date of 
birth and by physical description. 
The used goods dealer shall 
record the type of proof of identification used. 
§3973. 
Time limit 
A used goods dealer may not sell or dispose of in any manner 
any tangible personal property received by that used goods dealer 
less than 10 days after receipt by the used goods dealer. 
§3974. 
Weekly report 
A used goods dealer shall file with the law enforcement 
agency of jurisdiction, in a form acceptable to that agency, 
a 
summary of transactions entered into during the preceding week, 
including a description of the tangible personal property. 
§3975. 
Application 
This 
subchapter 
does 
not apply to 
pawn 
transactions 
as 
defined in section 3960, subsection 1. 
SUMMARY 
Current law requires pawnbrokers to keep records regarding 
pawn transactions, including the identity of the consumer and the 
type 
of property. 
The 
pawnbroker is 
required to file this 
information monthly with local law enforcement. 
This bill, based on a Lewiston ordinance, applies similar 
record-keeping 
requirements 
to 
all 
merchants 
receiving 
used 
goods, 
such as consignment shops and secondhand dealers. 
The 
purpose of this bill is to facilitate the identification and 
recovery of stolen property by law enforcement. 
To that end, 
this bill requires all merchants, including pawnbrokers, dealing 
in used property to: 
1. 
Obtain written proof of 
selling the property. 
Written proof 
military identification card or adult 
the identity of the person 
includes a driver's license, 
liquor identification card; 
2. 
Hold the used property for a minimum of 10 days before 
selling or otherwise disposing of it; and 
3. 
Make a weekly report regarding the transactions engaged 
in, 
including 
a 
description 
of 
the 
property, 
to 
local 
law 
enforcement.