[Adopted by Ch. 24, Art. VI, of the 1974
Code]
This article shall be known and may be cited
as the "Realty Transfer Tax Ordinance."
The following words or phrases, when used in
this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section,
except where the context indicates or requires a different meaning:
Any partnership, limited partnership or other form of unincorporated
enterprise owned by two or more persons.
Any deed, document, instrument or writing, other than a lease,
agreement of sale, mortgage, ground trust or testamentary writing,
whereby the legal title to lands, tenements or hereditaments or any
real interest therein shall be granted, bargained, sold, transferred,
conveyed, assigned or otherwise vested in the grantee, purchaser or
any other person.
Every natural person, partnership, association or corporation.
Whenever used in any clause prescribing or imposing a penalty, or
both, the term "person," as applied to partnerships or associations,
shall include the partnerships or members thereof and, as applied
to corporations, the officers thereof.
The Secretary of the Borough of Punxsutawney.
Any act, settlement, proceeding or process whereby the legal
title to any lands, tenements or hereditaments or other real property
or any interest therein, situate wholly or in part within the Borough,
shall, by deed, be granted, bargained, sold, transferred, conveyed,
assigned or otherwise vested.
The person designated by the Council of the Borough to collect
the tax imposed by this article.
The actual monetary worth or value of the property granted,
bargained, sold or otherwise conveyed, and said monetary value shall
include all liens, mortgages or other encumbrances on the property
granted, bargained, sold or otherwise conveyed. The actual consideration
which is prima facie evidence of the actual monetary worth or value
of the property granted, bargained, sold or conveyed shall be construed
to mean, for the purpose of this article, the cash agreed to be paid
or paid for the execution and delivery of the deed, together with
the face value of all liens, mortgages or other encumbrances secured
on the lands, tenements or hereditaments or interest therein conveyed
or transferred by said deed, together with any other evidence of indebtedness
or promise, either oral or written, given by or on behalf of the grantee
to the grantor or anyone on his behalf as full or part consideration
for said deed, provided that, where such deed shall set forth a small
or nominal consideration, the value thereof shall be determined from
the price set forth in or actual consideration for the contract or
agreement of said or, in the case of a gift, from the actual monetary
worth or value of the property granted, bargained, sold or otherwise
conveyed at the time of such grant, bargain, sale or conveyance which,
in either event, shall not be less than the amount of the highest
assessment of such lands, tenements or hereditaments for local tax
purposes.
For the period of June 1 through May 31 of each
year, a tax for general revenue purposes, at the rate of 1% of the
total value, is hereby imposed, assessed and levied on every transaction,
transfer or privilege arising therefrom, regardless of where the instrument
making the transfer is made, executed or delivered or where the actual
settlement on such transfer takes place, whereby any lands, tenements
or hereditaments or any interest therein, lying, being and situate,
wholly or in part, within the boundaries of the Borough, shall be
granted, bargained, sold or otherwise conveyed, provided that, in
the case of any lands, tenements or hereditaments or any interest
therein located partly within and partly without the boundaries of
the Borough, such tax is imposed, assessed and levied only upon the
value of that portion of such lands, tenements or hereditaments or
any interest therein lying within the limits or boundaries of the
Borough. The tax herein imposed shall be due and payable at the time
of the executing, delivering or accepting of the deed, and the grantee
or grantees shall be jointly and severally liable with the grantor
or grantors for the payment of said tax, and the grantee or grantees
shall remain liable for any unpaid realty transfer taxes imposed by
this article.
The elected Tax Collector of the Borough is
hereby appointed the Transfer Tax Collecting Agent of the Borough
and is hereby empowered and directed to collect the tax imposed by
this article and to distribute stamps to evidence the payment of said
tax. The Tax Collector shall be entitled to a commission of 5% of
the tax so collected.
The payment of the tax imposed by this article
shall be evidenced by an official stamp or stamps affixed to every
deed. Such stamp or stamps will indicate the amount of the tax paid
and the date on which payment was made, and said stamp or stamps shall
bear the initials of the person affixing said stamps to the deed.
The transfer tax collecting agent may prescribe, prepare and furnish
adhesive stamps of such denominations and quantities as may be necessary
for the payment of the tax imposed and assessed by this article.
The Borough Solicitor is hereby charged with
the enforcement of the provisions of this article and is hereby authorized
and empowered to prescribe, adopt, promulgate and enforce rules and
regulations relating to:
A.Â
The method and means to be used in affixing and canceling
of stamps in substitution for or in addition to the method and means
provided in this article.
