[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Harrisburg
by Ord. No. 20-1985. Amendments noted where applicable.]
CROSS-REFERENCES
Power to tax generally: see Third Class City Code § 2601
(53 P.S. § 37601).
Power to tax: see Local Tax Enabling Act, Act of Dec. 31, 1965,
P.L. 1257, as amended (53 P.S. § 6924.101 et seq.).
Surface parking not business property: see § 5-503.1.
As used in this chapter, unless the context indicates a clearly
different meaning, the following words and phrases shall have the
meanings set forth below:
The payment of compensation, of whatever nature, to the operator
by or on behalf of the patron, upon an express or implied contract
or under a lease or otherwise, whether or not separately stated, and
whether paid in cash or credited to an account, for each transaction
involving the parking or storing of a motor vehicle by the patron.
The consideration shall not include the tax imposed and collected
under this chapter.
Any place within the City, whether wholly or partially enclosed
or open, including a garage or enclosed building, at which motor vehicles
are parked or stored for any period of time in return for a consideration,
not including:
Any parking area or garage to the extent that it is provided
or leased to occupants of a residence on the same or other premises
for use only in connection with, and as necessary to, the occupancy
of such residence;
Any parking area or garage operated exclusively by an owner
or lessee of a hotel, an apartment hotel, tourist court or trailer
park, to the extent that parking is provided to guests or tenants
of such hotel, tourist court or trailer park for no additional consideration;
and
Any on-site or off-street parking on property designated for
accessory use provided by the owner for the use of such owner, tenants
of such owner, and the employees and business visitors of such owner
or tenants.
Any person conducting the operation of a nonresidential parking
lot or receiving the consideration for the parking or storage of motor
vehicles at such parking lot, including without limiting the generality
of the above any governmental body, governmental subdivision, municipal
corporation, public authority, nonprofit corporation, or any person
operating as an agent of one of the above.
Any person who drives a vehicle to, into or upon a nonresidential
parking lot, as hereinafter defined, for the purpose of having such
vehicle stored for any length of time. "Patron" shall also include
any person who has a vehicle in his or her custody or control taken
by another for the purpose of having it stored at a nonresidential
parking place.
The parking or storing of a motor vehicle at a nonresidential
parking lot for a consideration.
[Amended 12-23-2002 by Ord. No. 29-2002; 10-11-2011 by Ord. No.
11-2011]
A.
A tax for general revenue purposes is hereby imposed upon each parking
transaction by a patron of a nonresidential parking place at the rate
of 20% of the consideration for each such transaction, effective as
of January 1, 2011, and thereafter from year to year on a calendar-year
basis. No operator shall conduct such transactions without complying
with all of the provisions of this chapter and without collecting
the tax imposed here and paying it over to the City.
[Amended 5-26-2015 by Ord. No. 5-2015]
B.
To the extent possible after fulfilling all bond requirements, a
minimum of 33% of revenues received by the City as a result of the
twenty-percent parking transaction tax is dedicated to supporting
mass transit.
A.
No operator shall conduct business as a nonresidential parking lot
without obtaining an annual license at a fee of $1 per space from
the Tax Enforcement Administrator for the purpose of defraying the
costs of administering this chapter. Such license shall be obtained
by an operator for each lot operated by such operator within 30 days
after the effective date of this section and shall be renewed annually
on or before January 1 of each year. Any person who intends to become
an operator, or any operator who intends to increase the number of
spaces available for nonresidential parking, shall obtain a license
or amended license before beginning such operation or expansion. At
each parking lot, the operator shall display the license in a conspicuous
location at all times. Such license shall not be transferable between
one operator and another or between one parking lot and another. Any
operator who ceases to conduct the operation of a parking lot shall
notify the Tax Enforcement Administrator and return the license applicable
thereto.
B.
Nothing herein shall relieve the operator of the obligation to obtain
a business privilege/mercantile license; provided, however, that any
operator of a lot of 40 spaces or less who has obtained a business
privilege/mercantile license will be issued a parking license at no
additional charge.
No operator shall begin or continue to conduct the operation
of a nonresidential parking lot without obtaining for each such lot
a bond to secure faithful performance by such operator of the duties
imposed by this chapter. Such bonds shall be renewed annually. Each
bond will be filed with the Business Administrator or designee and
will be in the amount equal to $1,000 per 10 parking spaces, but in
no event shall the amount of such bond be less than $1,000.
