Solicitors Permits
The City of Ennis staff and City Commission's goal is to ensure the safety and privacy of it's residents, and to provide reasonable limits for the hours of solicitation. On July 20, 2021 the City of Ennis City Commission adopted SOLICITATION ORDINANCE NO. 21-0720-F3 which established rules and guidelines for persons wishing to solicit or distribute handbills.
In order to apply for a permit, please complete the SOLICITOR PERMIT APPLICATION and submit to the City Secretary's office at 107 N. Sherman, Ennis, TX 75119, Monday - Friday between the hours of 8AM and 5PM. You must provide a copy of your driver's license and the $20 application fee before your application will be accepted and processed.
The Solicitation Ordinance provides citizens the ability to register for the Do-Not-Solicit list. You may register by visiting the City Secretary's office at 107 N. Sherman, TX 75119. All vendors who are issued a Solicitor's Permit will receive a copy of the Do-Not-Solicit list. If your address is on the list, but you have a solicitor at your door, get the solicitor's name and company and contact the City Secretary's office at 972-875-1234 ext. 2236. If after hours, leave a message with your address and the solicitor's name.
General Rules for Solicitation |
- Solicitation activities is defined as travelling by any means, door-to-door, house-to-house, or building-to-building and personally contacting persons for the purpose of selling or taking orders for goods, wares, merchandise, publications, or services.
- Door to door solicitation without a City of Ennis permit and ID badge is not allowed.
- Solicitors may only approach the front door of a residence
- Hours permissible to solicit are 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday - Saturday.
- Soliciting is prohibited on Sundays and on any of the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King's Birthday, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day.
- Solicitors are required to wear their City issued ID badge at all times while engaging in soliciting activities. See the sample ID Badge below:
Handbills are defined as any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet, or any printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter or literature.
- No person shall throw or deposit or cause any handbill to be placed in or upon more than three vehicles at the same location
- No person shall throw or deposit any handbill in or upon any private premises which are temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant
- No person shall distribute, deposit, place, or throw any handbill in or upon any private premises which are inhabited if the premises has a sign posted on the premises, as described in Section 10-254, or if the location is on the Do Not Solicit List. If an inhabited premises does not contain such sign and is not on said list, a person may place or deposit a handbill in or upon such premises, if such handbill is so placed or deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from being blown or drifted about such premises or elsewhere, unless an owner or occupant of the premises requests that the person not do so. In no event shall such handbill be deposited in a mailbox when so prohibited by federal postal laws or regulations.