[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Waverly
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 4-6-1999 by Ord.
No. 99-2 (Ch. 28, Art. IV, of the 1973 Code)]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
following meanings:
GROSS CHARGES
The amount paid to a telecommunications retailer for the
act or privilege of originating or receiving telecommunications within
the City, and for all services rendered in connection therewith, valued
in money whether paid in money or otherwise, including cash, credits,
services, and property of every kind or nature, and shall be determined
without any deduction on account of the cost of such telecommunications,
the cost of the materials used, labor or service costs, or any other
expense whatsoever. In case credit is extended, the amount thereof
shall be included only as and when paid. Gross charges for private
line service shall include charges imposed at each channel termination
point within the City, charges for the channel mileage between each
channel termination point within the City, and charges for that portion
of the interstate interoffice channel provided within the City. Charges
for that portion of the interstate interoffice channel provided in
Illinois shall be determined by the retailer as follows: 1) for interstate interoffice
channels having two channel termination points, only one of which
is in Illinois, 50% of the total charge imposed; or 2) for interstate interoffice
channels having more than two channel termination points, one or more
of which are in Illinois, an amount equal to the total charge multiplied
by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of channel termination
points within Illinois and the denominator of which is the total number
of channel termination points. Prior to January 1, 2004, any method
consistent with this definition or other method that reasonably apportions
the total charges for interstate interoffice channels among the states
in which channel termination points are located shall be accepted
as a reasonable method to determine the charges for that portion of
the interstate interoffice channel provided within Illinois for that
period. However, "gross charges" shall not include:
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
Any amounts added to a purchaser's bill because of a charge
made under:
(1)
The fee imposed by this article;
(2)
Additional charges added to a purchaser's bill under Section
9-221 or 9-222 of the Public Utilities Act;
(3)
The tax imposed by the Telecommunications Excise Tax Act (35
ILCS 630/1 et seq.);
(5)
The tax imposed by Section 4251 of the Internal Revenue Code;
or
(6)
The tax imposed by the Simplified Municipal Telecommunications
Tax Act (35 ILCS 636/5-1 et seq.).
B.
Charges for a sent collect telecommunication received outside
the City;
C.
Charges for leased time on equipment or charges for the storage
of data or information or subsequent retrieval or the processing of
data or information intended to change its form or content. Such equipment
includes, but is not limited to, the use of calculators, computers,
data processing equipment, tabulating equipment, or accounting equipment
and also includes the usage of computers under a time-sharing agreement;
D.
Charges for customer equipment, including such equipment that
is leased or rented by the customer from any source, wherein such
charges are disaggregated and separately identified from other charges;
E.
Charges to business enterprises certified under Section 9-222.1
of the Public Utilities Act (220 ILCS 5/9-222.1) to the extent of
such exemption and during the period of time specified by the City;
F.
Charges for telecommunications and all services and equipment
provided in connection therewith between a parent corporation and
its wholly owned subsidiaries or between wholly owned subsidiaries,
and only to the extent that the charges between the parent corporation
and wholly owned subsidiaries or between wholly owned subsidiaries
represent expense allocation between the corporations and not the
generation of profit other than a regulatory required profit for the
corporation rendering such services;
G.
Bad debts ("Bad debt" means any portion of a debt that is related
to a sale at retail for which gross charges are not otherwise deductible
or excludable that has become worthless or uncollectible, as determined
under applicable federal income tax standards; if the portion of the
debt deemed to be bad is subsequently paid, the retailer shall report
and pay the tax on that portion during the reporting period in which
the payment is made.);
H.
Charges paid by inserting coins in coin-operated telecommunications
devices; or
I.
Charges for nontaxable services or telecommunications if 1)
those charges are aggregated with other charges for telecommunications
that are taxable, 2) those charges are not separately stated on the
customer bill or invoice, and 3) the retailer can reasonably identify
the nontaxable charges on the retailer's books and records kept in
the regular course of business. If the nontaxable charges cannot reasonably
be identified, the gross charge from the sale of both taxable and
nontaxable services or telecommunications billed on a combined basis
shall be attributed to the taxable services or telecommunications.
