[Adopted 6-2-2008 by Ord.
No. 679]
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Souderton
Borough Local Services Tax Ordinance."
A.
COLLECTOR or TAX COLLECTOR
CORPORATION
EMPLOYER
NONRESIDENT
OCCUPATION
PERSON
RESIDENT
SALARIES, WAGES, COMMISSIONS AND OTHER COMPENSATION
TAXPAYER
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following terms shall have,
for the purpose of this article, the meaning herein indicated:
The person or firm appointed by the Borough Council of the
Borough of Souderton to collect the local services tax levied by this
article and to administer the provisions thereof.
Any corporation or joint stock association, organized under
the laws of the United States, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or
any other state, territory, or foreign country or dependency.
An individual, partnership, association, corporation, governmental
body, or unit or agency or other entity who or that employs one or
more persons on a salary, wage, commission or other compensation basis.
An individual, fiduciary, partnership or other entity domiciled
outside the Borough of Souderton.
Any enterprise, activity, profession, or undertaking of any
nature, whether by an individual, association, or any other entity,
whereby any wage, salary, commission or other remuneration is earned.
A natural person, partnership, association, corporation or
fiduciary. Whenever used in any clause prescribing or imposing a penalty,
the term "person" as applied to associations shall mean the partners
or members thereof, and as applied to corporations, the officers thereof.
An individual, partnership, association or other entity domiciled
in the Borough of Souderton.
Includes salaries, wages, profits, commissions, bonuses,
incentive payments, fees and tips that may accrue or be received by
an individual for services rendered, whether directly or through an
agent and whether in cash or in property but shall not include periodic
payments for sick or disability benefits and those commonly recognized
as old-age benefits, retirement pay, or pensions paid to persons retired
from service after reaching a specific age or after a stated period
of employment, nor public assistance or unemployment compensation
payments, nor any wages or compensation paid by the Untied States
to any person for active service in the Army, Navy or Air Force of
the United States nor any bonus or additional compensation paid by
the United States or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any other
state for such services.
A person required hereunder to file a return on earnings
or net profits or to pay a tax thereon.
B.
The singular shall include the plural and the masculine shall include
the feminine and the neuter.
C.
The tax levied hereby is in addition to all other taxes of any kind
or nature heretofore levied by the Borough of Souderton.
D.
The tax imposed hereby shall not exceed $52 on each taxpayer for
each calendar year regardless of the number of political subdivisions
within which a taxpayer may be employed.
All employers and self-employed individuals residing or having
their place of employment outside of the Borough of Souderton but
who perform services of any type or engage in any occupation or profession
within the Borough of Souderton are bound by and subject to the provisions
of this article with the same force and effect as though they were
residents of the Borough of Souderton. Further, any individual engaged
in an occupation or profession within the Borough of Souderton as
an employee of a nonresident employer shall be considered a self-employed
person for purposes of this article.
The following persons shall be exempt from payment of the local
services tax:
A.
Those persons who are subject to the tax pursuant to § 567-47 of this article, but who earn less than $12,000 annually shall be exempted from payment of the local services tax upon the filing of an exemption certificate in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Local Services Tax Collector.
B.
Those persons who have served in any war or armed conflict in which
the United States was engaged and is honorably discharged or released
under honorable circumstances from active service, if as a result
of military service, the person is blind, paraplegic or a double or
quadruple amputee or has a service-connected disability declared by
the United States Veterans' Administration or its successor to
be a total one-hundred-percent permanent disability.
C.
Those persons who serve as a member of a reserve component of the
armed forces and who are called to active duty at any time during
the taxable year. For purposes of this subsection, "reserve component
of the armed forces" shall mean the United States Army Reserve, United
States Navy Reserve, United States Marine Corps Reserve, United States
Coast Guard Reserve, United States Air Force Reserve, the Pennsylvania
National Guard, and the Pennsylvania Air National Guard.
A.
Each employer within the Borough of Souderton, as well as those employers
situated outside of the Borough of Souderton but who employ persons
within the Borough of Souderton, is hereby charged with the duty of
collecting the tax from each employee performing services within the
Borough of Souderton and making a return and payment thereof to the
Tax Collector. Further, each employer is hereby authorized to deduct
the tax for each employee, whether said employee is paid by salary,
wage, or commission and whether or not all such services are performed
within the Borough of Souderton.
B.
An employee subject to the tax shall be assessed by the employer
on a pro-rata share of the tax for each payroll period in which the
person is engaging in an occupation. The pro-rata share of the tax
assessed on the person for a payroll period shall be determined by
dividing the rate of the tax levied for the calendar year by the number
of payroll periods established by the employer for the calendar year.
For purposes of determining the pro-rata share, the employer shall
round down the amount of the tax collected each payroll period to
the nearest one-hundredth of a dollar. Collection of the tax shall
be made on a payroll period basis for each payroll period in which
the person is engaging in an occupation.
C.
