[Adopted 12-15-1975 by L.L. No. 3-1975 as Ch. 36 of the 1966 Code]
[Amended 7-5-1989 by L.L. No. 4-1989]
Pursuant to the authority granted by § 5-530
of the Village Law of the State of New York, a tax equal to 1% of
its gross income on and after January 1, 1976, is hereby imposed upon
every utility doing business in the Village of Geneseo, New York,
which is subject to the supervision of the State Department of Public
Service and which has a gross income for 12 months ending December
31 in excess of $500, except motor carriers of property subject to
such supervision under Article 7 of the Transportation Law, and a
tax equal to 1% of its gross operating income from and after the first
day of April 1976 is hereby imposed upon every other utility doing
business in the Village of Geneseo, New York, which has a gross operating
income tax for 12 months ending December 31 in excess of $500, which
taxes shall have application only within the territorial limits of
the Village of Geneseo and shall be in addition to any other taxes
and fees imposed by any other provision of law. Such taxes shall not
be imposed on any transaction originating or consummated outside the
territorial limits of the Village of Geneseo, notwithstanding that
some acts are necessarily performed with respect to such transactions
within such limits.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Includes receipts received in or by reason of any sale, conditional
or otherwise, except sales hereinafter referred to with respect to
which it is provided that the profits from the sales shall be included
in the gross income, made or service rendered for ultimate consumption
or use by the purchaser in the Village of Geneseo, New York, including
cash, credit and property of any kind or nature, whether or not such
sale is made or such service is rendered for profit, without any deductions
therefrom on account of costs of the property sold, the cost of the
material used, labor or services or other costs, interest or discount
paid or any other expense whatsoever; also profits from the sale of
real property growing out of the ownership or use of or interest in
such property; also profit from sale of personal property other than
property of a kind which would properly be included in the inventory
of the taxpayer if on hand at the close of the period for which a
return is made; also receipts from interest dividends and royalties
derived from sources within the Village of Geneseo, New York, other
than such as are received from a corporation, a majority of whose
voting stock is owned by the taxpaying utility, without any deduction
therefrom for any expenses whatsoever incurred in connection with
the receipt thereof; and also profits from any transaction whatsoever,
except sales for resale and rentals, within the Village of Geneseo,
New York; provided, however, that the words "gross income" shall include,
in the case of a utility engaged in selling telephones or telephone
service, only receipts from local exchange service wholly consummated
within the Village of Geneseo, New York.
Includes receipts received in or by reason of any sale, conditional
or otherwise, made for ultimate consumption or use by the purchaser
of gas, electricity, steam, water, refrigeration or telephone service
or in or by reason of the furnishing for such consumption or use of
gas, electricity, steam, water, refrigeration or telephone service
in the Village of Geneseo, New York, including cash, credits and property
of any kind or nature, without any deduction therefrom on account
of the property sold, the cost of materials used, labor or services
or other costs, interest or discount paid or any other expenses whatsoever.
Persons, corporations, companies, associations, joint-stock
associations, copartnerships, estates, assignee of rents, any person
acting in a fiduciary capacity or any other entity, and persons, their
assignees, lessees, trustees or receivers, appointed by any court
whatsoever or by any other means, except the state municipalities,
political and civil subdivisions of the state or municipality and
public districts.
Includes every person subject to the supervision of the State
Department of Public Service and every other person, whether or not
such person is subject to such supervision, who sells gas, electricity,
steam, water, refrigeration or telephone service delivered through
mains, pipes or wires or furnishes gas, electricity, steam, water,
refrigeration or telephone service by means of mains, pipes or wires,
regardless of whether such activities are the main business of such
person or are only incidental thereto or whether use is made of the
public streets.
Every utility subject to tax under this article
shall keep such records of its business and in such form as the Village
Treasurer may require or as the Village Board may require, and such
records shall be preserved for a period of three years, except that
the Village Treasurer or the Village Board may consent to their destruction
within that period or may require that they be kept longer.
[Amended 7-5-1989 by L.L. No. 4-1989]
Every utility subject to tax hereunder shall
file annually, on or before March 15 of each year, a return for the
12 calendar months or part thereof ending the prior December 31; provided,
however, that, in lieu of an annual return, any utility may file quarterly
on or before the 15th day of July, October, January and April for
the calendar quarter preceding each such return date. Every return
shall state the gross income or gross operating income for the period
covered thereby. Returns shall be filed with the Village Treasurer
on a form to be furnished by him for such purpose and shall contain
such other data, information or matter as he may require to be included
therein. The Village Treasurer, in order to ensure payment of the
tax imposed, may require at any time a further or supplemental return,
which shall contain any data that may be specified by him. Every return
shall have annexed thereto an affidavit of the head of the utility
making the same, or of the owner or copartner thereof, or of a principal
officer of the corporation, if such business is conducted by a corporation,
to the effect that the statements contained therein are true.
At the time of filing a return, each utility
shall pay to the Village of Geneseo the tax imposed by this article
for the period covered by such return. Such tax shall be due and payable
at the time of filing the return or, if a return is not filed when
due, on the last day on which the return is required to be filed.
