[Adopted 2-27-2017 by L.L. No. 2-2017, effective 3-13-2017]
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
For the purposes of this article, the following definitions shall apply:
EFFECTIVE DATE
The date on which this article is filed with the Secretary of State.
HOTEL
A building or portion of a building which is regularly used and kept open as such for the lodging of guests, including an apartment hotel, a motel or a boardinghouse, whether or not meals are served.
OCCUPANCY
The use or possession or the right to the use or possession of any room in a hotel.
OCCUPANT
A natural person who, for a consideration, uses, possesses or has the right to use or possess any room in a hotel under any lease, concession, permit, right of access, license to use or other agreement or otherwise.
OPERATOR
Any person operating a hotel in the Village of Mamaroneck, including, but not limited to, an owner or proprietor of such premises, lessee, sublessee, mortgagee in possession, licensee or any other person otherwise operating such hotel.
PERMANENT RESIDENT
Any person occupying any room or rooms in a hotel for at least 30 consecutive days shall be considered a "permanent resident" with regard to the period of such occupancy.
PERSON
An individual, partnership, society, association, joint-stock company, corporation, estate, receiver, trustee, assignee, referee or any other person acting in a fiduciary or representative capacity, whether appointed by a court or otherwise, or any combination of the foregoing.
RENT
The consideration received for occupancy valued in money, whether received in money or otherwise, for the occupancy of a room in a hotel for any period of time.
RETURN
Any return filed or required to be filed as herein provided.
ROOM
Any room or rooms or suite of rooms with sleeping accommodations, whether or not such accommodations are used, of any kind in any part or portion of a hotel which is available for or let out for any purpose.
VILLAGE TREASURER
The Treasurer of the Village of Mamaroneck.
Beginning on April 1, 2017, there is hereby imposed and there shall be paid a tax of 3% upon the rent for every occupancy of a room or rooms in a hotel in this Village, except that the tax shall not be imposed upon a permanent resident, or as otherwise provided herein.
Any use or occupancy by any of the following shall not be subject to the tax imposed by this article:
A. 
The State of New York, or any of its agencies or instrumentalities, public corporations (including a public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another state or Canada), improvement districts or political subdivisions of the state.
B. 
The United States of America, or any of its agencies and instrumentalities, insofar as they are immune from taxation.
C. 
Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest, fund or foundation organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no substantial part of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing in this subsection shall include an organization operated for the primary purpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit, whether or not all of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in this subsection.
D. 
A permanent resident of a hotel or motel.
All hotels are required to be licensed by the Village on an annual basis pursuant to Chapter 246. The license issued thereunder shall be considered registration as a hotel under this article and authorizes and requires the operator to collect the tax imposed by this article.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
A. 
The tax imposed by this article shall be administered and collected by the Village Treasurer or such other Village employee as he/she may designate by such means and in such manner as are other taxes which are now collected and administered or as otherwise provided by this article.
B. 
The tax to be collected shall be stated and charged at the same time as and in addition to the rent and shown separately on any record thereof, at the time when the occupancy is arranged or contracted for and charged for, and upon every evidence of occupancy or any bill or statement of charges made for said occupancy issued or delivered by the operator, and the tax shall be paid by the occupant to the operator as trustee for and on account of the Village, and the operator shall be liable for the collection thereof and for the tax. The operator and any officer of any corporate operator shall be personally liable for the tax collected or required to be collected under this article, and the operator shall have the same right in respect to collecting the tax from the occupant, or in respect to nonpayment of the tax by the occupant, as if the tax were part of the rent for the occupancy payable at the time such tax shall become due and owing, including all rights of eviction, dispossession, repossession and enforcement of any innkeeper's lien that he/she may have in the event of nonpayment of the rent by the occupant; provided, however, that the Village Treasurer or employees or agents duly designated by the Village Treasurer shall be joined as a party in any action or proceeding brought by the operator to collect or enforce collection of the tax.
C. 
