[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Corinth as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 12-3-1969 by L.L. No. 1-1969 (Ch. 123, Art. I, of
the 1983 Code)]
Pursuant to the authority granted by § 6-640 of the
Village Law of the State of New York, a tax equal to 1% of its gross income from and after the
first day of May 1979 is hereby imposed upon every utility doing business
in the Village of Corinth which is subject to the supervision of the
State Department of Public Service which has a gross income for the 12 months ending May
31 in excess of $500, except motor carriers or brokers subject to
such supervision under Article 3-B of the Public Service Law, and a tax equal to 1% of its gross operating income from
and after the first day of May 1950 is hereby imposed upon every other
utility doing business in the Village of Corinth which has a gross
operating income for the 12 months ending May 31 in excess of $500,
which taxes shall have application only within the territorial limits
of the Village of Corinth and shall be in addition to any and all
other taxes and fees imposed by any other provision of law. Such taxes
shall not be imposed on any transaction originating or consummated
outside of the territorial limits of the Village of Corinth, notwithstanding
that some act be necessarily performed with respect to such transaction
within such limits.
The terms used in this article shall be defined as provided
in § 186-a of the Tax Law and Subdivision 4 of § 5-530
of the Village Law.
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, and such records shall be preserved for a period of three
years, except that the Village Treasurer may consent to their destruction
within that period or may require that they be kept longer.
Every utility subject to tax hereunder shall file annually,
on or before the 25th day of March, a return for the 12 calendar months
preceding such return date or any portion thereof for which the tax
imposed hereby is effective; provided, however, that in lieu of the
annual return required by the foregoing provisions, any utility may
file quarterly, on or before September 25, December 25, March 25 and
June 25, a return for the three calendar months preceding each such
return date, and in the case of the first such return, for all preceding
calendar months during which the tax imposed hereby was effective.
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,
and he may require any utility doing business in the Village of Corinth
to file an annual return, which shall contain any data specified by
him, regardless of whether the utility is subject to tax under this
article. Every return shall have annexed thereto an affidavit of the
head of the utility making the same, or of the owner or of a 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 as required by this article,
each utility shall pay to the Village Treasurer 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.
A. 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 with such sureties as a Justice of the
Supreme Court shall approve, to the effect that, if such proceedings
are 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 cover 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.
B. Except in the case of a willfully false or fraudulent return 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 return has
been filed as required by this article, the tax may be assessed at
any time.
Any notice authorized or required 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 in the last return filed 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 of delay or fraction thereof, excepting
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 fixed 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 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 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 or penalty or 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 any tax or 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 said Article
78 subject to the provision hereinbefore contained relating to the
granting of such an order.
The tax imposed by this article shall be charged against and
be paid by the utility and may be added as a separate item to bills
rendered by the utility to customers or others.
Whenever any person shall fail to pay any tax or penalty imposed
by this article, the Village Attorney shall, upon the request of the
Village Treasurer, 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-a of the Tax Law are made a lien.
In the administration of this article the Village 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.
A. Except in accordance with proper judicial order or as otherwise provided
by law, it shall be unlawful for the Village Treasurer or any agent,
clerk or employee of the Village of Corinth to divulge or make known
in any manner the amount of gross income or gross operating income
or any particulars set forth or disclosed in any return under this
article. The officer charged with the custody of such returns shall
not be required to produce any of them or evidence of anything contained
in them in any action or proceeding in any court except on behalf
of the Village of Corinth, New York, in an action or proceeding under
the provisions of this article, or on behalf of the State Tax Commission
in an action or proceeding under the provisions of the Tax Law of
the State of New York, or on behalf of any party to any action or
proceeding under the provisions of this article when the returns or
facts shown thereby are directly involved in such action or proceeding,
in either of which events the court may require the production of
and may admit into evidence so much of said returns or of the facts
shown thereby as are pertinent to the action or proceeding, and no
more. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the delivery to
a person or his duly authorized representative of a copy of any return
filed by him, nor to prohibit the publication of statistics so classified
as to prevent the identification of particular returns and the items
thereof, or the publication of delinquent lists showing the names
of persons who have failed to pay their taxes at the time and in the
manner provided for by this article, together with any relevant information
which in the opinion of the Village Treasurer may assist in the collection
of such delinquent taxes, or the inspection by the Village Attorney
or other legal representatives of the Village of Corinth, New York,
of the return of any person who shall bring action to set aside or
review the tax based thereon or against whom an action has been instituted
in accordance with the provisions of this article.
B. Any offense against the foregoing secrecy provisions shall be punishable
by a fine not exceeding $1,000 or by imprisonment not exceeding one
year, or both, and if the offender be an officer, agent, clerk or
employee of the Village of Corinth, he shall be dismissed from office
and shall be incapable of holding any office or employment in the
Village of Corinth, New York, for a period of five years thereafter.
C. Notwithstanding any provisions of this article, the Village Treasurer
may exchange with the chief fiscal officer of any city or any other
village in the State of New York information contained in returns
filed under this article, provided that such information is to be
used for tax purposes only, and the Village Treasurer shall, upon
request, furnish the State Tax Commission with any information contained
in such returns.
All taxes and penalties received by the Village Treasurer under
this article shall be paid into the treasury of the Village and shall
be credited to and deposited in the general fund of the Village.
[Adopted 10-23-1967 (Ch. 123, Art. II, of the 1983 Code)]
The purpose of this article is to grant partial exemption from
taxation to the extent of 50% of the assessed valuation of real property
which is owned by certain persons with limited income who are 65 years
of age or over meeting the requirements set forth in § 467
of the Real Property Tax Law.
Real property owned by persons 65 years of age or over shall
be exempt from the Village of Corinth taxes to the extent of 50% of
the assessed valuation, subject to the following conditions:
A. The owner or all of the owners must file an application annually
in the Town of Corinth Assessor's office at least 90 days before
the day for filing the final assessment roll or such other time as
may be hereafter fixed by law.
B. The income of the owner or the combined income of the owners must
not exceed $29,000 for the 12 consecutive months prior to the date
that the application is filed. Where title is vested in either the
husband or wife, the combined income may not exceed such sum.
[Amended 3-7-1973; 4-7-1975; 2-23-1983]
C. Title to the property must be vested in the owner or, if more than
one, in all the owners from at least 12 consecutive months prior to
the date that the application is filed.
D. The property must be exclusively for residential purposes, be occupied
in whole or in part by the owners and constitute the legal residence
of the owners.