[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
This Part shall be known and may be cited as the "Borough Amusement
Tax Ordinance."
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
1.
AMUSEMENT
ASSOCIATION
ESTABLISHED PRICE
PERSON
PLACE OF AMUSEMENT
PRODUCER
The following words and phrases when used in this Part shall have
the meaning ascribed to them, except when the contents clearly indicate
a different meaning:
All manner and forms of entertainment, including, among others,
theatrical or operatic performances, concerts, lectures, moving pictures
shows and exhibitions and sound motion picture shows and exhibitions,
vaudeville, circus, carnival, and side shows, all forms of entertainment
at fair grounds and amusement parks, athletic contests, including
wrestling matches, boxing and sparring exhibitions, football, basketball
and baseball games, bowling, billiard and pool games, skating, golfing,
tennis, hockey, bathing, swimming, archery, shooting, riding, dancing,
and all other forms of diversion, sport, recreation, or pastime, shows,
exhibitions, contests, displays, and games, and all other methods
of obtaining admission charges, donations, contributions, or monetary
changes of any character, from the general public, or a limited or
selected number thereof, directly or indirectly in return for other
than tangible property, or specific personal or professional services.
The term "amusement" shall not apply to actual participation in sports
where no fixed admission charge, except dues, is paid, and it shall
also not include any form of entertainment accompanying or incidental
to the serving of food or drinks or the sale of merchandise, where
the charge for admission is already included in the price paid for
refreshments or merchandise. Provided, that the term "amusement" as
used in this Part shall not include any form of entertainment the
proceeds of which, after payment of reasonable expenses, inure exclusively
to the benefit of any educational institution.
Any partnership, limited partnership or other forms of unincorporated
enterprise, owned by two or more persons.
Regular monetary charge of any character whatever, including
donations, contributions and dues or membership fees (periodical or
otherwise), fixed and exacted, or in any manner received by producers,
as herein defined, from the general public, or a limited or selected
number thereof, directly or indirectly, for the privilege of attending
or engaging in any entertainment or amusement; provided that in the
case of persons (except bona fide employees of the person conducting
the amusement or Borough officers on official business) admitted free,
or at reduced rates at a time when, and under circumstances under
which at an established price is charged to other persons, the term
"established price" shall mean the regular price as fixed and charged
to other persons.
Every natural person, copartnership, firm, association or
corporation. Whenever used in any clause prescribing and imposing
a penalty, or both, the term "person" as applied to copartnerships
or associations shall mean the partners, or members thereof, and as
applied to corporations, the officers thereof.
Any place, indoors or outdoors, within the Borough of Bristol,
where the general public or a limited or selected number thereof may,
upon the payment of an established price, attend or engage in any
amusement as herein defined, including, among others, theaters, opera
houses, concert and lecture halls, auditoriums, moving picture houses,
amusement parks, stadiums, arenas, baseball and football parks and
fields, skating rinks, basketball courts, bowling alleys, billiard
and pool rooms, circus or carnival tents or grounds, fair grounds,
social, sporting, athletic, riding, gun and country clubs, golf courses,
bathing and swimming places, dance halls, tennis courts, rifle or
shotgun ranges, roof gardens, cabarets, night clubs and other like
places.
Any person, as herein defined, conducting any place of amusement,
as herein defined, where the general public or a limited or selected
number thereof, may, upon the payment of an established price, attend
or engage in any amusement.
2.
The singular shall include the plural and the masculine shall include
the feminine and the neuter.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967; as amended by Ord. 1005, 7/14/1986;
and by Ord. 1295, 9/9/2013]
1.
On and after the effective date of this Part, it shall be unlawful
for any producer to continue to conduct, or thereafter begin to conduct
any form of amusement at any permanent or temporary place of amusement,
within the Borough of Bristol, unless an amusement permit or permits
shall have been issued to him as hereinafter prescribed and the tax
herein imposed paid in accordance with the provisions herein made.
2.
Every producer desiring to continue to conduct, or hereafter to begin
to conduct, any amusement within the Borough of Bristol, shall file
with the Borough Treasurer, on forms prepared and prescribed by the
Borough Secretary, an application for a permanent amusement permit
or a temporary amusement permit, as the case may be, as required by
this section. In the case of any amusement that is to continue for
longer than 10 days, a permanent permit shall be issued at a fee as
established by resolution of Borough Council. In the case of any amusement
that is to continue for 10 days or less, a temporary permit shall
be issued at a fee in an amount as established, from time to time,
by resolution of Borough Council.
3.
The Borough Treasurer shall procure at the expense of the Borough
a sufficient number of amusement permits, on which the following information
shall be printed or inserted in ink or by typewriter:
A.
The name of the Borough.
B.
Whether a temporary or permanent permit.
C.
The name and address of the producer applying for any person receiving
the permit.
D.
The location of the amusement covered by the permit.
E.
Type of amusement.
F.
The period for which the permit is issued. (Permanent permits shall
be good until December 31 of the year in which issued; temporary shall
be good until the last day that the amusement is conducted.)
G.
The number of the permit.
H.
The date when the certificate was issued.
I.
The signature of the Borough Treasurer.
(1)
Every permit shall be issued in triplicate. The original, to
which the Borough Seal shall be affixed, shall be given to the person
applying for the permit; the duplicate shall be kept on file by the
Borough Secretary and the triplicate shall be kept on file by the
Borough Treasurer.
