Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-14

Opinion No. 14 Licenses--l\ferchants-Tmnsient l\ferchants. HELD: Under the facts, every mer- chant who begins business must comply with either one or the other of the pro- \'1sions of Sec. 1 of Chapter 182, Laws of 1925. January 10, 1933. You have requested my opinion on the power of a county to collect a li- cense tax from transient merchants. Section 1 of Chapter 182, Laws of 1!l25, defines what a transient retail merchant is, and clearly sets out that e\'ery such merchant retains the char- acter of a retail merchant for one year a Her beginning business. 'l'he same sec- tion de~ines "-temporary premises" and temporary premises, as so defined, cov- ers practically every conceiyahle kind of a location that such merchant or any other kind of merchant might use as his place of husiness. A literal interpreta- tion of Section 1 on these two points necessarily includes as a transient re- -tail merchant e\'ery mel~chant that has not been in business in the locality for one ~'ear. The following sections of the aho\'e named chapter 182 proyide that trnn- sient merchant,; may either \lay $5.00 per week for the privilege of doing husiness in the locality, or give a hond of $1,000 with satisfactory secur.ity in Ol'der to escape paying such license fee of $5.00 per week. In applying for the privilege of doing business, and fur- nishing his bond, he must make affi- dm'it that he intends to hecome a per- manent merchant in the localitv and to continue in business for mor~ than one year. Under said Chal)ter 182 we do not see how you can a \'oid requiring every merchant who hegins business in )'our locality to compl~' with either one 01' the other of these provisions.