[Adopted 12-4-2006 by Ord. No. 6-2006]
There is hereby imposed, assessed and levied a tax of $52 per
calendar year, commencing with the calendar year ending December 31,
2007, and each calendar year thereafter, on individuals, for the privilege
of engaging in an occupation, an emergency and municipal services
tax against each individual whose place of employment during each
calendar year, commencing with the calendar year ending December 31,
2007, is in Vandergrift Borough, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania,
on total income in excess of $12,000 per calendar year, and who is
in excess of 18 years of age.
[Amended 10-1-2007 by Ord. No. 9-2007]
The tax is hereby imposed for general revenue purposes. Said
revenue may be used only for the following purposes, as provided in
the Local Tax Enabling Act, that being police, fire and/or emergency
services, road construction and/or maintenance or reduction of property
taxes, subject to the requirements that Vandergrift Borough must use
at least 25% of the tax revenue for emergency services.
Said tax shall be collected by such person or persons as shall,
from time to time, be designated and appointed for this purpose, and
each such person so designated is hereby charged with the enforcement
of the provision of this article and is hereby authorized and empowered
to prescribe, adopt, promulgate and enforce rules and regulations
relating to any matter or thing pertaining to the administration and
enforcement of the provisions of this article. The Borough Council
may adopt reasonable regulations, after soliciting comments from the
tax administrator designated for Vandergrift Borough, as may be necessary
for collection and enforcement purposes.
A.
Every employer (which for purposes of this article shall mean a person,
partnership, association, corporation, institution, governmental body,
unit or agency, or any other entity employing one or more persons
(including said employer as an individual) for a salary, wage, commission
or other compensation, having an office, factory, workshop, branch,
warehouse or any other place of business in Vandergrift Borough, Westmoreland
County, and who employs one or more persons at such place of business
(including self-employed individuals with or without employees who
shall pay for themselves and on behalf of any other employee), within
Vandergrift Borough, Westmoreland County, shall, commencing with the
calendar year ending December 31, 2007, deduct as soon as possible
at the time of payment of such person's salary, wage, commission or
other compensation, the tax imposed by this article.
B.
Each employer shall, on or before April 30 of each year, July 31
of each year, October 31 of each year and/or January 31 of the succeeding
year, file a return and pay to the appointed Tax Collector the amount
of taxes deducted during the three-month period ending March 31 of
the current year, June 30 of the current year, September 30 of the
current year and December 31 of the current year, respectively. Such
return, unless otherwise agreed upon between the appointed Tax Collector
and the employer, shall show the name, residence and social security
number of each such employee and the amount of tax deducted. If an
employee is reasonably expected to earn in excess of $12,000 annually,
the local services tax (LST) levied must be assessed and collected
on a pro rata basis determined by the number of payroll periods established
by an employer for a calendar year. The pro rata share of the tax
assessed on each taxpayer for a payroll period is calculated by dividing
the combined rate of the LST by the number of payroll periods established
by the employer for the calendar year. When calculating the pro rata
share, employers are required to round down to the nearest 1/100 dollar.
Employers are only required to withhold the LST on a payroll-period
basis for those payroll periods in which the taxpayer is employed.
When two or more employers employ a taxpayer in a payroll period,
an employer is not required to withhold the LST if the taxpayer provides
a pay stub from his/her principal employer accompanied by an employee's
statement of principal employment, on a form developed by the Department
of Community and Economic Development, commonly referred to as DCED,
that the pay stub is from the taxpayer's principal employer and that
the taxpayer will notify the employer of any changes of employment.
Employers are relieved of liability for the tax if they fail to withhold
the tax due to incorrect information provided by the taxpayer employee
regarding the taxpayer's principal employer or if the employer complies
with the provisions establishing the collection of the tax on a payroll-period
basis.
[Amended 10-1-2007 by Ord. No. 9-2007]
C.
Employers must remit withheld taxes to the designated Tax Collector
30 days after the end of each calendar quarter.
[Added 10-1-2007 by Ord.
No. 9-2007]
D.
Self-employed individuals. The LST should be prorated and paid by
self-employed individuals on a quarterly basis, as if their payroll
period is a calendar quarter. Self-employed taxpayers should pay the
tax 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter at the latest.
[Added 10-1-2007 by Ord.
No. 9-2007]
E.
Upfront exemptions.
[Added 10-1-2007 by Ord.
