This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Local Services
Tax."
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:
BOROUGH OF HELLERTOWN
The area within the corporate limits of the Borough of Hellertown
(hereinafter "Borough" and/or "municipality")
EMPLOYER
Any individual, partnership, association, corporation, government
body, agency or other entity employing one or more persons on a salary,
wage, commission or other compensation basis, including a self-employed
person.
FISCAL YEAR
The period beginning January 1 and ending December 31 of
each year.
HE, HIS or HIM
Indicates the singular and plural number, as well as the
male, female and neuter gender.
INCOME
Includes earned income and net profits from whatever sources
within the political subdivision.
INDIVIDUAL
Any person, male or female, engaged in any occupation, trade
or profession within the corporate limits of the Borough of Hellertown.
OCCUPATION
Any trade, profession, business or undertaking of any type,
kind or character, including services, domestic or other, carried
on or performed within the corporate limits of the Borough of Hellertown
for which compensation is charged or received, whether by means of
salary, wages, commissions or fees for services rendered.
TAX
Local services tax in the amount of $52 levied by this article.
Each employer within the Borough of Hellertown, as well as those
employers outside the Borough of Hellertown but who engage in business
within the Borough of Hellertown, is hereby charged with the duty
of collecting from each of his employees engaged by him and performing
for him within the Borough of Hellertown the said tax of $52 per annum
and making a return and payment thereof to the Borough Manager and/or
the Borough's designee authorized to act on behalf of the Borough
in obtaining said tax and forwarding any collected taxes to the Borough.
Further, each employer is hereby authorized to deduct this tax from
each employee in his employ, whether said employee is paid by salary,
wages or commission, and whether or not part or all of such services
are performed within the Borough of Hellertown. All employers shall
be required to remit the local services taxes 30 days after the end
of each quarter of the calendar year.
A. A person subject to the local services tax shall be assessed a pro rata share of the tax for each payroll period in which the person is engaging in an occupation. The pro rata share of the tax assessed on the person for a payroll period shall be determined by dividing the combined rate of the local services tax levied for the calendar year by the number of payroll periods established by the employer for the calendar year. For purposes of determining the pro rata share, an employer shall round down the amount of the tax collected each payroll period to the nearest 1/100 of a dollar. Collection of the local services tax levied under this section shall be made on a payroll-period basis for each payroll period in which the person is engaging in an occupation, except as provided in Subsection
E.
B. If the Saucon Valley School District levied an emergency and municipal services tax on the effective date of Act 7-2007, the school district may continue to levy the local services tax in the same amount the Saucon Valley School District collected on the effective date of Act 7-2007. However, if the Borough of Hellertown in whole or in part within the school district subsequently levies the local services tax, the school district may only collect $5 on persons employed within the municipality each calendar year. If the school district did not levy an emergency and municipal services tax on the effective date of Act 7-2007, the school district shall be prohibited from levying the local services tax within the Borough. If the Saucon Valley School District and Borough of Hellertown both levy a local services tax at a combined rate exceeding $10, the school district's pro rata share of the aggregate local services taxes levied on persons employed within the Borough of Hellertown shall be collected by the Borough or its tax officer based on payroll periods as provided under Subsection
A and shall be paid to the school district on a quarterly basis within 60 days of receipt by the municipality or its tax officer.
C. Except as provided in Subsection
B, no person shall be subject to the payment of the local services tax by more than one political subdivision during each payroll period as established by §
405-40.
D. 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 the principal
place of employment within two weeks of its occurrence.
E. The local services tax shall be no more than $52 on each person for
each calendar year, irrespective of the number of political subdivisions
within which a person may be employed. The Borough shall provide a
taxpayer a receipt of payment upon request by the taxpayer.
F. The Borough shall adopt regulations for the processing of refund claims for overpaid local services taxes for any calendar year. The regulations shall be consistent with 53 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 8425 and 8426. Refunds made within 75 days of a refund request or 75 days after the last day the employer is required to remit the local services tax for the last quarter of the calendar year under §
405-38 of this article, whichever is later, shall not be subject to interest imposed under 53 Pa.C.S.A. § 8426. The Borough shall only provide refunds for amounts overpaid in a calendar year that exceed $1.
G. For purposes of this section of the article, "combined rate" shall
mean the aggregate annual rate of the local services tax levied by
a school district and a municipality located in whole or in part within
the school district.
H. No employer shall be held liable for failure to withhold the local services tax or for the payment of the withheld tax money to the Borough if the failure to withhold taxes 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; and provided, further, that an employee shall 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 provisions of §§
405-42 and
405-36 of this article and remits the amount so withheld in accordance with this section; and provided, further, that employers shall be required to remit the local services taxes 30 days after the end of each quarter of a calendar year.
Each employer shall prepare and file a return showing a computation
of the tax on forms to be supplied to him by the Borough Manager or
the Borough's designee, as determined by the Borough. Each employer,
in filing this return and making payment of the tax withheld from
his employees, shall be entitled to retain a commission calculated
at the rate of 2% of the gross tax due and payable, provided that
such tax is collected and paid over by the employer on or before the
dates hereinafter set forth. 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, the employer shall be responsible for the payment
of the tax, in full, without deducting a commission and as though
the tax had already been levied against him. The Borough shall provide
the taxpayer with a receipt to verify payment upon request of the
taxpayer.
Each self-employed individual who performs services of any type
of kind, engaged in any occupation or profession within the Borough
of Hellertown, shall be required to comply with this article and pay
the tax to the Borough Manager or the Borough's designee on or
before April 30, 2008, or as soon thereafter as he engages in an occupation.
All employers and self-employed individuals residing or having
their place of business outside of the Borough of Hellertown but who
perform services of any type or kind, or engage in any occupation
or profession within the Borough of Hellertown, do, by virtue thereof,
agree to be bound by and subject themselves to the provisions, penalties
and regulations as though they were residents of the Borough of Hellertown.
Further, any individual engaged in an occupation within the Borough
of Hellertown and an employee of a nonresident employer may, for the
purpose of this article, be considered a self-employed person, and
in the event this tax is not paid, the Borough shall have the option
of proceeding against either the employer or employee for the collection
of this tax as hereinafter provided.
Whoever makes any false or untrue statement on any return required
by this article, or who refuses inspection of his books, records or
accounts in his custody and control setting forth the number of employees
subject to this tax who are in his employment, or whoever fails or
refuses to file any return required by this article shall, upon conviction
before any Magisterial District Judge, be sentenced to pay a fine
for each offense of not more than $600 or be imprisoned for not more
than 90 days, or both. 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
refuses to file a return required by this article.
The tax imposed by this article shall continue in force on a
calendar-year basis without annual reenactment unless the rate of
the tax is subsequently changed.