AS Title 8, Chapter 60: Junk Yards and Scrap Metal Dealers

Article 1. Regulation of Junk Yards. Chapter 60. Junk Yards and Scrap Metal Dealers. Sec. 08.60.010. License required; violation of section a misdemeanor. [Repealed, § 3 ch 67 SLA 2014.] Sec. 08.60.020. [Renumbered as AS 08.60.010 .] Sec. 08.60.030. Residence defined. [Repealed, § 26 ch 6 SLA 1984.] Sec. 08.60.050. General prohibition. A person may not establish, operate, or maintain a commercial or public junk yard without a certificate of location prescribed by AS 08.60.050 — 08.60.100. Sec. 08.60.060. Certificate of location. A person using or proposing to use a location for a commercial or public junk yard shall obtain a certificate of approval for the location. If the location is in a city of any class, the certificate shall be procured from the city council or its designee. If the location is outside the city limits but within the boundaries of an organized borough, the certificate shall be procured from the assembly of the organized borough or its designee. If the location is outside an incorporated city or borough, the certificate of location shall be obtained from the commissioner of public safety. Sec. 08.60.070. Standards for location and regulation. The commissioner of public safety, the city council, and organized borough assembly, in considering applications and regulations, shall take into account (1) the nature and development of surrounding property; (2) the need to protect the local economy, adjacent land owners, and the motoring public from economically depressing and unsightly roadside locations; (3) the proximity of churches, schools, hospitals, public buildings, recreation areas, or other places of public gathering; (4) the sufficiency in number of other similar business establishments in the vicinity; (5) the adequacy of fences and other types of enclosures to prevent the unsightly display of a junk yard; (6) the health, safety, and general welfare of the public; (7) the suitability of the applicant to establish, maintain, or operate the business under AS 08.60.050 — 08.60.100. Sec. 08.60.080. Authorization to impose conditions for establishment, operation, and maintenance. The commissioner of public safety or the cities or organized boroughs shall examine the location or proposed location of a junk yard and adopt reasonable regulations concerning the establishment, operation, and maintenance of businesses under the standards set out in AS 08.60.070 . The regulations may require the erection, location, and size of fences or other structures surrounding the junk yard. Regulations pertaining to junk yards are subject to the provisions of AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act). Sec. 08.60.090. Penalty. A person who operates, establishes, or maintains a junk yard in any location without procuring a certificate of approval is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction is punishable by a fine of not more than $500, or by imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or by both. Sec. 08.60.100. Definitions. In AS 08.60.050 — 08.60.100, (1) “junk” means any secondhand and used machinery, scrap iron, copper, lead, zinc, aluminum, or other metals; it also includes wrecked automobiles, tools, implements, rags, used building materials, rubber, and paper; (2) “junk yard” means a location where junk is gathered together and stored for a commercial or public purpose; (3) “person” means an individual and, where consistent with collective capacity, a committee, firm, partnership, company, corporation, club, governmental agency, organization, association, or other combination of individuals. Article 2. Scrap Metal Dealer Record Requirements. Sec. 08.60.200. Records required. (a) A scrap metal dealer shall maintain an accurate paper or electronic record of each in-person transaction in which the dealer purchases scrap metal for $100 or more from another person. (b) The record of a transaction must include (1) the date, time, location, and value of the scrap metal purchased; (2) the name of the dealer's employee or agent handling the transaction; (3) the name, address, and telephone number of the person from whom the dealer purchased the scrap metal; (4) a description, including the license plate information, of a motor vehicle used to deliver the scrap metal to the dealer; (5) if the person who sells scrap metal to the dealer is an individual, the number of the individual's driver's license, the number of the individual's government-issued identification document that contains a picture, or a copy of the individual's government-issued identification document that contains a picture; (6) if the person who sells scrap metal to the dealer is an organization, the number of the person's state business license issued under AS 43.70.020 ; (7) a description, including weight and quantity, of the scrap metal purchased by the dealer; the scrap metal dealer shall determine the weight by using a scale that complies with the state standards of weight and measure established under AS 45.75 ; and (8) the signed statement required by AS 08.60.210 . Sec. 08.60.210. Signed statement. A scrap metal dealer shall require a person from whom the dealer is purchasing scrap metal for $100 or more to sign a written or electronic statement that the scrap metal is not stolen property. The person shall date the statement, and the scrap metal dealer, or the dealer's employee or agent, shall witness the person signing. Sec. 08.60.220. Inspection availability. A dealer shall make the records required by AS 08.60.200 and 08.60.210 available for inspection by a law enforcement officer during the dealer's regular hours of business or at reasonable times if the dealer does not keep regular hours of business. Sec. 08.60.230. Retention of records. A dealer shall maintain the records of a transaction required by AS 08.60.200 and 08.60.210 for five years after the date of the transaction. Sec. 08.60.240. Exemptions. The requirements of AS 08.60.200 and 08.60.210 do not apply to a person's transactions with a dealer if the person maintains on file with the dealer the name, address, and telephone number of the person, and a taxpayer identification number issued by the federal Internal Revenue Service or a valid government-issued photo identification card. Sec. 08.60.250. Criminal penalties. A dealer who knowingly fails to comply with AS 08.60.200 or 08.60.210 or a person who knowingly makes a false entry for a record required under AS 08.60.200 or 08.60.210 is guilty of a class A misdemeanor. In this section, “knowingly” has the meaning given in AS 11.81.900 . Sec. 08.60.290. Definitions. In AS 08.60.200 — 08.60.290, unless the context requires otherwise, (1) “dealer” means a scrap metal dealer; (2) “record” means a record required by AS 08.60.200 or 08.60.210; (3) “scrap metal” means used, discarded, or previously owned brass, copper, bronze, aluminum, lead, stainless steel, catalytic converter material, or other metal; in this paragraph, “metal” does not include ferrous metal, beverage containers, gold, silver, or platinum; (4) “scrap metal dealer” means a person who purchases scrap metal for the purpose of resale or processing; (5) “transaction” means the purchase of scrap metal by a scrap metal dealer from another person.