The tax imposed by this article shall be paid upon any occupancy on and after April 1, 2017, although such occupancy is had pursuant to a contract, lease or other arrangement made prior to such date. Where rent is paid or charged or billed or falls due on either a weekly, monthly or other term basis, the rent so paid, charged, billed or falling due shall be subject to the tax herein imposed to the extent that it covers any portion of the period on and after April 1, 2017. Where any tax has been paid hereunder upon any rent which has been ascertained to be worthless, the Village Treasurer may, by regulation, provide for credit and/or refund of the amount of such tax upon application therefor as provided in § 304-38 of this article.
D. 
For the purpose of the proper administration of this article and to prevent evasion of the tax hereby imposed, it shall be presumed that all rents are subject to tax until the contrary is established, and the burden of proving that a rent for occupancy is not taxable hereunder shall be upon the operator or occupant. Where an occupant claims exemption from the tax under the provisions of § 304-29 of this article, the rent shall be deemed taxable hereunder unless the operator shall receive from the occupant claiming such exemption a copy of a New York State sales tax exemption certificate.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
Every operator shall keep records of every occupancy and of all rent paid, charged or due thereon and of the tax payable thereon, in such form as the Village Treasurer may by regulation require. Such records shall be available for inspection and examination at any time upon demand by the Village Treasurer or the Village Treasurer's duly authorized agent or employee and 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 together.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
A. 
Every operator shall file with the Village Treasurer a return of occupancy and of rents and of the taxes payable thereon for the three-month periods ending the last day of February, May, August and November on and after April 1, 2017, except that a return for the period April 1, 2017, through May 31, 2017, shall be separately filed. Such returns shall be filed within 20 days from the expiration of the period covered thereby. The Village Treasurer may permit or require returns to be made for other periods upon such dates as he/she may specify. If the Village Treasurer deems it necessary in order to ensure the payment of the tax imposed by this article, he/she may require returns to be made for shorter periods than those prescribed pursuant to the foregoing provisions of this section and upon such dates as he/she may specify.
B. 
The forms of return shall be prescribed by the Village Treasurer and shall contain such information as he/she may deem necessary for the proper administration of this article. The Village Treasurer may require amended returns to be filed within 20 days after notice and to contain the information specified in the notice.
C. 
If a return required by this article is not filed, or if a return is incorrectly filed or is insufficient on its face, the Village Treasurer shall take such steps as he/she deems necessary to enforce the filing of such return or of a corrected return.
Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder shall be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or any other reason whatsoever by a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules if application therefor is made to the Supreme Court within 30 days after giving the State of New York notice of such final determination; provided, however, that any such proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules shall not be instituted unless:
A. 
The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest and penalties thereon as may be provided for by local laws or regulations, shall be first deposited and there shall be filed an undertaking, issued by a surety company authorized to transact business in this state and approved by the Superintendent of Insurance of this state as to solvency and responsibility, in such amount as a Justice of the Supreme Court shall approve to the effect that if such proceeding be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the petitioner will pay all costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding; or
B. 
At the option of the petitioner, such undertaking may be in a sum sufficient to cover the taxes, interests and penalties stated in such determination plus the costs and charges which may accrue against it in the prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the petitioner shall not be required to pay such taxes, interests or penalties as a condition precedent to the application.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
At the time of filing a return of occupancy and of rents, each operator shall pay to the Village Treasurer the taxes imposed by this article upon the rents required to be included in such return, as well as all other moneys collected by the operator acting or purporting to act under the provisions of this article; even though it be judicially determined that the tax collected is invalidly required to be filed, it shall be due from the operator and payable to the Village Treasurer on the date prescribed herein for the filing of the return for such period, without regard to whether a return is filed or whether the return which is filed correctly shows the amount of rents and taxes due thereon. Where in the judgment of the Village Treasurer in his or her discretion it is necessary to protect revenues to be obtained under this article, the Village Treasurer may require any operator required to collect the tax imposed by this article to file with the Village Treasurer a bond, issued by a surety company authorized to transact business in this state and approved by the Superintendent of Insurance of this state as to solvency and responsibility, in the amount as the Village Treasurer may find sufficient to secure the payment of any tax and/or penalties and interest due, or which may become due, from such operator. If the Village Treasurer determines that an operator must file a bond the Village Treasurer shall give notice to the operator to that effect, specifying the amount of the bond required. The operator shall file the bond within five days after the Village Treasurer gives notice that the bond is required unless, within those five days, the operator requests, in writing, a hearing before the Village Treasurer at which the operator may submit material evidence on the basis of which the Village Treasurer will determine the necessity, propriety, and amount of the bond. The Village Treasurer's determination is final and the operator must comply within 15 days after that determination. In lieu of a bond, the operator may satisfy the bond requirement by depositing with the Village Treasurer securities approved by the Village Treasurer or cash in such amount as the Village Treasurer may prescribe, to be kept in the custody of the Village Treasurer and applied at any time, without notice to the depositor, to any tax and/or interest or penalties due, and for that purpose the securities may be sold by the Village Treasurer at public or private sale without notice to the depositor.
