[Adopted 1-26-1978 by Ord. No. 2357 (Ch. 166, Art. III, of the 1986 Code)]
A. 
The following words and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
BROKER
Any merchandise broker, factor or commission merchant but shall not include any stockbroker, bill broker, note broker, exchange broker, real estate broker or agent, or pawnbroker.
BUSINESS, TRADES, OCCUPATIONS, PROFESSIONS AND MERCHANDISING OPERATIONS
Those enterprises engaged in by merchants or merchandisers, social and fraternal clubs with permanent club rooms, publishers of newspapers, magazines and periodicals, printers, lithographers, processors, hotel operators, motel operators, restaurants or other eating or drinking establishments, warehousemen, upholsterers, radio stations, physicians, lawyers, dentists, engineers, doctors, architects, chemists, chiropractors, chiropodists, morticians, certified public accountants, accountants, promoters, factors, real estate brokers, barbershop operators, beauty shop operators, cleaning, pressing and dyeing establishment operators, laundry operators, launderette operators, shoe repair shop operators, tailors, seamstresses, electrical, plastering, bricklaying, carpentry, heating, ventilating, plumbing and painting contractors, contractors engaged in the class of heavy building or other construction of any kind, or in the alteration, maintenance or repair thereof, individuals engaged in the repair of electrical, electronic and automotive machinery or equipment or other machinery and equipment and other wares and merchandise, and all other business, trades, occupations and professions in which there is offered any service or services to the general public or a product or products offered for sale to the general public or a portion thereof. These terms shall also include those persons or entities which lease real estate to others for either commercial or residential purposes.*
[Added 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
CITY
The area within the corporate limits of the City of Oil City.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
CITY LICENSE TAX OFFICER
The person authorized and empowered by Council to assist the City Treasurer in administering and enforcing the provisions of this article.
COLLECTOR
The person, public employee or private agency designated by the political subdivision to collect and administer the tax herein imposed.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
FISCAL YEAR
The twelve-month period from January 1 to December 31.
GROSS VOLUME OF BUSINESS
Includes both cash and credit transactions.
LICENSE YEAR
The twelve-month period corresponding to the fiscal year of the City of Oil City, which begins on the first day of January of each year.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, limited partnership, association or corporation.*
PLACE OF AMUSEMENT
Any place indoors or outdoors where the general public, or a limited or selected number thereof, may, upon payment of an established price, attend or engage in any amusement, entertainment, exhibition, contest, recreation, including among other places theaters, opera houses, motion-picture houses, baseball or football parks or fields, skating rinks, dance halls and other like places. The term "place of amusement" does not include any exhibition, amusement, performance or contest conducted by a nonprofit corporation or association organized for religious, charitable or educational purposes.
RETAIL DEALER or RETAIL VENDOR
Any person who is a dealer in or vendor of goods, wares and merchandise but is not a wholesale dealer or wholesale vendor.*
TAX YEAR
The period from January 1 until December 31 in any year; a calendar year.
[Added 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
TEMPORARY, SEASONAL OR ITINERANT BUSINESS
Any business that is conducted at one location for less than six months in any calendar year.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
TREASURER
The Treasurer of the City of Oil City.
WHOLESALE DEALER or WHOLESALE VENDOR
Any person who sells to dealers in or vendors of goods, wares and merchandise and to no other person.*
*
NOTE: The terms "person," "wholesale vendor," "wholesale dealer," "retail vendor" and "retail dealer" or "business, trades, occupations and professions" shall not include the following: employees or agencies of the government of the United States or of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or nonprofit corporations or associations organized solely and exclusively for religious, educational or charitable purposes and not conducting any regular or established business competing commercially with any other persons subject to the tax herein imposed.
[Amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
B. 
Word usage. The singular shall include the plural, and the masculine shall include the feminine and neuter.
For the fiscal year of the City of Oil City beginning on the first day of January 1978, the City hereby imposes a mercantile license tax in the manner and at the rate hereinafter set forth.
[Amended 12-21-1989 by Ord. No. 2507; 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2748]
A. 
For the tax year beginning January 1, 2008, the City hereby imposes an annual tax and business license requirements in the manner and at the fee and rates hereinafter set forth.
(1) 
Every person desiring to begin a business, trade, occupation, profession or merchandising operation within the City shall, prior to the commencement of business, make application for a business license for each place of business within the City with the Collector, on a form provided by the Collector, and shall pay the Collector a business license fee as provided below. Such license shall not be assignable.
(2) 
License tax.
(a) 
Every person desiring to continue to engage in a business, trade, occupation, profession or merchandising operation within the City shall pay the Collector a business license tax of $100, unless the business shall have gross receipts in the calendar year prior to the year the tax is due of $100,000 or less, in which event the business license tax due shall be according to the following fee schedule:
[1] 
Gross receipts between $5,000 and $100,000: $50.