In case any return filed pursuant to this article
shall be insufficient or unsatisfactory to the Village Treasurer and
if a corrected or sufficient return is not filed within 20 days after
the same is required by notice from him or if no return is made for
any period, the Village Treasurer shall determine the amount of tax
due from such information as he is able to obtain and, if necessary,
may estimate the tax on the basis of external indices or otherwise.
He shall give notice of such determination to the person liable for
such tax. Such determination shall finally and irrevocably fix such
tax, unless the person against whom it is assessed shall, within 30
days after the giving of notice of such determination, apply to the
Village Treasurer for a hearing or unless the Village Treasurer, of
his own motion, shall reduce the same. After such hearing, the Village
Treasurer shall give notice of his decision to the person liable for
the tax. Such decision may be reviewed by a proceeding under Article
78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State of New York if
application therefor is made within 90 days after the giving of notice
of such decision. An order to review such decision shall not be granted
unless the amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with interest
and penalties thereon, if any, shall be first deposited with the Village
Treasurer and an undertaking filed with him, in such amount and such
sureties as a Justice of the Supreme Court shall approve, to the effect
that, if such proceeding is dismissed or the tax confirmed, the applicant
will pay all costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution
of such proceeding, or, at the option of the applicant, such undertaking
may be in a sum sufficient to cove the tax, interest, penalties, costs
and charges aforesaid, in which event the applicant shall not be required
to pay such tax, interest and penalties as a condition precedent to
the granting of such order. Except in the case of willfully false
or fraudulent returns with intent to evade the tax, no assessment
of additional tax shall be made after the expiration of more than
three years from the date of the filing of a return; provided, however,
that, where no returns have been filed as required by this article,
the tax may be assessed at any time.
Any notice authorized or required to be given
under the provisions of this article may be given by mailing the same
to the person for whom it is intended in a postpaid envelope, addressed
to such person at the address given by him under this article or,
if no return has been filed, then to such address as may be obtainable.
The mailing of such notice shall be presumptive evidence of the receipt
of the same by the person to whom addressed. Any period of time which
is determined, according to the provisions of this article, by the
giving of notice shall commence to run from the date of mailing of
such notice.
Any person failing to file a return or corrected
return or to pay any tax or any portion thereof within the time required
by this article shall be subject to a penalty of 5% of the amount
of tax due, plus 1% of such tax for each month's delay or fraction
thereof, except the first month after such return was required to
be filed or such tax became due, but the Village Treasurer, for cause
shown, may extend the time for filing any return and, if satisfied
that the delay was excusable, may remit all or any portion of the
penalty by the foregoing provisions of this section.
If, within one year from the payment of any
tax or penalty, the payer thereof shall make application for a refund
thereof and the Village Treasurer or the court shall determine that
such tax or penalty or any portion thereof was erroneously or illegally
collected, the Village Treasurer shall refund the amount so determined.
For a like cause and within the same period, a refund may be so made
on the initiative of the Village Treasurer. However, no refund shall
be made of a tax or penalty paid pursuant to a determination of the
Village Treasurer as hereinbefore provided unless the Village Treasurer,
after a hearing as hereinbefore provided or of his own motion, shall
have reduced the tax penalty or if it shall have been established
in a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules
of the State of New York that such determination was erroneous or
illegal. All refunds shall be made out of moneys collected under this
article. An application for a refund, made as hereinbefore provided,
shall be deemed an application for the revision of the tax penalty
complained of, and the Village Treasurer may receive additional evidence
with respect thereto. After making his determination, the Village
Treasurer shall give notice thereof to the person interested, and
he shall be entitled to an order to review such determination under
Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State of New
York subject to the provisions hereinbefore contained relating to
the granting of such order.
The tax imposed by this article shall be charged
against and be paid by the utility and shall not be added as a separate
item to bills rendered by the utility to customers or others but shall
constitute a part of the operating costs of such utility.
Whenever any person shall fail to pay any tax
or penalty imposed by this article, the Village Attorney shall, upon
request of the Village Board, bring an action to enforce payment of
the same. The proceeds of any judgment obtained in any such action
shall be paid to the Village Treasurer. Each such tax and penalty
shall be a lien upon the property of the person liable to pay the
same, in the same manner and to the same extent that the tax and penalty
imposed by § 186 of the Tax Law is made a lien.
In the administration of this article, the Treasurer
shall have power to make such reasonable rules and regulations, not
inconsistent with law, as may be necessary for the exercise of his
powers and the performance of his duties; and to prescribe the form
of blanks, reports and other records relating to the administration
and enforcement of the tax; to take testimony and proofs, under oath,
with reference to any matter within the line of his official duty
under this article, and to subpoena and require the attendance of
witnesses and the production of books, papers and documents.
All taxes and penalties received by the Village
Treasurer under this article shall be paid into the treasury of the
Village of Geneseo and shall be credited to and deposited in the general
fund of the Village.
