[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided
an effective date of 1-1-2009.
The following words and phrases, when used in
this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section,
except where the context or language clearly indicates or requires
a different meaning:
The actual location from which the employee or self-employed
individual works. The employer's headquarters or location where payroll
checks are prepared does not determine the place of employment unless
the employee or self-employed individual actually works from that
location.
A person, partnership, association, corporation, governmental
body, agency or other entity employing one or more individuals on
a salary, wage, commission or other compensation basis, including
a self-employed person.
Indicates the singular and plural number, as well as male,
female, and neuter gender.
Any person, male or female, engaged in any occupation within
the boundaries of the Township of Derry
Any trade, profession, business, employment or undertaking
of any type, kind or character, including services, domestic or other,
carried on or performed within the boundaries of the Township of Derry
for which compensation is charged or received in salary, wages, commissions,
fees for services rendered or any other basis.
The United States Army Reserve, United States Naval Reserve,
United States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Coast Guard Reserve,
United States Air Force Reserve, the Pennsylvania Army National Guard
or the Pennsylvania Air National Guard.
The local services tax in the amount of $52 levied by this
article.
Pursuant to the authority granted by the Local
Tax Enabling Act (53 P.S. § 6901 et seq.),[1] the Township of Derry hereby levies and imposes on each
occupation engaged in by individuals within the Township of Derry
during the fiscal year 2009, and each fiscal year thereafter, a local
services tax in the amount of $52. This tax shall be in addition to
all other taxes of any kind or nature heretofore levied by the Township
of Derry and by any other municipality or taxing body and shall be
collected by the Township of Derry Tax Collection Association or by
such other person or agency as the Board of Supervisors may from time
to time hereafter appoint. Such tax shall continue in force on a fiscal-year
basis, without annual reenactment, unless the rate of tax is subsequently
changed.
[1]
Editor's Note: Sections 6901 to 6909 were
renumbered as 53 P.S. §§ 6924.101 to 6924.312 by P.L.
197, No. 32, §§ 2, 3.1 to 11, 7-2-2008, effective immediately.
The following individuals or classes of individuals
shall be exempt from the local services tax:
A.
Any person who served in any war or armed conflict
in which the United States was engaged and is honorably discharged
or released under honorable circumstances from active service if,
as a result of military service, the person is blind, paraplegic or
a double or quadruple amputee or has a service-connected disability
declared by the United States Veterans' Administration, or its successor,
to be a one-hundred-percent permanent disability.
B.
Any person who serves as a member of a reserve component
of the armed forces and is called to active duty at any time during
the taxable year, excepting the person's annual active duty for training.
C.
Any individual subject to this tax who derives less
than $12,000 in total earned income and net profits per year from
all occupations engaged in within the boundaries of the Township of
Derry, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, shall be exempt from the local
services tax established by this article.
D.
Claim exemption process.
(1)
A person seeking to claim an exemption from the local
services tax may annually file an exemption certificate with the Township
and with the individual's employer affirming that the individual reasonably
expects to receive earned income and net profits from all sources
within the Township of less than $12,000 in the calendar year for
which the exemption certificate is filed.
(2)
Required information for the exemption certificates.
All exemption certificates submitted to an employer and the Township
shall have attached to it a copy of all of the employee's last pay
stub(s) or W-2 forms from employment within the Township for the year
prior to the fiscal year for which the employee is requesting to be
exempt from the local services tax.
Each employer within the Township of Derry,
as well as those employers situated outside of the Township of Derry
but who have employees who engage in business within the Township
of Derry, is hereby charged with the following duties:
A.
To collect from each of his employees engaged by him
and performing duties or services for him within the Township of Derry
the aforesaid local services tax of $52 per annum. Each employee subject
to the local services tax shall be assessed a pro rata share of the
tax for each payroll period in which the individual is engaging in
an occupation. The pro rata share of the tax assessed on the individual
for a payroll period shall be determined by dividing the combined
rate of the local services tax for the calendar year by the number
of payroll periods established by the employer for the calendar year
(example: tax of $52 divided by 26 pay periods equals a prorated deduction
of $2 per pay period). For the purposes of determining, the pro rata
share, the employer shall round down the amount collected each payroll
period to the nearest one-hundredth of a dollar.
B.
To make a return and make payment of the local services
tax collected hereunder to the Township of Derry Tax Collection Association
or to such other agent designated by the Board of Supervisors to collect
such taxes.
C.
To deduct this tax from each employee in his employment,
whether said employee is paid by salary, wages or commissions, and
whether or not part or all of such services are performed in the Township
of Derry.
D.
To secure from the Township of Derry Tax Collection
Association (or other designated agent) the tax return forms for reporting
the taxes collected. Employers are also required to secure copies
of: the exemption certificate forms; the uniform employee statement
forms; and any other relevant forms for its employees that are created
by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.
E.