No. 9-2007]
(1)
In order to receive an upfront exemption from the LST, an employee
must file an annual upfront exemption form, as promulgated and developed
by the Department of Community and Economic Development, commonly
referred to as DCED, with the political subdivision levying the LST
and the employee's employer. The exemption certificate would verify
that the employee reasonably expects to receive earned income and
net profits of less than $12,000 from all sources within the political
subdivision for the calendar year for which the exemption certificate
if filed. A copy of the employee's last pay stub or W-2 form from
employment within the political subdivision for the year prior to
the calendar year for which the employee is requesting an exemption
must be attached to the exemption certificate. Employers must make
upfront exemption forms readily available to employees at all time
and provide new employees with the forms at the time of hiring. Upon
receipt of an upfront exemption from and until otherwise instructed
by the political subdivision imposing the tax, employers must withholding
the LST for the specific calendar year from employees for whom the
exemption applies. Employers must restart withholding the LST from
an employee who files an exemption certificate in the following circumstances:
(2)
Employer's restart withholding of the LST is by withholding:
(a)
A catch-up lump-sum tax equal to the amount of tax that was
not withheld from the employee as a result of the exemption; and
(b)
The same amount per payroll period that is withheld from other
employees. Except for monitoring when an employee who has filed an
exemption certificate earns more than $12,000, employers are not responsible
for investigating exemptions, monitoring tax-exemption eligibility
or exempting an employee from the tax.
F.
The Borough of Vandergrift shall exempt from the LST:
[Added 10-1-2007 by Ord.
No. 9-2007]
(1)
Members of the reserve component of the armed forces called to duty;
and
(2)
Honorably discharged veterans who served in any war or armed conflict,
who are blind, paraplegic or a double or quadruple amputee as a result
of military service or who are 100% disabled from a service-connected
disability.
G.
Refunds. The Borough of Vandergrift does hereby adopt regulations,
consistent with the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights[1] for process of refund claims from persons who overpay
the LST. Refunds are not subject to interest if made within 75 days
of either a refund request or January 30 of the year after the tax
is paid, whichever is later. The Borough of Vandergrift shall not
provide refunds that are $1 or less.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 Pa.C.S.A. § 8421 et seq.
Every employer who discontinues business prior to December 31
of any calendar year shall file, within 30 days after the discontinuance
of such business, the returns and statements required by this article
and shall pay the tax due if there be any.
Except as provided in Section IX of the Local Tax Enabling Act,
53 P.S. § 6901 et seq.,[1] every employer, in his capacity as a business and the
employer individually, who willfully or negligently fails to remit
or make the deductions required by this article, shall be liable for
the payment of taxes which he was required to withhold. Such liability
shall be in addition to other penalties which may be imposed by this
article or otherwise.
[1]
Editor's Note: See now 53 P.S. § 6924.101 et seq.
Failure or omission of an employer to make the deductions required
by this article shall not relieve the employee from the payment of
the tax.
It shall be unlawful for any person to:
A.
Fail to pay the tax imposed by this article;
B.
Fail, neglect or refuse to comply with or violate the provisions
of this article or the rules and regulations prescribed, adopted and
promulgated by the Council of Vandergrift Borough for the benefit
of the local Tax Collector under the provisions of this article to
collect the tax.
All taxes imposed by this article not paid when due shall bear
interest thereon at a rate of 1/2 of 1% per month until paid.
In addition to the collection in the manner provided in the
Local Tax Enabling Act, all taxes imposed by this article, together
with interest from the date due, shall be recovered as other debts
of like character are recovered.
Any person violating any of the provision of this article, or
whoever makes any false or untrue statements on any return required
by this article or refuses inspection of book, records or accounts
in his or her custody and control setting forth the number of employees
subject to this tax who are in his or her employment, shall be liable
to a penalty not exceeding $100 and costs for prosecution for each
and every offense and, further, shall be required to pay the amount
of the tax, together with interest, as is otherwise provided for in
this article, which should have been paid, upon the default of the
payment of the same for 10 days, and shall be subject to 30 days'
imprisonment.
The Borough Council is hereby authorized to appoint a collector
to be known as the "Tax Administrator," whose power and duties are
set forth in the Borough of Vandergrift Code. Said Tax Administrator
is to furnish a proper bond in the amount fixed by the Borough Council,
with surety or sureties as it may approve, conditioned upon the effective
and faithful performance of the Tax Administrator's duties hereunder.
Said Tax Administrator to receive as compensation for services an
annual salary or a commission, to be determined by the Borough Council.
A.
Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to empower Vandergrift
Borough to levy and collect tax herein imposed on any occupation not
within the taxing power of the Borough under the Constitution of the
United States and the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
B.
If the tax hereby imposed 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 the laws and Constitution
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as to any individual, the decision
of the court shall not effect or impair the right to impose or collect
said tax or the validity of the tax so imposed on other persons or
individuals as herein provided.
This article is enacted under authority of Act 511[1] and House Bill 197 of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
[1]
Editor's Note: Act 511 of 1965, the Local Tax Enabling Law,
was revised and renumbered by Act 32 of 2008; see now 53 P.S. §
6924.101 et seq.
This article shall tax effective immediately upon enactment
and subject to the terms of this article relative to the taxes to
be collected. The first taxes to be collected shall begin on the first
day of January 2007 and continue annually thereafter until this article
is modified or repealed by act of the Borough Council of Vandergrift
Borough.
