[Adopted 12-28-1983 by Ord. No. 720]
This Article shall be known and may be cited
as the "Business Privilege Tax Ordinance."
The following words and phrases, as used in
this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section,
unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
All businesses, trades, occupations and professions in which
there is offered any service or services to the general public or
a limited number thereof, including without limitation those enterprises
engaged in by hotel operators, motel operators, apartment and rooming
house operators, parking lot and garage operators, warehouse operators,
social workers, consultants, teachers, nurses, health services, therapists,
physicians and surgeons, osteopaths, podiatrists, chiropractors, veterinarians,
optometrists, pharmacists, lawyers, dentists, engineers, architects,
chemists, certified public accountants, public accountants, funeral
directors, promoters, factors, commission merchants, agents, brokers,
manufacturer's representatives, advertising and public relations agencies,
real estate brokers, insurance brokers and agents, cable television
operators, operators of places of amusement providing either passive
or active recreation, vending machine operators, barbershop operators
and beauty shop operators, cleaning, pressing and dyeing establishment
operators, laundry operators, shoe repair shop operators, tailors,
upholsterers, electrical, plastering, bricklaying, carpentry, heat,
ventilating, plumbing and painting contractors engaged in the class
of heavy building or other construction of any kind or in the alteration,
maintenance or repair thereof, repairers of electrical, electronic
and automotive machinery and equipment or other machinery and equipment
and other wares and merchandise and other businesses, trades, occupations
and professions in which there is offered any service or services
to the general public or a limited number thereof.
[Amended 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
The Township Manager of Springfield Township, his designated
representative or a person, firm or corporation engaged for this purpose
by contract with the Board of Commissioners.
[Amended 12-28-1988 by Ord. No. 764[1]]
In general, the gross receipts upon which the tax is imposed
is the value of all cash, credits or property received by a person
which is attributable to the carrying on of business in the Township,
undiminished by any costs of doing business, including both services,
labor and materials entered into or becoming component parts of the
services performed within the Township. A receipt generally will be
considered attributable to the Township if any part of the transaction
or service giving rise to the receipt takes place within the Township.
The broad reach of this general rule is limited in certain situations
by the article and by state and federal law as more fully explained
hereinafter.
[Amended 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
Any individual, partnership, limited partnership, association
or corporation.
The Secretary of the Township of Springfield.
Any act or instance of helping or benefiting another for
a consideration.
The twelve-month period beginning the first day of January,
except that the tax year for 1984 shall be February 1, 1984, to December
31, 1984.
Any business that is conducted at one location for less than
60 consecutive calendar days.
The Township of Springfield.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided
that it shall be effective 1-4-1989.
[Amended 12-28-1988 by Ord. No. 764[1] ]
Every person desiring to engage in or hereafter
to begin to engage in a business, trade, occupation or profession
at an actual place of business in the Township shall, on or before
the 15th day of April of the tax year or within 30 days after commencing
business in such tax year, make application for registration for each
place of business in the Township, and if such person has no actual
place of business within the Township, then one registration, with
the Collector. Such application shall be made by the completion of
an application furnished by the Collector and the payment of a fee
of $10. Each application for registration shall be signed by the applicant,
if a natural person, and, in the case of an association or a partnership,
by a member or partner thereof, and, in the case of a corporation,
by an officer thereof. Each applicant shall receive a certificate
of registration from the Collector, which shall not be assignable.
In the case of loss, defacement or destruction of any certificate,
the person to whom the certificate was issued shall apply to the Collector
for a new certificate, for which a fee of $5 shall be charged.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided
that is shall be effective 1-1-1989.
A.
Every person engaging in a business, trade, occupation
or profession in the Township shall pay an annual business privilege
tax for the year beginning February 1, 1984, and each calendar tax
year thereafter at the rate of two mills on such person's gross receipts;
provided, however, that in the event that the business privilege tax
therein calculated is less than $10, no tax shall be due.
B.
If the taxpayer has a place of business in the Township
and one or more places of business outside the Township, only those
receipts properly allocable to the place of business in the Township
are taxable. For this purpose a person may be considered to have a
place of business outside the Township if services are rendered at
a fixed location outside the Township which are of such duration,
size and complexity that the person would be considered doing business
at such location.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
A.