All revenue resulting from the imposition of the tax 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.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
A. 
In the manner provided in this section, the Village Treasurer shall refund or credit, without interest, any tax penalty or interest erroneously, illegally or unconstitutionally collected or paid if the occupant, operator or other person who has actually paid the tax, including an operator who has collected and paid over the tax, applies to the Village Treasurer for a refund within one year from the payment. The Village Treasurer shall state, in writing, the reason for any refund. Such application may be made by the occupant, operator or other person who has actually paid the tax. The Village Treasurer is not permitted to make a refund to an operator who has collected and paid over the tax unless the operator makes the application within one year of the date on which the operator collected the tax and the operator has established to the satisfaction of the Village Treasurer, under such regulations as the Village Treasurer may prescribe, that it has repaid the amount for which the refund is sought to the occupant or other person who actually paid the tax. The Village Treasurer may, in lieu of any refund required to be made, allow a credit against payments due or to become due from the applicant.
B. 
An application for a refund or credit made as herein provided shall be deemed an application for a revision of any tax, penalty or interest complained of, and the Village Treasurer may receive evidence with respect thereto. After making his or her determination, the Village Treasurer shall give notice thereof to the applicant, who shall be entitled to review such determination by a proceeding pursuant to Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, provided that such proceeding is instituted within 30 days after the giving of the notice of such determination, and provided that a final determination of tax due was not previously made. Such a proceeding shall not be instituted unless an undertaking is filed with the Village Treasurer in such amount and with such sureties as a Justice of the Supreme Court shall approve to the effect that, if such proceedings be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the petitioner will pay costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding.
C. 
Under this section a person shall not be entitled to a revision, refund or credit of a tax, interest or penalty which had been determined to be due pursuant to the provisions of § 304-41 of this article where it has had a hearing or an opportunity for a hearing, as provided in said section, or has failed to avail itself of the remedies therein provided. No refund or credit shall be made of a tax, interest or penalty paid after a determination by the Village Treasurer made pursuant to § 304-41 of this article unless it be found that such determination was erroneous, illegal or unconstitutional or otherwise improper by the Village Treasurer after a hearing or on his or her own motion or in a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, pursuant to the provisions of said section, in which event refund or credit without interest shall be made of the tax, interest or penalty found to have been overpaid.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
In cases where the occupant or operator has applied for a refund and has instituted a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules to review a determination adverse to him/her on his/her application for refund, the Village Treasurer shall have the option of crediting future tax payments to meet the cost of any settlements or judgments or, at the Village Treasurer's option, may, in the first instance, set up appropriate reserves to meet any decision adverse to the Village.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
The remedies provided by §§ 304-35 and 304-38 of this article shall be the exclusive remedies available to any person for the review of tax liability imposed by this article, and no determination or proposed determination of tax or determination on any application for refund shall be enjoined or reviewed by an action for declaratory judgment, an action for money had and received or by any action or proceeding other than a proceeding in a nature of a certiorari proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules; provided, however, that a taxpayer may proceed by declaratory judgment if he/she institutes suit within 30 days after a deficiency assessment is made and pays the amount of the deficiency assessment to the Village Treasurer prior to the institution of such suit and posts a bond for costs as provided in § 304-36 of this article.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
A. 