Each operator shall maintain, separately with respect to each
parking lot, complete and accurate records of all transactions and
the total amount of tax collected on the basis of such consideration.
Each operator shall issue to the person paying the consideration such
written evidence of the transactions as the Business Administrator
or designee may prescribe by regulations. Where consideration in a
transaction is not separately stated, the operator shall maintain
evidence and records necessary to segregate the consideration applicable
to the transaction, for the benefit of the patron and the Business
Administrator or designee, so that the proper amount of tax can be
collected. Each operator shall afford the Business Administrator and
designated employees and agents access to all such records and evidence
at all reasonable times and shall provide verification of the same
as the Business Administrator may require.
Each operator, on forms prescribed by the Business Administrator
or a designee, shall file quarterly, by the 30th day of the months
of April, July, October and January of each year, returns for the
preceding three months showing the consideration received with respect
to each parking lot during the preceding three months, together with
the amount of tax collected thereupon. At the time of filing the return,
the operator shall pay all tax due and collected for the period to
which the return applies. Each operator shall collect the tax imposed
by this chapter and shall be liable to the City as agent thereof for
the payment of the same.
The City Treasurer is charged with the duty of receiving the
fees, taxes, interest, fines, and penalties imposed by this chapter.
A.
The Business Administrator and duly appointed designee(s), under
the direction of the Mayor, are hereby empowered with the approval
of the Mayor to prescribe, adopt and promulgate rules and regulations
relating to the administration and enforcement of this chapter, including,
but not limited to, requirements for evidence and records and forms
for applications, licenses and returns.
B.
The Business Administrator or designee(s) shall have the power, in
the event that any operator has, in the judgment of the Business Administrator
or designee, failed to pay over the amount of tax due, to collect
the tax directly from the patron and charge the cost of collection
to the operator. In such event, the Business Administrator or designee(s)
shall maintain records showing the amount received and the dates such
amounts were received.
C.
The Business Administrator and agents thereof are hereby authorized
to examine the books, papers and records of any operator or probable
operator subject or supposed to be subject to this chapter in order
to verify the accuracy of the return made or, if no report was made,
to estimate the tax due. Each such operator, or probable operator,
is hereby directed and required to give to the Business Administrator
or agent thereof the means, facilities and opportunity for such examinations
and investigations as are hereby authorized.
D.
Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Business Administrator
or designee(s) shall have the right to appeal to the Court of Common
Pleas, as provided by law.
Every operator shall post and maintain in a conspicuous place,
at each entrance, a sign printed in letters of such uniform size and
character as to be readily readable by prospective customers, showing
the operator's name and lot address, operator's parking
license number, and a schedule of rates according to one of the prescribed
methods listed below:
A.
Method A: total hourly, daily, or monthly charges consisting of the
parking fee and parking tax shown. Indication of the collection of
the tax must be posted on the sign with the words. "tax included."
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Example:
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|---|---|---|
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1 hour
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$0.75 tax included
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B.
Method B: the complete schedule of parking fees, parking tax and
total charge to the customer.
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Example:
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Fee
|
Tax
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Total
| |||
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1 hour
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$0.75 +
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$0.8
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=
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$0.83
| |
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2 hour
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$1.00 +
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$0.10
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=
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$1.10
| |
The Business Administrator or duly appointed designees shall
have the power in the name of the City to institute proceedings to
collect, by suit or otherwise, all taxes, interest, costs, fines,
and penalties due under this chapter and unpaid. If the operator neglects,
refuses or fails to file any return or make any payment as herein
required, an additional 50% of the amount of the tax shall be added
by the Business Administrator or designee and collected from the operator
as a penalty. All taxes due and unpaid shall bear interest at the
rate of 1% per month or fraction thereof from the date they are due
and payable until such time as they are paid.
Any information gained by the Business Administrator or any
other official, agent or employee of the City as a result of any reports,
returns, investigations, hearings, or verifications required or authorized
by this chapter shall be confidential, except in accordance with proper
judicial order or as otherwise provided by law.
The collection and transmittal of taxes imposed under this chapter
shall not exempt the operator from the City's Business Privilege
and Mercantile Tax Ordinance.[1]
See Chapter 5-717, Enforcement and Penalties.