The tax shall be paid to the Tax Collector on a form furnished by
the Tax Collector, and shall include the employee's home address
and social security number. Taxes shall be due within 30 days of the
close of the calendar quarter during which the employee is initially
hired. Quarterly due dates are April 30, July 31, October 31, of the
current year and January 31 of the subsequent year for those persons
employed during the quarter.
D.
No person shall be subject to the payment of the tax by more than
one political subdivision during each payroll period.
E.
In the case of concurrent employment, an employer shall refrain from
withholding tax if the employee provides a recent pay statement from
a principal employer that reports the length of the payroll period
and the amount of the local services tax withheld and a statement
from the employee that the pay statement is from the employee's
principal employer and the employee will notify other employers of
a change in principal place of employment within two weeks of its
occurrence.
F.
Each self-employed person whose earnings or profits are subject to
the tax imposed by this article shall remit 25% the annual local services
tax within 30 days of the close of the calendar quarter of the taxable
year during which such person engaged in an occupation within the
Borough of Souderton.
The situs of the local services tax shall be the place of employment
on the first day the person becomes subject to the tax during each
payroll period. In the event a person is engaged in more than one
occupation, that is, concurrent employment, in an occupation which
requires the person to work in more than one political subdivision
during a payroll period, the priority of claim to the tax shall be
in the following order:
A.
First, the political subdivision in which a person maintains his
or her principal office or is principally employed.
B.
Second, the political subdivision in which the person resides and
works if the tax is levied by that political subdivision.
C.
Third, the political subdivision in which a person is employed and
which imposes the tax nearest in miles to the person's residence.
In case of dispute, a tax receipt of the taxing authority for the
calendar year declaring that the taxpayer has made prior payment constitutes
prima facie proof of payment to all other political subdivisions.
Borough Council shall appoint and establish the compensation
of a Tax Collector for the collection of the local services tax. The
Collector shall collect and receive all taxes imposed by this article;
furnish receipts for payment, keep records showing amounts received
from all taxpayers and the dates of such receipts; and keep such other
records as may be from time to time required by Borough Council.
The Tax Collector is hereby charged with the enforcement of
the provisions of this article and is authorized and empowered as
follows:
A.
To administer and enforce the provisions of this article and all
rules and regulations prescribed, adopted, and promulgated by Borough
Council relating to the enforcement and administration hereof and
consistent with such rules and regulations shall have the power and
authority to reexamine and correct any and all returns filed hereunder,
and to compute, settle, resettle and discharge any or all taxes hereby
levied.
B.
The Collector or any agent or employee of the Borough of Souderton,
authorized in writing by the Collector, is hereby authorized and empowered
to examine the books, papers and records of any employer or taxpayer
in order to verify the accuracy of any return made, or if no return
was made, to ascertain the tax imposed by this article. Every such
employer or taxpayer is hereby directed and required to give to the
said Collector or a duly authorized agent or employee of the Borough,
the means, facilities and opportunity for such examinations and investigations
as are hereby authorized. The Collector is hereby authorized to examine
any person under oath concerning any income which was or should have
been returned for taxation, and to this end may compel the production
of books, papers and records and the attendance of all persons before
him, whether as parties or witnesses, who he believes to have knowledge
of such income.
C.
Any information gained by the Collector or any authorized agent or
employee of the Borough, as a result of any returns, investigations,
hearings or verification, required or authorized by this article,
shall be confidential except for official purposes and except where
disclosure of the contents thereof is required by proper judicial
order or decree, or as otherwise provided by law, and any person or
agent who divulges any information so obtained shall, upon conviction
thereof, be subject to a fine or penalty not to exceed $600 and costs
for each offense, or to undergo imprisonment for not more than 30
days for the nonpayment of such fine or penalty and costs.
Borough Council shall be empowered to adopt by resolution additional
rules and regulations pertaining to this article.
All taxes imposed by this article remaining unpaid after they
become due shall bear interest at the rate of 6% per year and shall
be payable by the employer responsible for collecting and/or paying
the tax to the Collector, or by the taxpayer if he or she is self-employed.
All taxes imposed by this article, together with all interest
accruing thereon, shall be recoverable by the Borough of Souderton
by suit or by other means provided by law.
Any person or firm violating any provision of this article shall,
upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$600 and costs and, in default of payment thereof, shall be subject
to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30 days. Each day that a
violation of this article continues shall constitute a separate offense.
The tax imposed by this article shall not apply to any person
as to whom it is beyond the legal power of the Borough of Souderton
to impose the tax or duties herein provided.
If any sentence, clause or section of this article is for any
reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal, or invalid, such unconstitutionality,
illegality or invalidity shall not affect or impair any of the remaining
provisions, sentences, clauses or sections of this article. It is
hereby declared to be the intent of the Borough of Souderton that
this article would have been adopted as if such unconstitutional,
illegal or invalid sentence, clause or section had not been included
herein.
This article and the tax herein levied shall be effective for
the year 2009 and on a continuing annual basis, unless the rate of
said tax is subsequently changed.