B.Â
The denomination and sale of stamps.
C.Â
Any other matter or thing pertaining to the administration
and enforcement of the provisions of this article.
Every deed upon which a tax is imposed by this
article and which does not reflect the actual value of the land, tenements
or hereditaments or interest therein granted, bargained, sold or conveyed
by said deed shall be accompanied by an affidavit executed by a responsible
person connected with the transaction, showing such connection and
setting forth the true, full, complete and actual value thereof.
The following transactions shall not be subject
to the tax imposed by this article:
A.Â
Transfers by will or intestate laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
B.Â
Mortgages.
C.Â
Transfers by the owner of previously occupied residential
premises to a builder of new residential premises when such previously
occupied residential premises is taken in trade by such builder as
part of the consideration from the purchaser of a new, previously
unoccupied, single-family residential premises.
E.Â
Transfers between nonprofit industrial development
agencies and industrial corporations purchasing from them.
F.Â
Transfers to nonprofit industrial development agencies
and industrial corporations purchasing from them.
G.Â
Transfers between husband and wife or parent and child
or the spouse of such child or between parent and trustee for the
benefit of a child or the spouse of such child.
H.Â
Transfers between persons who were previously husband
and wife but who have since been divorced, provided that such transfer
is made within three months of the date of the granting of the final
decree in divorce and the property or interest therein subject to
such transfer was acquired by the husband and wife prior to the granting
of the final decree in divorce.
I.Â
Transfers between a principal and straw party for
the purposes of placing a mortgage or ground rent upon the premises.
J.Â
Correctional deeds without consideration.
K.Â
Transfers to the United States, the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania or any other instrumentalities, agencies or political
subdivisions by gift, dedication or deed, in lieu of condemnation
or deed of confirmation in connection with condemnation proceedings
or reconveyances by the condemning body of the property condemned
to the owner of record at the time of condemnation, which reconveyance
may include property line adjustments made within one year of the
date of condemnation.
L.Â
Conveyances to a trustee under a recorded trust agreement
for the express purpose of holding title in trust as security for
a debt contracted at the time of the conveyance under which the trustee
is not the lender and requiring the trustee to make reconveyance to
the grantor-borrower upon the repayment of the debt.
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
A.Â
Execute, deliver, accept or record any deed or cause
any deed to be executed, delivered, accepted or recorded without the
full amount of the tax thereon being duly paid.
B.Â
Fraudulently cut, tear or remove from a deed any official
stamps, receipts or other evidence of payment.
C.Â
Fraudulently affix to any deed upon which a tax is
imposed by this article any official stamp or other evidence of payment
upon which a tax is imposed by this article or any official stamp
of insufficient value or any forged or counterfeit stamp or any impression
of any forged or counterfeit stamp, receipt, die, plate or other article.
D.Â
Willfully remove or alter the cancellation marks of
any official stamp or restore such official stamp with intent to use
or cause the same to be used after it has already been used or knowingly
buy, sell or offer for sale or give away any such altered or restored
stamp to any person for use or knowingly use the same.
E.Â
Knowingly have in his possession any altered or restored
official stamp which has been removed from any deed upon which a tax
is imposed by this article, provided that the possession of such stamp
shall be prima facie evidence of an intent to violate the provisions
of this subsection.
F.Â
Knowingly or willfully prepare, keep, sell, offer
for sale or have in his possession any forged or counterfeited official
stamp.
G.Â
Make use of any stamp or denote payment of any tax
imposed by this article without canceling such stamp as required by
this article or as prescribed by the Solicitor.
H.Â
Fail, neglect or refuse to comply with, or violate,
the rules and regulations prescribed, adopted and promulgated by the
Solicitor under the provisions of this article.
If, for any reason, the tax is not paid when
due, interest at the rate of 6% per annum on the amount of said tax,
and an additional penalty of 1/2% of the amount of the unpaid tax
for each month or fraction thereof during which the tax remains unpaid,
shall be added and collected. Where suit is brought for the recovery
of the tax, the person liable therefor shall, in addition, be liable
for the costs of collection and the interest and penalties herein
imposed.
In addition to the other remedies now or hereafter
provided by law, all taxes imposed by this article, together with
interest and penalties due thereon, shall be recovered in an action
of assumpsit.