Any person failing to file a return or to pay or pay over any tax to the Village Treasurer within the time required by this article shall be subject to a penalty of 5% of the amount of tax due per month or any fraction of a month to a maximum of 25% for each year; plus interest at the rate of 1% of such tax for each month of delay or fraction of a month after such return was required to be filed or such tax became due; but the Village Treasurer, if satisfied that the delay was excusable, may remit all or any part of such penalty, but not interest. Such net penalties and interest shall be paid and disposed of in the same manner as other revenues from this article. Unpaid penalties and interest may be enforced in the same manner as the tax imposed by this article.
B. 
Any operator or occupant and any officer of an operator or occupant failing to file a return required by this article, or filing or causing to be filed or making or causing to be made or giving or causing to be given any return, certificate, affidavit, representation, information, testimony or statement required or authorized by this article which is willfully false, and any operator and any officer of a corporate operator willfully failing to file a bond required to be filed pursuant to § 304-36 of this article, or failing to file a registration certificate and such data in connection therewith as the Village Treasurer may by regulation or otherwise require, or failing to display or surrender the certificate of authority as required by this article or assigning or transferring such certificate of authority; and any operator or any officer of a corporate operator willfully failing to charge separately from the rent the tax herein imposed or willfully failing to state such tax separately on any evidence of occupancy and on any bill or statement or receipt of rent issue or employed by the operator or willfully failing or refusing to collect such tax from the occupant; any operator or any officer of a corporate operator who shall refer or cause reference to be made to this tax in a form or manner other than that required by this article, and any such person or operator failing to keep records required by this article, shall, in addition to the penalties herein or elsewhere prescribed, be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment for not more than one year, or both such fine and imprisonment. Officers of a corporate operator shall be personally liable for the tax collected or required to be collected by such corporation under this article and penalties and interest thereon and subject to the fines and imprisonment herein authorized.
C. 
The certificate of the Village Treasurer to the effect that a tax has not been paid, that a return, bond or registration certificate has not been filed or that information has not been supplied pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be presumptive evidence thereof.
D. 
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 provided by law, the tax may be assessed at any time.
[Amended 3-10-2025 by L.L. No. 5-2025, eff. 3-19-2025]
A. 
It shall be unlawful, except in accordance with proper judicial order or as otherwise provided to the fullest extent permitted by law, for the Village Treasurer or employee or designee of the Village Treasurer to divulge or make known in any manner the rents or other information relating to the business of a taxpayer contained in any return required under this article. The officers 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 Treasurer in an action or proceeding under the provisions of this article 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 in 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 taxpayer or his/her duly authorized representative of a certified copy of any return filed in connection with his/her tax nor to prohibit the publication of statistics so classified to prevent the identification of particular returns and items thereof or the inspection by the Village Attorney or other legal representatives of the Village or by the District Attorney of any county of the return of any taxpayer who shall bring action to set aside or review the tax based thereon, or against whom an action or proceeding has been instituted for the collection of a tax or penalty. Returns shall be preserved for three years and thereafter until the Village Treasurer permits them to be destroyed.
B. 
Any violation of Subsection A of this section shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding $1,000 or by imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both, in the discretion of the court, and if the offender is an officer or employee of the Village, he/she may be, at the discretion of the Village Administrator, dismissed from office and be incapable of holding any further Village office as may be determined according to law.
A. 
Any notice authorized or required under the provisions of this article may be given to the person to whom it is intended in a postpaid envelope addressed to such person at the address given in the last return filed by him/her pursuant to the provisions of this article or in any application made by him/her or, if no return has been filed or application made, 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 five days after the date of mailing of such notice.
B. 
The provisions of the Civil Practice Law and Rules or any other law relative to limitations of time for the enforcement of a civil remedy shall not apply to any proceeding or action taken by the Village to levy, appraise, assess, determine or enforce the collection of any tax or penalty provided by this article. However, except in the case of a willfully false, 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 filing of a return; provided, however, that in the case of a return which should have been filed and has not been filed as provided by law, the tax may be assessed at any time.
C. 
Where, before expiration of the period prescribed herein for the assessment of an additional tax, a taxpayer has consented in writing that such period be extended, the amount of such additional tax due may be determined at any time within such extended period. The period so extended may be further extended by subsequent consents in writing made before the expiration of the extended period.
If any provision of this article, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of this article, and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby.