[Adopted 10-27-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-04[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Art.
IV, Occupational Privilege Tax, adopted 11-10-1983 by Ord. No. 1983-1,
as amended.
This article is enacted under authority of the Local Tax Enabling
Act of December 31, 1965, P.L. 1257, § 13, as amended, 53
P.S. § 6913,[1] as amended, as may be hereafter amended, supplemented,
modified or reenacted by the General Assembly of Pennsylvania (collectively,
the "Act").
[1]
Editor's Note: 53 P.S. § 6913 was repealed
pursuant to P.L. 197, No. 32, § 17, effective 6-30-2012.
For current provisions of the Local Tax Enabling Act, see 53 P.S.
§ 6924.101 et seq.
As used in this article, the following words and phrases shall
have meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context
or language clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
As that term is defined in Section 13 (relating to earned
income taxes) of the Act.[1]
The Department of Community and Economic Development of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Any person, partnership, association, limited liability company,
limited liability partnership, corporation, governmental body, agency
or other entity engaged in business or situated in the Township employing
one or more employees engaged in any occupation.
The net income from the operation of a business, profession
or other activity as this term is defined in Section 13 of the Act.[2]
Any livelihood, job, trade, profession, business, enterprise
or undertaking of any type, kind or character, including services,
domestic or other, earned on or performed within the corporate limits
of the Township for which compensation is charged or received, whether
by means of salary, wages, commission or fees for services rendered.
The United States Army Reserve, United States Navy 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 at the rate set forth in § 119-30 of this article.
Berks Earned Income Tax Bureau.
Any natural person engaged in any occupation, trade or profession
within the corporate limits of the Township.
The period from January 1 until December 31 in any year;
a calendar year.
The Township of Washington, Berks County, Pennsylvania.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said section was repealed pursuant to
P.L. 197, No. 32, § 17, effective 6-30-2012. For current
provisions of the Local Tax Enabling Act, see 53 P.S. § 6924.101
et seq.
[2]
Editor's Note: Said section was repealed pursuant to
P.L. 197, No. 32, § 17, effective 6-30-2012. For current
provisions of the Local Tax Enabling Act, see 53 P.S. § 6924.101
et seq.
A local services tax for emergency services, which shall include emergency medical services, police services, and/or fire services, road construction and/or maintenance, reduction of property taxes, and property tax relief through implementation of a homestead and farmstead exclusion in accordance with 53 Pa.C.S.A. Chapter 85, Subchapter F (relating to homestead property exclusion), in the amount of $52, is hereby levied and assessed upon a taxpayer for the privilege of engaging in an occupation within the Township during the 2012 tax year and in each succeeding tax year in which the tax is in effect, assessed on a pro rata basis, in accordance with the provisions of this article. The Township shall use no less than 25% of the funds derived from the tax for emergency services. The tax is in addition to all other taxes of any kind or nature heretofore levied by the Township. The tax shall be no more than $52, on each person for each tax year, irrespective of the number of political subdivisions within which a person may be employed. In accordance with the Local Tax Enabling Act and resolution of the Boyertown School District, the tax is a combined rate tax, and the school district's levy of a five-dollar local services tax is included within the total collected tax of $52. The Township collects the entire tax and forwards to the school district the appropriate share on a quarterly basis.
All employers and self-employed persons residing or having their
places of business outside of the Township but who perform services
of any type or kind or engage in any occupation or profession within
the Township shall be subject to the provisions, penalties and regulations
promulgated under this article with the same force and effect as though
they were residents of the Township. Any individual engaged in an
occupation within the Township and an employee of a nonresidential
employer may, for the purpose of this article, be considered a self-employed
person, and in the event his or her tax is not paid, the Township
shall have the option of proceeding against either the employer or
employee for the collection of the tax.
All taxpayers whose total compensation and net profits from
all sources within the Township is less than $12,000 for any tax year
in which the tax is levied is exempt from the payment of the tax for
that tax year. In addition, the following persons are exempt from
payment of the tax:
A.
Any person who has 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, and 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 total, 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.
A.
A person seeking to claim an exemption from the tax shall annually file an exemption certificate with the Township and with the employer affirming that the person reasonably expects to receive compensation and net profits from all sources within the Township of less than $12,000 in the tax year for which the exemption certificate is filed. The Township shall provide a copy of the exemption certificate to the Tax Collector. The exemption certificate shall have attached to it a copy of all of the employee's last pay stubs or W-2 forms from employment within the Township for the year prior to the tax year for which the employee is requesting to be exempted from the tax. Upon receipt of the exemption certificate and until otherwise instructed by the Township, or except as required by Subsection B of this section, the employer shall not withhold the tax from the person during the tax year or the remainder of the tax year for which the exemption certificate applies. Employers shall ensure that the 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. The exemption certificate form shall be the uniform form provided by the Township.
B.
With respect to a person who claimed an exemption for a given tax year from the tax, upon notification to an employer by the person or the Township that the person has received compensation and net profits from all sources within the Township equal to or in excess of $12,000 in that tax year or that the person is otherwise ineligible for the tax exemption for that tax year, or upon an employer's payment to the person of compensation within the Township in an amount equal to or in excess of $12,000 in that tax year, an employer shall withhold the tax from the person under Subsection C of this section.
C.
If a person who claimed an exemption from the tax for a given tax year becomes subject to the tax for the tax year under Subsection B of this section, the employer shall withhold the tax for the remainder of that tax year. The employer shall withhold from the person for the first payroll period after receipt of the notification under Subsection B of this section a lump sum equal to the amount of tax that was not withheld from the person due to the exemption claimed by the person under this subsection, plus the amount due for that period. The amount of tax withheld per period for the remaining periods in that tax year shall be the same amount withheld for other employees.
All requests for the refund of overpaid tax shall be made in
writing to the Tax Collector and shall contain sufficient written
evidence, including copies of pay stubs, to establish to the Tax Collector
that an overpayment has occurred. The Tax Collector shall make a determination
on the request for a refund within 75 days of the request. All refunds
shall be made within 75 days of the request. Any appeal of the Tax
Collector's determination shall be made directly to the Board
of Supervisors of the Township within 30 days of the Tax Collector's
decision. Refunds made within 75 days of a refund request or 75 days
after the last day the employer is required to remit the tax for the
last quarter of the tax year, whichever is later, shall not be subject
to interest. No refunds shall be made for amounts overpaid in a tax
year that do not exceed the sum of $1. The Tax Collector shall determine
eligibility for exemption and provide and provide refunds to exempt
persons.
A.
Each employer within the Township, as well as those employers situated
outside the Township but who engage in business within the Township,
is hereby charged with the duty of collecting the tax from each of
its employees engaged by it or performing for it within the Township
and making a return and payment thereof to the Tax Collector. Each
employer is hereby authorized to deduct the tax for each employee
in its employ, whether said employee is paid by salary, wage or commission
and whether or not all such services are performed within the Township.
B.
Each employer shall register with the Tax Collector the employer's
name, address and other information the Tax Collector may require
within 15 days after the effective date of this article or within
15 days after first becoming an employer.
C.
Each employer shall assess each taxpayer a pro rata share of the
tax for each payroll period in which the taxpayer is engaging in an
occupation. The pro rata share of the tax shall be determined by dividing
the rate of the tax levied for the tax year by the number of payroll
periods established by the employer for the tax year.
D.
For each taxpayer employed after the effective date of this article,
each employer shall deduct the tax from compensation payable to the
taxpayer, file a return on a form prescribed by the Tax Collector
and pay to the Tax Collector the amount of taxes deducted on a quarterly
basis as follows: April 30, July 30, October 30 and January 30 for
the preceding quarter of the current tax year. For each taxpayer for
whom no prior deduction has been made who is employed after the effective
date of this article, each employer shall withhold from the taxpayer,
for the first payroll period after employment, a lump sum equal to
the amount of tax that was not withheld from the taxpayer, plus the
per-payroll amount due for that first payroll period. The amount of
tax withheld per payroll period for the remaining payroll periods
in that tax year shall be the same amount withheld for other employees.
In the event the employment of a taxpayer subject to withholding of
the tax under this article is subsequently severed in that tax year,
the taxpayer shall be liable for any outstanding balance of tax due,
and the Township may pursue collection under this article and the
Act.
E.
As to taxpayers who present official receipts evidencing prior payment
of the tax either directly or by collection though employers, the
employer shall not deduct that pro rata share of the tax, but the
employer shall withhold from the taxpayer, for the first payroll period,
a lump sum equal to the amount of tax that was not withheld from the
taxpayer to equal the necessary amount due from that taxpayer to date
to equal what all other employees have paid, plus the per-payroll
amount due for that first payroll period. The amount of tax withheld
per payroll period for the remaining payroll periods in that tax year
shall be the same amount withheld for other employees.
F.
If a taxpayer who claimed an exemption for a given tax year from
the tax becomes subject to the tax for the tax year under this article,
the employer shall withhold the tax for the remainder of that tax
year. The employer shall withhold from the taxpayer, for the first
payroll period after receipt of the notification, a lump sum equal
to the amount of tax that was not withheld from the taxpayer due to
the exemption claimed by the taxpayer, plus the per-payroll amount
due for that first payroll period. The amount of tax withheld per
payroll period for the remaining payroll periods in that tax year
shall be the same amount withheld for other employees.
G.
Any employer who discontinues business or ceases operation before
December 31 of any tax year during which this tax is in effect shall
file the return hereinabove required, and pay the tax to the Tax Collector,
within 15 days after discontinuing business or ceasing operations.
H.
The failure of any employer to deduct the tax as required in this
section shall not relieve the taxpayer from the duty to file a return
and pay the tax. Any employer who fails to deduct the tax as required
by this section, or who fails to pay the tax to the Tax Collector,
shall be liable for the tax in full, without deduction of the commission
hereinafter provided, as though the tax had originally been levied
against such employer.
I.
Each employer may deduct and retain a commission equal to 2% of the
total amount of the tax collected through the employer pursuant to
this section.
Each taxpayer who is self-employed or whose tax for any other reason is not collected under § 119-35 of this article shall file a return on a form prescribed by the Tax Collector and shall pay the tax directly to the Tax Collector. Each such taxpayer who first becomes subject to the tax after the effective date of this article shall file a return on a form prescribed by the Tax Collector and pay to the Tax Collector the amount of tax due and owing on a quarterly basis as follows: April 30, July 30, October 30 and January 30 for the preceding quarter of the current tax year.
The Tax Collector shall collect and receive the tax, interest,
fines and penalties imposed by this article and shall maintain records
showing the amounts received from each employer and taxpayer and the
dates such amounts were received. The Tax Collector shall prescribe
and issue all forms necessary for the administration of the tax and
may adopt and enforce regulations relating to any matter pertaining
to the administration of this article. The Tax Collector and agents
designated by the Tax Collector may examine the records of any employer
and/or supposed employer or of any taxpayer in order to ascertain
the tax due or verify the accuracy of any return. Every employer or
supposed employer and every taxpayer or supposed taxpayer shall give
the Tax Collector and any agent designated by the Tax Collector all
means, facilities and opportunities for the examination hereby authorized.
The Tax Collector shall collect, by suit or otherwise, all taxes,
interest, costs, fines and penalties due under this article and unpaid.
If for any reason any tax is not paid when due, a penalty at the rate
of 6% per year on the amount of unpaid taxes, and additional interest
of 1/2 of 1% of the amount of the unpaid tax for each month or fraction
of month during which the tax remains unpaid, shall be added and collected.
Whenever suit is brought for the recovery of unpaid tax, the taxpayer
shall, in addition, be liable for the cost of collection as well as
for interest and penalties. The Tax Collector may accept payment under
protest of the tax claimed by the Township in any case where any person
disputes the Township's claim for the tax. If a court of competent
jurisdiction thereafter decides that there has been overpayment to
the Tax Collector, the Tax Collector shall refund the amount of the
overpayment to the person who paid under protest. Any action instituted
for such judicial determination shall be instituted within two years
of the last day of the period for which the tax is disputed or a claim
was made. All refunds shall be made in conformity with the procedure
prescribed by the Board of Supervisors of the Township.
A.
Any person who fails, neglects or refuses to make any declaration
or return required by this article, as amended, any employer who fails,
neglects or refuses to register or to pay the tax deducted from its
employees, or fails, neglects or refuses to deduct or withhold the
tax from its employees, any person who refuses to permit the officer
or any agent designated by the officer to examine such person's
books, records and papers, and any person who knowingly makes any
incomplete, false or fraudulent return or attempts to do anything
whatsoever to avoid the full disclosure of the amount of such person's
net profits or earned income in order to avoid the payment of the
whole or any part of the tax imposed by this article, as may be amended,
shall, upon conviction thereof before any District Justice or court
of competent jurisdiction in Berks County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $600 for each offense,
plus costs, and in default of payment of said fine and costs to be
imprisoned for a period not exceeding 30 days. The action to enforce
the penalty herein prescribed may be instituted against any person
in charge of the business of any employer who shall have failed or
who refuses to file a return required by this article.
B.
The failure of any person to receive or procure forms required for
making the declaration or returns required by this article, as amended,
shall not excuse such person from making such declaration or return.
If the tax shall be held by any court of competent jurisdiction
to be in violation of the Constitution of the United States or of
the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as to any individual,
the decision of the court shall not affect or impair the right to
impose or collect the tax or the validity of the tax on other persons
or individuals as herein provided.
The provisions of this article are severable. If any sentence,
clause, provision or section of this article is for any reason found
to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such decision shall not
affect the validity of any of the remaining sentences, clauses, provisions
and sections of this article. It is hereby declared as a legislative
intent that this article would have been adopted had such unconstitutional,
illegal or invalid provision been included herein.