To prepare and file a quarterly local services tax return showing the computation of the prorated share of the tax on the forms supplied by the Township. Each return and payment of the prorated tax collected from each employee will also be accompanied by any exemption certificates (See Subsection G.) submitted by employees to the employer. All employers shall remit the local services taxes collected, any summary report, and any exemption forms to the Township after the end of each quarter of the calendar year, with the first payment due on April 30. The remaining quarterly reports shall be made by each employer on or before July 31, October 31 and January 31 of the following year as reflected upon his employment records.
F.
It is further provided that if the employer fails
to file said return and pay said tax, whether or not he makes collection
thereof from the salary, wages or commissions paid by him to said
employee or employees, the employer shall be responsible for the payment
of the tax in full, as though the tax had originally been levied against
the employer unless the employer is able to provide a copy of the
employee's exemption certificate together with the supporting documentation
such as a recent payroll statement or similar documentation evidencing
entitlement to the exemption.
G.
Exemption certificates.
(1)
Upon receipt of an exemption certificate from an employee,
employers shall forward a copy of the exemption certificate to the
Township or its designated collection agent with the employer's quarterly
return.
(2)
Until otherwise instructed by the Township or its
designated collection agent, the employer shall not withhold the local
services tax from an employee during the calendar year or the remainder
of the calendar year for which the exemption certificate applies.
(3)
Employers shall ensure that exemption certificate
forms are readily available to employees at all times and shall furnish
each new employee with a form at the time of hiring.
H.
Restoration of collection of tax if exemption status
changes.
(1)
All employers must "restart" withholding the local
services tax from an employee who files an exemption certificate in
the following circumstances:
(2)
If any of the circumstances listed above are met,
the employer will collect the local services tax from the previously
exempted employee for the remainder of that calendar year. The employer
shall withhold from the person, for the first payroll period after
the individual becomes subject to the tax, a lump sum equal to the
amount of the tax that was not withheld from the individual due to
the exemption plus the prorated per payroll amount due for that first
pay period. The amount of tax withheld per payroll period for the
remaining payroll periods in that calendar year shall be the same
amount withheld in the same manner as other nonexempt employees.
I.
Tax obligation when exempt employee's employment is
severed. In the event the employment of an individual who was exempt
and becomes subject to the local services tax is subsequently severed
in that calendar year, the person shall be liable for any outstanding
balance of the tax due, and the Township or its designated collection
agent may pursue collection of the tax.
Each employer shall use employment records from
the first day of January of each year for determining the number of
employees from whom said tax shall be deducted and paid over to the
agent for collection of the same designated by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Derry. The local services tax shall be applicable
to employment in the period beginning January 1 of the current year
and ending December 31 of the current year. Taxes imposed for the
first time shall become effective from January 1 of the year and shall
continue in force on a calendar year. Supplemental reports shall be
made by each employer with the quarterly tax payments due on or before
July 31, October 31 and January 31 of each year for changes in employees
as reflected upon his employment records from April 1 to June 30,
July 1 to September 30 and October 1 to December 31.
A.
Each individual who shall have more than one occupation
within the Township of Derry shall be subject to the payment of this
tax on his principal occupation, and his principal employer shall
deduct this tax and deliver to him evidence of deduction on a recent
pay stub or the equivalent of a pay stub, which be evidence of the
deduction having been made and, when presented to any other employer,
shall be authority for such employer not to deduct this tax from the
employee's wages but shall, nevertheless, require the employer to
include such employee on his return of taxes and shall require the
employer to set forth his name and address and the name and account
number of the employer who deducted this tax.
B.
In the event that a person is engaged in more than
one occupation, or an occupation which requires his working in more
than one political subdivision during the calendar year, and thereby
subjects the employee to the possibility of payment of multiple local
services taxes, the priority of claim to collect such tax shall be
in the following order: first, the political subdivision in which
a person maintains his principal office or is principally employed;
second, the political subdivision in which the person resides and
works, if such a tax is levied by that political subdivision; and
third, the political subdivision in which a person is employed and
which imposes the tax nearest in miles to the person's home. The place
of employment shall be determined as of the day the taxpayer first
becomes subject to the tax during the calendar year. It is the intent
of this provision that no person shall pay more than $52 in local
services taxes in any calendar year, irrespective of the number of
political subdivisions within which such person may be employed within
any given calendar year. In case of dispute, a tax receipt of the
taxing authority for a disputed calendar year, declaring that the
taxpayer has made prior payment, shall constitute prima facie certification
of payment to all other political subdivisions.
C.
In the case of concurrent employment, an employer
shall refrain from withholding the local services tax if the employee
provides a recent pay statement from a principal employer that includes
the name of the employer, the length of the payroll period and the
amount of the local services tax withheld, and a statement from the
employee that the pay statement is from the employee's principal employer
and the employee will notify other employers of a change in principal
place of employment within two weeks of its occurrence on uniform
forms developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic
Development.
All self-employed individuals who perform services
of any type or kind or engage in any occupation or profession within
the Township of Derry shall be required to comply with this article
and pay the tax to the agent for collection of the same designated
by the Board of Supervisors on a quarterly basis on or before April
30, July 31, October 31, and January 31 of each year, or as soon thereafter
as he engages in an occupation.