All persons required to pay a business privilege tax
under the provisions of this article shall be exempted from paying
such tax upon the same subject matter of taxation upon which such
persons are required to pay a mercantile license tax under the Mercantile
License Tax Ordinance, Ordinance No. 609.[1] Any person required to pay both a business privilege tax
and a mercantile license tax may file one joint return. In addition,
any portion of a taxpayers gross receipts which is subject to a gross
receipts tax under any other Township ordinance, may not be taxed
under this article.
B.
Persons and businesses. Persons employed for a wage
or salary, nonprofit corporations or associations organized for religious,
charitable or educational purposes, agencies of the Government of
the United States, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the County of
Montgomery and the Springfield Township School District and the business
of any political subdivision, or of any authority created or organized
under and pursuant to any act of assembly are exempt from the provisions
of this article.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
C.
No such tax shall be assessed and collected on the
gross receipts from utility service to any person or company whose
rates of service are fixed and regulated by the Pennsylvania Public
Utility Commission; or on any privilege or transaction involving the
rendering of any such public utility service.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
D.
Production and manufacture. No such tax shall be assessed
and collected on goods, articles and products, or on by-products of
manufacture, or on minerals, timber, natural resources and farm products,
manufactured, produced or grown in the Township, or on the preparation
or processing thereof for use or market, or on any privilege, act
or transaction related to the business of manufacturing, the production,
preparation or processing of minerals, timber and natural resources
or farm products, by manufacturers, by producers and by farmers with
respect to the goods, articles and products of their own manufacture,
production or growth, or any privilege, act or transaction relating
to the business of processing by-products of manufacture, or on the
transportation, loading, unloading or dumping or storage of such goods,
articles, products or by-products.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
E.
Refunds, credits or allowances given by a person to
a customer on account of defects in services rendered or in goods,
wares and merchandise sold or returned may be deducted from the amount
of the gross receipts of the person.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
F.
Adjustments allowed to customers may be deducted from
gross receipts if they are deducted on the face of the invoice as
a medium of adjusting the price or fee for the service and if they
are not reimbursed to the person by his supplier or some other person.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
G.
Federal, state and local taxes are not included in
gross receipts if they are collected from the customer and are separately
stated on the evidence of charge or sale, or the customer produces
satisfactory proof of payment of the federal, state or local taxes.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
H.
This Article excludes from the definition of gross
receipts the receipts from services performed from a place of business
regularly maintained outside the Township by the taxpayer to a place
of business regularly maintained outside the Township by the customer,
provided that such performance is not made for the purpose of evading
the tax. Services or deliveries to a residence located outside the
Township do not qualify for this exclusion.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
I.
Where the gross receipts of the taxpayer cannot in
their entirety be subjected to the tax imposed by this article by
reason of provisions of the Constitution of the United States, the
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any other provisions
of law, the Township Manager shall establish rules and regulations
and methods of allocation and evaluation so that only that part of
the gross receipts which is properly attributable to doing business
in the Township shall be taxed by this article.
[Added 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
The following subsections refer to the computation
of the estimated gross receipts:
A.
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby
imposed who has commenced business at least a full year prior to January
1 of the tax year shall compute gross receipts upon such person's
actual gross receipts during the 12 months preceding such January
1.
B.
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby
imposed who has commenced business less than one full year prior to
such January 1 shall compute gross receipts by multiplying by 12 the
monthly average of such person's actual gross receipts during the
months while engaged in business prior to such January 1.
C.
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby
imposed who commences business subsequent to such January 1 shall
compute gross receipts for the tax year upon such person's gross receipts
for the first month of business multiplied by the number of months
remaining in the tax year.
D.
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby
imposed who engages in business which is temporary, seasonal or itinerant
by its nature shall compute gross receipts upon such person's actual
gross receipts during the tax year.
E.
At the end of the tax year and on or before April
15 of the following year, every person subject to the tax hereby imposed
shall make a return to the Secretary of the Township of the actual
gross receipts of the taxpayer during the period for which the taxpayer
is subject to the tax. Such final return shall state the amount of
the gross receipts as set forth in the first return, the amount of
tax paid at the time of filing the first return and the amount of
tax due upon the final computation.
A.
Every return as hereinafter required by this section
shall be made upon a form furnished by the Secretary. Every person
making such return shall certify the correctness thereof under the
penalties of perjury.
B.