[2] 
Gross receipts less than $5,000 or a new business: $25.
(b) 
The reduced license tax shall only be applicable, however, if the business shall have first submitted to the Collector a copy of IRS Form Schedule C and/or Schedule E, stating the gross receipts of the business for the year prior to the year the tax is due, or such other form or schedule that is acceptable to the Internal Revenue Service for federal income tax purposes. A new business venture in the City shall not be required to furnish any evidence of gross receipts to the Collector and will automatically be assessed the lower tax fee.
B. 
Any business license that has been issued may be revoked or suspended at any time by the City Manager or his designee if it is determined that the holder secured the license by misrepresentation; failed to maintain any qualifications required by federal, state or local laws; engaged in fraudulent or misleading advertising; consented to or allowed any behavior which would constitute a crime under federal, state or local laws, including but not limited to drug trafficking or drug possession; committed an act of gross negligence, or allowed any manner of public nuisance.
C. 
Any temporary, seasonal or itinerant business shall be subject to Chapter 225 of the Code of the City of Oil City relating to peddling or soliciting.
D. 
All renewals of business licenses by businesses that continue to operate in a new tax year shall be due on or before April 1. Any renewal that is not received by May 1 of the new tax year will result in a penalty that is equal to the cost of the original business license fee. If the person responsible for the business, trade, occupation, profession or merchandising operation shall fail, neglect or refuse to comply with any of the provisions of this section, he shall, upon conviction before a Magisterial District Judge having jurisdiction in the matter, be guilty of a summary offense and be fined an amount not more than $300 plus costs of prosecution and, in default of payment thereof, be subject to imprisonment for a period of not more than 90 days. The fine imposed above shall be in addition to any other penalty imposed by any other part of this section.
Every person engaging in any of the following occupations or businesses in the City shall pay a mercantile license tax for the fiscal year of the City beginning on the first day of January 1978 at the rate set forth:
A. 
Wholesale vendors or dealers in goods, wares and merchandise, at the rate of 0.25 mills on each dollar of the volume of the annual gross business transacted by them.
[Amended 12-22-2005 by Ord. No. 2720; 12-18-2006 by Ord. No. 2731[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This article provided that said rate is effective 1-1-2007.
B. 
Retail vendors or dealers in goods, wares and merchandise; all persons engaged in conducting restaurants or other places where food, drink or refreshments are sold, whether or not the same is incidental to other business or occupation; and all persons conducting places of amusement, whether or not the same is incidental to some other business or occupation, at the rate of 0.375 mills on each dollar of the volume of the annual gross business transacted by them.
[Amended 12-22-2005 by Ord. No. 2720; 12-18-2006 by Ord. No. 2731]
C. 
Wholesale and retail vendors or dealers in goods, wares and merchandise, at the rate of 0.25 mills on each dollar of the volume of the annual gross wholesale business transacted by them and 0.375 mills on each dollar of the volume of the annual gross retail business transacted by them.
[Amended 12-22-2005 by Ord. No. 2720; 12-18-2006 by Ord. No. 2731]
D. 
Brokers, at the rate of 1 1/2 mills on each dollar of the annual gross business transacted by them. In the case of brokers, the term "gross business transacted" shall mean gross commissions earned.
E. 
The tax imposed by this section shall not apply to the dollar volume of annual business covering the resale of the goods, wares or merchandise taken by a dealer as a trade-in or as part payment for other goods, wares and merchandise, except to the extent that the resale price exceeds the trade-in allowance.
A. 
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby imposed who has commenced his business at least one year prior to the beginning of the license year shall compute his annual gross volume of business upon the actual gross amount of business transacted by him during the preceding fiscal year of the City of Oil City.
B. 
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby imposed who has commenced or who commences his business less than one full year prior to the beginning of the license year shall compute his annual gross volume of business for such license year upon the gross volume of business transacted by him during the first month he engages in business multiplied by 12.
C. 
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby imposed who commences his business subsequent to the beginning of the license year shall compute his annual gross volume of business for such license year upon the gross volume of business transacted by him during the first month of his engaging in business multiplied by the number of months he engages in business in such license year.
D. 
Every person subject to the payment of the tax hereby imposed who engages in a business, temporary, seasonal or itinerant by its nature, shall compute his gross volume of business upon the actual gross amount of business transacted by him during such license year.
E. 
Every person who shall discontinue business during the license year after having paid the mercantile tax for the entire year, upon making proper application to the Treasurer, shall be entitled to receive a refund of a pro rata amount of the tax paid, based upon the period of time he was not in business during the license year.
A. 
Every return shall be made upon a form furnished by the City License Tax Officer. Every person making a return shall certify the correctness thereof by affidavit.
B. 
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article who has commenced his business at least one full year prior to the beginning of the license year shall, on or before the 30th day of April of said year, file with the City License Tax Officer of the City of Oil City a return setting forth his name, business, business address, such other information as may be necessary in arriving at the actual gross volume of business transacted by him during the preceding fiscal year, and the amount of tax due.