All employers and self-employed individuals
residing or having their place of business outside the Township of
Derry but who perform services of any type or kind, or engage in any
occupation or profession, within the Township do, by virtue thereof,
agree to be bound by and subject themselves to the provisions, penalties
and regulations promulgated under this article with the same force
and effect as though they were residents of the Township of Derry.
Further, any individual engaged in an occupation within the Township
of Derry who is an employee of a nonresident employer may, for the
purpose of this article, be considered a self-employed person, and
in the event that this tax is not paid, the Township of Derry shall
have the option of proceeding against either the employer or the employee
for the collection of this tax as hereinafter provided.
A.
It shall be the duty of the agent for the collection
of the local services tax of the Township of Derry to accept and receive
payments of this tax and to keep a record thereof showing the amount
received by him from each employer or self-employed person, together
with the date the tax was received.
B.
The agent for the collection of the local services
tax is hereby charged with the administration and enforcement of this
article and is hereby charged and empowered to prescribe, adopt and
promulgate rules and regulations relating to any matter pertaining
to the administration and enforcement of this article, including.
provisions for the examination of payroll records of any employer
subject to this article, the examination and correction of any return
made in compliance with this article, and any payment alleged or found
to be incorrect or as to which overpayment is claimed or found to
have occurred. Any person aggrieved by any decision of the agent for
the collection of the local services tax shall have the right to appeal
to the Board of Supervisors and to the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin
County, as in other cases provided.
C.
The agent for the collection of the local services
tax, or its duly authorized representative or agent, is hereby authorized
to examine the books and payroll records of any employer in order
to verify the accuracy of any return of taxes made by an employer
or, if no return was made, to ascertain the tax due. Each employer
is hereby directed and required to give the agent for the collection
of the local services tax, or his duly authorized representative or
agent, the means, facilities and opportunity for such examinations.
D.
In accordance with the Local Tax Enabling Act, as
amended (53 P.S. § 6901 et seq.),[1] all tax proceeds from local service taxes collected shall
be used for police, fire and/or emergency services; road construction
and/or maintenance; and/or reduction of property taxes. All taxes
collected shall be deposited in the Local Services Tax Fund established
by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.
[1]
Editor's Note: Sections 6901 to 6909 were
renumbered as 53 P.S. §§ 6924.101 to 6924.312 by P.L.
197, No. 32, §§ 2, 3.1 to 11, 7-2-2008, effective immediately.
E.
The Township shall provide any local services taxpayer
a receipt of payment upon request by the taxpayer.
F.
No employer shall be held liable for failure to withhold
the local services tax or for the payment of the withheld tax money
to a political subdivision if the failure arises from incorrect information
submitted by the employee as to the employee's place or places of
employment, the employee's principal office or where the employee
is principally employed. The employer shall also not be liable for
payment of the local services tax in an amount exceeding the amount
withheld by the employer if the employer complies with the provision
of this article and remits the amount so withheld accordingly.
A.
In the event that any tax under this article remains
due or unpaid 30 days after the due dates above set forth, the agent
for the collection of the tax may sue for the recovery of any such
tax due or unpaid under this article, together with interest and penalty.
B.
If for any reason the tax is not paid when due, interest
at the rate of 1 1/2% per month on the amount of said tax shall
be calculated beginning with the due date of said tax, until paid,
and a penalty of 10% shall be added to the flat rate of said tax for
nonpayment thereof. Suit may be brought for the recovery of this tax,
and where suit is brought, the individual liable for the payment of
the tax shall, in addition, be responsible and liable for the costs
of collection.
Whoever makes any false or untrue statement
on any return of taxes required by this article; whoever refuses inspection
of his books, records or accounts in his custody and control setting
forth the number of employees to this tax who are in his employment;
whoever fails or refuses to file any return required by this article;
or whoever fails or refuses to pay any tax required by this article
shall, upon conviction before any District Justice, be sentenced to
pay a fine of not more than $600 for each offense, plus costs. It
is further provided that the action to enforce the fine and penalty
herein provided may be instituted against any person in charge of
the business of any employer who has failed or refused to file a return
required by this article. It is further provided that, upon judgment
against any person by summary conviction, or by proceedings by summons
on default of the payment of the fine or penalty imposed and the costs,
the defendant may be sentenced and committed to the county prison
for a period not exceeding 30 days.
The relevant provisions of the Local Tax Enabling
Act (53 P.S. § 6901 et seq.),[1] as amended, are incorporated herein by reference and to
the extent of any inconsistency between this article and the statute,
or the noninclusion of statutory provisions, the language or provisions
of the statute shall prevail.
[1]
Editor's Note: Sections 6901 to 6909 were
renumbered as 53 P.S. §§ 6924.101 to 6924.312 by P.L.
197, No. 32, §§ 2, 3.1 to 11, 7-2-2008, effective immediately.
The provisions of this article are severable,
and the determination of illegality, invalidity, or unconstitutionality
of any provision, section, sentence, or clause shall not affect or
impair any other part hereof, it hereby being declared to be the intent
of the Board of Supervisors that this article would have been adopted
as if such part had not been included herein.
