Pest Control: New Fee Will Help East Whiteland Track Solicitors

East Whiteland is looking to keep track of who is knocking on residents' doors.

At its Aug. 15 meeting, the Board of Supervisors adopted a revised fee schedule that will require solicitors to obtain licenses before going door-to-door.

'Store on wheels' costs more

The fee will be $150 per year for the "Basic Peddling and Soliciting License," such as would be required for a person selling magazine subscriptions. Vendors who plan to sell goods out of their vehicles will have to pay between $100 to $200 to license their "store on wheels," depending on the amount of time they'll be in the township.

East Whiteland Township Supervisor Bill Holmes said he'd heard about aggressive solicitors in the township and experienced it firsthand.

"I had a guy yesterday trying to sell me something at the door. He was really aggressive," Holmes said at the meeting. "If he's like that with me, what about people he can physically intimidate? ... Now residents can ask, 'Hey, do you have a soliciting [license]?'"

The man was selling pest control services, Holmes said.

What about Girl Scouts selling cookies?

Township Supervisor Virginia McMichael, a Girl Scout herself, asked how the group's annual cookie drive—and other community fundraisers—would be affected. Township Manager Terry Woodman said police would use their discretion.

Police fees increase, too

Compared to the 2011 fee schedule, non-arrest fingerprinting has increased from $10 to $20 per card. Extra-duty police services, which include an officer and a car, increased slightly from $80 to $85 per hour.

The full 2012 fee schedule is available on the township website and also attached to this article as a PDF.