California Code, Business and Professions Code - BPC § 21625

It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article to curtail the dissemination of stolen property and to facilitate the recovery of stolen property by means of a uniform, statewide, state-administered program of regulation of persons whose principal business is the buying, selling, trading, auctioning, or taking in pawn of tangible personal property and to aid the State Board of Equalization to detect possible sales tax evasion.

Further, it is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article to require the uniform statewide reporting of tangible personal property acquired by persons whose principal business is the buying, selling, trading, auctioning, or taking in pawn of tangible personal property, unless the property or the transaction is specifically exempt herein, for the purpose of correlating these reports with other reports of city, county, and city and county law enforcement agencies and further utilizing the services of the Department of Justice to aid in tracing and recovering stolen property.

Further, it is the intent of the Legislature that this article shall not be superseded or supplanted by the provisions of any ordinance or charter of any city, county, or city and county.