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article
who has commenced business at least one full year prior to the beginning
of the tax year shall, on or before the 15th day of April following,
file with the Collector a return setting forth such person's name,
business and business address and such other information as may be
necessary to compute the actual gross receipts of such person during
the preceding year and the amount of tax estimated to be due.
C.
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article
who has commenced business less than one full year prior to the beginning
of the tax year shall, on or before the 15th day of April following,
file with the Collector a return setting forth such person's name,
business and business address and such other information as may be
necessary to compute the actual gross receipts of such person during
the preceding year and the amount of tax estimated to be due.
D.
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article
who commences business subsequent to the beginning of the tax year
shall, within 60 days from the date of commencing such business, file
with the Collector a return setting forth such person's name, business
and business address and such information as may be necessary to compute
the actual gross receipts of such person during the first month of
business and the amount of tax estimated to be due.
E.
Every person subject to the payment of the tax imposed
by this article who engages in a business which is temporary, seasonal
or itinerant by its nature shall, within seven days from the date
of completion of such business, file with the Collector a return setting
forth such person's name, business and business address and such information
as may be necessary in arriving at the actual gross receipts of such
person during such period and the amount of the tax due.
A.
At the time of filing the first return, the person
making the same shall pay the amount of the tax estimated to be due.
B.
At the time of filing the final return, if the full
amount of the tax due by the taxpayer for the tax year has not been
paid, the taxpayer shall pay the remaining balance of the tax, which
shall be the difference between the amount of the tax paid at the
time of making the first return on the estimated computation and the
amount of the tax finally shown to be due; provided, however, that
if said remaining balance is less than $2, no additional payment shall
be required.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Collector to collect and
receive the fees, taxes, fines and penalties imposed by this article.
It shall also be the duty of the Collector to keep a record showing
the amount of the tax received and the date of payment. A receipt
shall be given to the person paying the tax.
B.
If the Collector is not satisfied with the return
and payment of tax made by any taxpayer or supposed taxpayer under
the provisions of this article, the Collector is hereby authorized
and empowered to make a determination of the tax due by such person,
based upon the facts contained in the return or upon any information
within the Collector's possession or that shall come into possession,
and for this purpose the Collector or the deputy or authorized agent
of the Collector is hereby authorized to examine the books, papers
and records of any such person to verify the accuracy of any return
or payment made under the provisions hereof or to ascertain whether
the taxes imposed by this article have been paid. The Collector is
hereby authorized and directed to make and keep such records, prepare
such forms and take such other measures as may be necessary or convenient
to carry this article into effect and may, in such officer's discretion,
require reasonable deposits to be made by persons who engage in a
business which is temporary, seasonal or itinerant by its nature.
C.
If any taxpayer or supposed taxpayer shall neglect
or refuse to make any return and payment of tax required by this article,
or if, as a result of an investigation by the Collector, a return
is found to be incorrect, the Collector shall estimate the tax due
by such person and determine the amount due for taxes, penalties and
interest thereon.
D.
The burden is hereby imposed upon any person, firm
or corporation claiming an exemption from the payment of the tax hereby
imposed to prove by clear and convincing evidence the legal right
of such exemption to the satisfaction of the Collector.
E.
If the final return of the taxpayer shows an overpayment
of the tax by reason of the fact that the gross receipts as stated
in the estimated computation were more than the actual gross receipts
of the taxpayer for the year or by reason of the fact that the taxpayer
did not continue to engage in business throughout the year, the Collector
shall refund to the taxpayer the amount of such overpayment, which
shall be the difference between the amount of tax paid upon the filing
of the first return and the amount of the tax finally shown to be
due.
F.
Any information contained on the returns of a taxpayer
and any information obtained as a result of the examination of the
books and records of the taxpayer shall be confidential except for
official purposes and except for purposes of judicial order.
A.
All taxes due and unpaid under this article shall
be recoverable by the Township Solicitor or designated collector as
other debts due the Township are now by law recoverable. Any unpaid
tax at the end of the calendar year, together with interest penalties
to the extent permitted by law and all delinquent costs, shall be
a lien on the property served, which may be collected by action in
assumpsit, by distress and/or by a lien filed in the nature of a municipal
claim and/or by termination of services as and to the extent provided
by law. In addition, any costs and/or attorney's fees incurred by
Springfield Township shall be added to the unpaid tax, along with
penalties and interest as set forth above, and the aggregate of the
same shall be entered as a lien on the property served. Said costs
and/or attorney's fees shall be established by ordinance of the Board
of Commissioners.
