Belmont Ice Cream Truck Vendors To Undergo Background Checks

You may have come to the opinion that the "music" coming from the myriad of ice cream trucks that occupy Belmont in the warm-weather months should be categorized as a criminal offense, if a proposed new general town bylaw is passed by Town Meeting representatives in April, anyone operating those Piped Pipers of frozen treat vehicles will themselves be required to undergo a criminal history check by the Belmont Police.

The new bylaw – which will effect door-to-door salespeople, pawnbrokers, taxi drivers and "dealers in second-hand articles" along with ice cream truck operators – will obligate anyone seeking a license for those activities to submit to a criminal background check which includes being fingerprinted by police officials. The prints will then be sent to the state and FBI fingerprint registries, according to the bylaw.

"This all has to do with ice cream trucks," said Raymond Miyares of Belmont's By-Law Review Committee as the town's regulations come as the state is proposing its own regulations on the vendors.

The license applicant will be required to pay a $100 fee with a portion of the fee going to the Firearms Fingerprint ID Verification Trust Fund. 

When the records comes back, officers will recommend to town licensing officials whether the applicant is fit for a license.

The police "shall consider whether any entry in the records constitutes an automatic disqualification for the occupation" including a conviction or pending case involving a felony, any past offense to unlawful sexual conduct, selling drugs, the threat or use of force, fraud or any crime that would related to the license the applicant is seeking, such as operating under the influence for a license to drive a cab. 

In the past, the Belmont Health Department has had to bring drivers in to discuss the conduct of competing vendors – who are somehow related to each other – for stepping on each other's toes while conducting business including staying too long in one spot. 

The background check will also check if the applicant is a registered sex offender. 

The applicant will have the opportunity to challenge the accuracy of the record.