§ 403. Licenses. 1. No person shall operate as a pet dealer unless such person holds a license issued therefor by the commissioner. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a pet dealer, in operation on or before the effective date of this section, who has filed an application for an initial license under this article shall be authorized to operate without such license until the commissioner grants or, after notice and opportunity to be heard, declines to grant such license. Each application for a license shall be made on a form supplied by the department and shall contain such information as may be required by the department. Renewal applications shall be submitted to the commissioner at least thirty days prior to the commencement of the next license year.

2. The commissioner may delegate his or her authority pursuant to this section to issue pet dealer licenses to the county or city where the pet dealer seeking licensure is located. Such delegation shall be pursuant to an agreement entered into by the commissioner and such city or county.

3. Each application for a license shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee of one hundred dollars, except that those pet dealers who engage in the sale of less than twenty-five animals in a year, shall pay a nonrefundable fee of twenty-five dollars.

4. The moneys received by the commissioner pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the "pet dealer licensing fund" established pursuant to section ninety-seven-rr of the state finance law.

5. Where the authority to issue pet dealer licenses is delegated to the county or city pursuant to subdivision two of this section, that county or city shall, on or before the fifth day of each month, remit to the appropriate municipal financial officer one hundred percent of all license fees collected during the preceding month. The remittance shall be accompanied by a report of license sales made during such month. A copy of such report shall simultaneously be sent to the commissioner. All license fees so remitted shall be the property of the municipality, and shall be used solely for the purpose of carrying out and enforcing the provisions of this article and of article thirty-five-D of the general business law.

6. Inspection in accordance with section four hundred five of this article, the results of which establish compliance with the provisions of this article and with the provisions of article thirty-five-D of the general business law regarding recordkeeping and consumer disclosure requirements for pet dealers, shall precede issuance of a license or renewal thereof under this section.

7. Upon validation by the commissioner or the county or city authorized under this section to issue pet dealer licenses, the application shall become the license of the pet dealer.

8. The commissioner shall provide a copy of the license to the pet dealer. The commissioner shall also retain a copy of the license. In those counties where the commissioner has delegated the licensing authority to the county or city that county or city shall, provide a copy of the license to the pet dealer and a copy to the commissioner. The county or city shall also retain a copy of the license in its own records.

9. No pet dealer shall publish or advertise the sale or availability of any dog or cat unless the publication or advertisement is accompanied by the pet dealer's license number. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a pet dealer, in operation on or before the effective date of this section, who has filed an application for an initial license under this article may publish or advertise the sale or availability of any dog or cat without the publication or advertisement being accompanied by the pet dealer's license number until the commissioner grants or, after notice and opportunity to be heard, declines to grant such license.

10. Such license shall be renewable annually, together with the payment of a nonrefundable fee of one hundred dollars, or upon payment of a nonrefundable fee of twenty-five dollars for those pet dealers who engage in the sale of less than twenty-five animals in a year.

11. Pet dealers shall conspicuously display their license on the premises where the animals are kept for sale so that they may be readily seen by potential consumers.