North Carolina § 66-406 - Definitions.

§ 66-406. Definitions.

The following definitions apply in this Part: Dealer. - A person who purchases precious metals from the public, other than by an exempted transaction, in the form of jewelry, flatware, silver services, or other forms and holds himself or herself out to the public by signs, advertising, or other methods as engaging in such purchases, including any independent contractor purchasing precious metals under any arrangement in any department store. An exempted transaction is one that is (i) not considered in determining whether a person is a dealer under this Part and (ii) not subject to the requirements of this Part, even if it is entered into by a person otherwise defined and regulated as a dealer. Exempted transactions are: Purchases directly from manufacturers or wholesalers of precious metals by permanently located retail merchants for their inventories. Pawns, pledges, or purchases of items made of precious metals, if the transaction is entered into by a licensed pawnbroker and the transaction is regulated under the provisions of Part 1 of this Article. The acquisition of precious metals by a permanently located retail merchant through barter or exchange for other items sold in the ordinary course of the merchant's business, provided that the seller does not receive, as part of the transaction, any sum of money or any gift card or stored-value card, unless the card is redeemable only at that merchant's business. Local law enforcement agency. - The term means the following, as applicable: The county police force, if the dealer's business is located within a county with a county police force and outside the corporate limits of a municipality. The municipal police force, if the dealer's business is located within the corporate limits of a municipality having a police force. The county sheriff's office of the county in which the dealer's business is located, if neither sub-subdivision a. nor b. of this subdivision applies. Precious metal. - Gold, silver, platinum, or palladium, as defined below, but excluding coins, medals, medallions, tokens, numismatic items, art ingots, or art bars. Gold. - Any item or article containing 10 karats of gold or more which may be in combination or alloy with any other metal. Silver. - Any item or article containing 925 parts per thousand of silver which may be in combination or alloy with any nonprecious metal or which is marked "sterling". Platinum. - Any item or article containing 900 parts per thousand or more of platinum which may be in combination or alloy with any other metal. Palladium. - Any item or article containing 950 parts per thousand or more of palladium which may be in combination or alloy with any other metal. History (1981, c. 956, s. 1; c. 1001, s. 3; 1989 (Reg. Sess., 1990), c. 1024, s. 10(b); 2009-482, s. 1; 2012-46, ss. 15, 17.) Editor's Note. - Former G.S. 66-164 was recodified as this section by Session Laws 2012-46, s. 15, effective October 1, 2012, and applicable to offenses committed on or after that date. Session Laws 2009-482, which rewrote the section, in s. 6, provides in part: "No dealer who is required to be licensed under this act, but who was not required to be licensed prior to the effective date of this act, shall be guilty of engaging as a dealer in the business of purchasing precious metals without a license during the period between October 1, 2009, and January 1, 2010." This act became effective October 1, 2009. Session Laws 2012-46, s. 32, provides: "Pawnbroker licenses and permits to engage as a dealer in the business of purchasing precious metals that are valid on the effective date of this act shall continue in force until the natural expiration thereof, unless otherwise revoked or suspended in accordance with applicable law." Session Laws 2012-46, s. 33, provides: "This act becomes effective October 1, 2012, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date. Prosecutions for offenses committed before the effective date of this act are not abated or affected by this act, and the statutes that would be applicable but for this act remain applicable to those prosecutions." Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2009-482, s. 1, effective October 1, 2009, rewrote the section. For applicability provision, see Editor's note. Session Laws 2012-46, s. 17, substituted "Part" for "Article" in the introductory paragraph and in two places in the first paragraph of subdivision (1); and substituted "Part 1 of this Article" for "Chapter 91A of the General Statutes" in subdivision (1)b.