[Amended 8-8-1990 by Ord. No. 777; 5-8-1996 by Ord. No.
817]
B.
The following fee schedule shall be set to pay legal
counsel for representation in proceedings to recover any delinquent
municipal claim. The Township approves these fees and finds them fair
and reasonable for the services to be rendered and shall impose them
upon the property owner in proceedings to recover delinquent municipal
claims, together with any additional expenses.
[Amended 5-8-1996 by Ord. No. 817]
|
Action
|
Legal Fee
|
|---|---|
|
Open file and send demand letter
|
$135.00
|
|
File lien and send second letter
|
$125.00
|
|
Prepare and file writ of scire facias
|
$125.00
|
|
Reissue writ
|
$25.00
|
|
Prepare and mail correspondence per Pa. R. C.
P. § 237.1
|
$25.00
|
|
Motion for alternate service
|
$175.00
|
|
Motion for summary judgment
|
$175.00
|
|
Prepare and file default judgment
|
$125.00
|
|
Prepare and file writ of execution for sheriff
sale
|
$600.00
|
|
With sale
|
$400.00
|
|
Charge for check which does not clear
|
$25.00
|
|
Miscellaneous litigation
|
Hourly rate not to exceed $135.00 per hour
|
C.
All taxes, interest and penalties received, collected
or recovered under the provisions of this article shall be paid into
the treasury of the Township for the use and benefit of the Township.
D.
Adjudication. The taxpayer may petition the Court
of Common Pleas of Montgomery County, being the county in which the
property subject to the municipal claim and lien is located, to adjudicate
the reasonableness of the attorney's fees imposed.
[Added 7-13-2005 by Ord. No. 872]
E.
Notices. At least 30 days prior to assessing or imposing
attorney fees in connection with the collection of a delinquent account,
the Township shall, by United States certified mail, return receipt
requested, postage prepaid, mail to the owner the notices as set forth
hereafter.
[Added 7-13-2005 by Ord. No. 872]
F.
Refusal of mail. If within 30 days of mailing the
notice in accordance with the foregoing subsection, the certified
mail is refused or unclaimed, or the return receipt is not received,
then at least 10 days prior to assessing or imposing attorney's fees
in connection with the collection of a delinquent account, the Township
shall, by United States first class mail, mail to the owner the notice
required hereafter.
[Added 7-13-2005 by Ord. No. 872]
G.
Contents of notice. This notice shall be mailed to the taxpayer's last known post office address; shall state that it is the intention of this Township to impose or assess attorney's fees within 30 days of mailing the notice pursuant to Subsection E, hereof, or within 10 days of the mailing and the notice pursuant to Subsection F, hereof, for services rendered in connection with the collection of the delinquent accounts due to the Township and providing for notices and opportunity for hearing, together with a statement setting forth the manner in which the imposition or assessment of attorney's fees may be avoided by payment of the delinquent account.
[Added 7-13-2005 by Ord. No. 872]
Nothing contained in this article shall be construed
to empower the Township to levy and collect the taxes hereby imposed
on any person or any business or any portion of any business not within
the taxing power of the Township under the Constitution of the United
States and the Constitution and Laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
[Amended 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721; 7-13-1988 by Ord. No.
756]
Any person, as defined in this article, or any
officer, agent, servant or employee thereof, who shall fail, neglect
or refuse to comply with any of the terms or provisions of this article,
shall, upon conviction thereof before a District Justice, be sentenced
to pay a fine of not less than $25 nor more than $600 and costs of
prosecution for each offense to be collected as other fines and costs
are by law collectible.
[Amended 1-11-1984 by Ord. No. 721]
B.
The Township Manager is hereby authorized and directed
to establish, from time to time, such written regulations as may be
necessary to further explain the provisions of this article and to
assist the taxpayer in understanding the article. Such regulations
shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners prior to being promulgated.
This article and the tax levied hereby shall
become effective February 1, 1984.
[Added 6-8-2011 by Ord. No. 911]
All taxes due under this article shall bear interest at a rate
of 10% per annum calculated in accordance therewith, from the date
they are due and payable until paid. If any taxpayer shall neglect
or refuse to make any return or payment as herein required, an additional
10% of the amount of the tax shall be added by the collector and shall
be collected.