C. 
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article who has commenced his business less than one full year prior to the beginning of the license year shall, on or before the 30th day of April of said year, file with the City License Tax Officer a return setting forth his name, business, business address and such other information as may be necessary in arriving at the actual gross volume of business transacted by him during his first month of business and the amount of the tax due.
D. 
Every person subject to the tax imposed by this article who commences business subsequent to the beginning of the license year shall, within 40 days from the date of commencing of such business or on or before the 30th day of April of said year, whichever date is later, file a return with the City License Tax Officer setting forth his name, business, business address and such other information as may be necessary in arriving at the actual gross volume of business transacted by him during his first month of business and the amount of the tax due.
E. 
Every person subject to the payment of the tax imposed by this article who engages in a business, temporary, seasonal or itinerant by its nature shall, within seven days from the day he completes such business, file a return with the City License Tax Officer setting forth his name, business, business address and such other information as may be necessary in arriving at the actual gross volume of business transacted by him during such period and the amount of tax due.
At the time of the filing of the return, the person making the same shall pay the amount of tax shown as due thereon to the Treasurer of the City of Oil City.
A. 
It shall be the duty of the City Treasurer to collect and receive the taxes, fines and penalties imposed by this article. It shall also be his duty to keep a record showing the amount received by him from each person paying the tax, the period for which such payment was made and the date of such receipt.
B. 
The Treasurer is hereby charged with the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this article and is hereby empowered to prescribe, adopt, promulgate and enforce rules and regulations relating to any matter pertaining to the administration and enforcement of this article, including provisions for the reexamination and correction of returns and payments alleged or found to be incorrect or as to which an overpayment is claimed or found to have occurred. Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Treasurer shall have the right to appeal to the Court of Common Pleas of Venango County, Pennsylvania, as in other cases provided.
The City Assessor, who acts and shall act as the License Tax Officer of the City of Oil City and who is herein sometimes referred to as the "Collector," shall assist the City Treasurer in administering and enforcing the provisions of this article.
The City Treasurer or the City License Tax Officer shall have the authority to examine the books, papers and records of any taxpayer or supposed taxpayer in order to verify the accuracy of any return made or, if no return was made, to ascertain the tax due. Every such taxpayer or supposed taxpayer is hereby directed and required to give to the Treasurer or City License Tax Officer the means, facilities and opportunity for such examinations and investigations as hereby are authorized.
Nothing contained in this article shall be deemed or construed to relieve any person who engages in conducting or operating in the City any show, circus, menagerie, carnival or other public exhibition for pay under tent, canvas or other temporary structure from the duty of complying with the provisions of other ordinances of the City of Oil City regulating such shows, circuses, menageries, carnivals and other public exhibitions for pay conducted under tent, canvas or other temporary structure.
A. 
The Treasurer or City License Tax Officer may sue for the recovery of taxes due and unpaid under this article.
B. 
If for any reason the tax is not paid when due in each year, interest at the rate of 6% per annum on the amount of said tax and an additional penalty of 1% 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 any such tax, the person liable therefor shall, in addition, be liable for the costs of collection and the interest and penalties herein imposed.
[Amended 9-8-1986 by Ord. No. 2451]
Whoever makes any false or untrue statement on his return or who refuses to permit inspection of the books, records or accounts of any business in his custody or control, when the right to make such inspection by the Treasurer or License Tax Officer is requested, and whoever fails or refuses to file a return required by this article, and whoever fails or refuses to apply for and procure a mercantile license when so required under this article or fails to keep his license conspicuously posted at his place of business as required herein shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $300 for each offense and costs of prosecution and, in default of payment of said fine or costs, to be imprisoned in the Venango County jail for a period not exceeding 90 days for each offense.
A. 
Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to empower the City to levy and collect the taxes hereby imposed on any person, business or any portion of any business not within the taxing power of the City under the Constitution of the United States and the laws and Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
B. 
If the tax or any portion thereof imposed upon any person under the provisions of this article shall be held by any court of competent jurisdiction to be in violation of the Constitution of the United States or of the laws or Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the decision of the court shall not affect or impair the right to impose the taxes or the validity of the taxes so imposed upon other persons as herein provided.
The City Treasurer is hereby authorized to accept payment under protest of the amount of mercantile tax claimed by the City in any case where the taxpayer disputes the validity or amount of the City's claim for tax. If it is thereafter judicially determined by a court of competent jurisdiction that the City has been overpaid, the amount of the overpayment shall be refunded to the taxpayer. The provisions of this section shall be applicable to cases in which the facts are similar to those in a case litigated in a court of competent jurisdiction and where payment by the taxpayer has been made under protest.
This article is enacted under the authority of the Act of December 31, 1965, P.L. 1257, and its amendments, and under the authority of the Third Class City Code of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 35101 et seq.