4.
In case of the loss, defacement or destruction of any permit, the
producer to whom the permit was issued shall apply to the Borough
Treasurer who may issue a new permit for which a replacement fee shall
be charged.
5.
Amusement permits shall not be assignable, and shall be valid only
for the persons in whose names issued and for the conduct of amusements
in the places designated therein, and at all times shall be conspicuously
displayed at places for which issued. Every holder of either a temporary
or permanent amusement permit shall notify the Borough Treasurer promptly
of any change in the originally contemplated date, time or place of
the conduct of the amusement.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
A tax is hereby imposed, for general Borough purposes, upon
the admission fee or privilege to attend or engage in any amusement
within the Borough of Bristol, at the rate of $0.01 for each $0.10
or fraction thereof, of the established price charged to the general
public, or a limited or selected group thereof, by any producer of
such privilege, which shall be paid by the person acquiring such privilege;
provided that where no established price is charged, the tax shall
be based upon the gross admissions collected.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
Fees or charges paid for admission to, or for the privilege
of engaging in or attending, any amusement as hereinabove defined,
shall be exempt from the tax imposed by this Part whenever the net
proceeds of such fees or charges, after payment of reasonable expenses
incident thereto, shall be paid to and be the property of any duly
established nonprofit organization for public charity or religious
worship, any nonprofit educational institution, or any duly established
branch, post or camp of honorably discharged soldiers, sailors and
marines.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
1.
Producers shall collect the tax imposed by this Part and shall be
liable to the Borough of Bristol, as agents thereof, for the payment
of same into the Borough Treasury as hereafter provided in this Part.
2.
Where permits are obtained for conducting temporary amusements by
persons who are not the owners, lessees or custodians of the places
where the amusements are to be conducted, or where the temporary amusement
is permitted by the owner, lessee or custodian of any place to be
conducted without the procurement of a permit or permits required
by this Part, the tax imposed by this Part shall be paid by the owner,
lessee or custodian of such place where such temporary amusement is
held or conducted unless paid by the producer conducting the amusement.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
1.
For the purpose of ascertaining the amount of tax payable by the
producer to the Borough of Bristol, it shall be the duty of:
A.
Every producer, except as hereinafter provided, conducting a place
of amusement, on or before Monday of each week, to transmit to the
Borough Treasurer on a form prescribed and prepared by the Borough
Secretary, a report under oath or affirmation, of the amount of the
total admission charge collected and the total amount of tax due from
persons for such admissions under this Part during the preceding week,
and at the same time to pay over to the Borough of Bristol, at the
office of the Borough Treasurer, the entire amount of the tax due.
B.
Every producer conducting a temporary place of amusement, during
regular Borough Office hours on the day following each day on which
the amusement is held, to pay over to the Borough of Bristol, at the
office of the Borough Treasurer, the amount of tax due from such persons
under this Part upon admissions for such day and at the same time
to submit to the Borough Secretary a report of the total admissions
charged or collected on such day and the total amount of tax due on
such admissions. On the day of expiration of such temporary permit
the person to whom such permit is issued shall, in addition, submit
a report under oath or affirmation of all admissions charged or collected
during the period which such temporary permit was in effect, and of
all taxes due and paid; provided that the Mayor may in any case direct
the Chief of Police to receive any tax due under this Part and to
pay over such moneys to the Borough Treasurer at the earliest opportunity.
C.
In every case, the Borough Treasurer shall furnish to the person
paying any tax levied under this Part a receipt for the payment of
such tax.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
If any tax levied pursuant to this Part shall not be paid when
due, a penalty of 10% of the amount of tax due and unpaid shall be
added thereto and collected by the Borough Treasurer.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
All taxes imposed by this Part together with all penalties,
shall be recoverable by the Borough Solicitor as any other debts of
like amounts are now by law recoverable.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967]
Any information gained by the Borough Secretary or other official
or agent of the Borough as a result of any returns, investigations
or verifications required or authorized by this Part shall be confidential,
except for official purposes, and except in accordance with proper
judicial order, or as otherwise provided by law. Any disclosures of
any information contrary to the provisions of this section, shall
constitute a violation of this Part.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967; as amended by Ord. 1005, 7/14/1986;
and by Ord. 1295, 9/9/2013]
Any person, partnership, or corporation who or which has violated
or permitted the violation of the provisions of this Part, upon being
found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced
by the Borough, shall pay a judgment of not more than $600 plus all
court costs and reasonable attorney fees. No judgment shall commence
or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of the determination
of a violation by a magisterial district judge. If the defendant neither
pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Borough may enforce the
judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure. Each
day that a violation continues or each section of this Part which
shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate violation.
[Ord. 684, 2/13/1967; as amended by Ord. 760, 5/10/1971,
§ 1]
1.
This Part shall not apply to any person or property as to whom or
which it is beyond the legal power of the Borough Council to impose
the tax or duties herein provided for.
2.
Admission fees and fees for the privilege of attending or engaging
in any amusement within the Borough of Bristol charged by any municipality
authority incorporated under the Municipal Authorities Act of 1945
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall be exempt from the collection
or payment of the tax imposed by this Part as of the date of incorporation
of said municipality authority.
