§ 3103. Property register required.

A.

Every scrap metal dealer shall keep a separate book, record or other electronic system as authorized by this chapter to record and maintain the following data from any seller of any amount of scrap metal:

1.

A legible photocopy of the seller's driver license or government provided photo identification, issued by the United States government, State of Oklahoma, or any other state of the United States, that contains his or her name, address, date of birth, weight and height;

2.

Vehicle description and license tag number of the seller if the vehicle was used to transport the material being sold;

3.

Date and place of the transaction and the transaction number as provided by the scrap metal dealer;

4.

Description of the items sold and weight of the items as required by this chapter;

5.

Whether the scrap metal is in wire, cable, bar, rod, sheet or tube form;

6.

If any insulation is on the scrap metal, the names and addresses of the persons, groups or corporations from whom seller purchased or obtained the materials; and

7.

If apparent on the scrap metal, the name of the manufacturer and serial number of each item of scrap metal.

B.

A scrap metal dealer shall report to the Tulsa Police Department all purchases of scrap metal within forty-eight (48) hours following such purchase. The report shall contain all the information required by this chapter and shall be reported electronically using the LeadsOnline program.

C.

Records required by this section shall be available for inspection during the regular business hours of a scrap metal dealer by any person authorized by law to make inspection. No scrap metal dealer shall purchase, take or receive from any person any scrap metal between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.

D.

Purchases of thirty-five (35) pounds or more of scrap metal containing a manufacturer's serial number or other unique label or mark shall be held by the scrap metal dealer, separate and apart from all other purchases so that the purchased scrap metal may be readily identifiable, for a period of not less than ten (10) days from the date of purchase. During the holding period the scrap metal dealer may not change the form of the purchased scrap metal and shall permit inspection by any person authorized by law to make inspection of such materials.

E.

Purchases of thirty-five (35) pounds or more of scrap metal which does not contain a manufacturer's serial number or other unique label or mark shall either be held for the same time and in the same manner as required by subsection D. of this section; or in the alternative, the scrap metal dealer shall be required to obtain a digital image of the items purchased, the seller of the items, a copy of the bill of sale and a copy of the seller's photo identification. The digital image shall contain a depiction that clearly identifies the seller and the items sold, and is captured in the common JPEG format. The digital image shall be retained by the purchaser for a minimum of ninety (90) days from the date of purchase. For the purpose of this section a "digital image" means a raster-based two-dimensional, rectangular array of static data elements called pixels, intended for display on a computer monitor or for transformation into another format, such as a printed page.

F.

No purchase of any amount of scrap metal from an Exempted Seller shall be subject to any holding period or digital imaging identification required by subsection D. or E. of this section.

G.

It shall be an offense for any scrap metal dealer or any person to sell or purchase copper material or copper wire from which the actual or apparent insulation or other coating has been burned, melted or exposed to heat or fire resulting in melting some or all of the insulation or coating. It shall be an offense for any person to sell or purchase copper wire that is four-gauge or larger in size. This subsection shall not apply to sales by or purchases from an Exempted Seller as defined in Section 3102 D. of this title. Documentation of exempt seller status shall be provided to the scrap metal dealer and, if requested by a law enforcement agency where the purchase was made, shall be transmitted to the law enforcement agency and may be kept as a permanent record and made available for public inspection.

H.

It shall be an offense for any scrap metal dealer to purchase any scrap metal item from a person under the age of 18 years without having first obtained the consent, in writing, of a parent or guardian of such person. Such written consent shall be kept with the book, record or other electronic recording system required by subsection A. of this section and, if requested by a person authorized by law to make inspection where the purchase was made, shall be transmitted to the Tulsa Police Department and may be kept as a permanent record and made available for public inspection.

I.

A scrap metal dealer shall obtain from each seller of scrap metal, including a parent or guardian on behalf of a person under the age of 18 years who sells scrap metal to a scrap metal dealer, a written declaration of ownership containing a legible signature of the seller. The declaration of ownership shall be in the following form and shall appear on the bill of sale or transaction ticket to be completed by the seller in the presence of the purchaser at the time of the transaction:

"I hereby affirm under penalty of prosecution that I am the rightful owner of the herein described merchandise; or I am an authorized representative of the rightful owner and affirm that I have been given authority by the rightful owner to sell the herein described merchandise.

Signature"     

J.

A scrap metal dealer purchasing a vehicle from any person shall be required to record the information required in subsection A. of this section as well as the make, model, license tag number and vehicle identification number of the purchased vehicle. A person selling a vehicle to a scrap metal dealer shall be required to present to the scrap metal dealer a clear title of the vehicle or a verified bill of sale from the owner of the vehicle or other proof of ownership in addition to signing a declaration of ownership as required by subsection I. of this section. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to sales, purchases or other transfer of vehicles between scrap metal dealers and licensed automotive dismantlers and parts recyclers.

K.

The provisions of this Act shall not apply to the sale or purchase of aluminum beverage cans for recycling purposes.

L.

A scrap metal dealer shall not enter into any cash transactions in excess of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) in payment for the purchase of scrap metal that is listed in subsection B. of Section 3104 of this chapter unless the transaction is made with an exempted seller. Payment by check from a scrap metal dealer shall be issued and made payable only to the seller of the scrap metal whose identification information has been obtained pursuant to the provisions of this section.

( Ord. No. 23559, § 3, 9-14-2016 ; Ord. No. 24047 , §§ 1—3, 11-28-2018)