The burden of proving nontaxable charges shall be on the retailer
of the telecommunications.
PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY
Any municipal street, alley, water or public right-of-way
dedicated or commonly used for utility purposes, including utility
easements wherein the City has acquired the right and authority to
locate or permit the location of utilities consistent with telecommunications
facilities. "Public right-of-way" shall not include any real or personal
City property that is not specifically described in the previous sentence
and shall not include City buildings and other structures or improvements,
regardless of whether they are situated in the public right-of-way.
RETAILER MAINTAINING A PLACE OF BUSINESS IN THIS STATE
Includes any retailer having or maintaining within the State
of Illinois, directly or by a subsidiary, an office, distribution
facilities, transmission facilities, sales office, warehouse, or other
place of business, or any agent or other representative operating
within this state under the authority of the retailer or its subsidiary,
irrespective of whether such place of business or agent or other representative
is located here permanently or temporarily, or whether such retailer
or subsidiary is licensed to do business in this state.
SALE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS AT RETAIL
The transmitting, supplying, or furnishing of telecommunications
and all services rendered in connection therewith for a consideration,
other than between a parent corporation and its wholly owned subsidiaries
or between wholly owned subsidiaries, when the gross charge made by
one such corporation to another such corporation is not greater than
the gross charge paid to the retailer for their use or consumption
and not for sale.
SERVICE ADDRESS
The location of telecommunications equipment from which telecommunications
services are originated or at which telecommunications services are
received. If this is not a defined location, as in the case of wireless
telecommunications, paging systems, maritime systems, "service address"
means the customer's place of primary use as defined in the Mobile
Telecommunications Sourcing Conformity Act (35 ILCS 638/1 et seq.).
For air-to-ground systems, and the like, "service address" shall mean
the location of the customer's primary use of the telecommunications
equipment as defined by the location in Illinois where bills are sent.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Includes, but is not limited to, messages or information
transmitted through use of local, toll, and wide-area telephone services,
channel services, telegraph services, teletypewriter service, computer
exchange services, private line services, specialized mobile radio
services, or any other transmission of messages or information by
electronic or similar means, between or among points by wire, cable,
fiberoptics, laser, microwave, radio, satellite, or similar facilities.
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, "telecommunications"
shall also include wireless telecommunications as hereinafter defined.
"Telecommunications" shall not include value-added services in which
computer processing applications are used to act on the form, content,
code, and protocol of the information for purposes other than transmission.
"Telecommunications" shall not include purchase of telecommunications
by a telecommunications service provider for use as a component part
of the service provided by him or her to the ultimate retailer consumer
who originates or terminates the end-to-end communications. Retailer
access charges, right-of-access charges, charges for use of intercompany
facilities, and all telecommunications resold in the subsequent provision
and used as a component of, or integrated into, end-to-end telecommunications
service shall not be included in gross charges as sales for resale.
"Telecommunications" shall not include the provision of cable services
through a cable system as defined in the Cable Communications Act
of 1984 (47 U.S.C. § 521 et seq.), as now or hereafter amended,
or cable or other programming services subject to an open video system
fee payable to the City through an open video system as defined in
the Rules of the Federal Communications Commission (47 CFR 76.1550
et seq.) as now or hereafter amended. Beginning January 1, 2001, prepaid
telephone calling arrangements shall not be considered "telecommunications"
subject to the tax imposed under this article. For purposes of this
definition, "prepaid telephone calling arrangements" means that term
as defined in Section 2-27 of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act (35
ILCS 120/2-27).
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
TELECOMMUNICATIONS PROVIDER
A.
Any telecommunications retailer; and
B.
Any person that is not a telecommunications retailer that installs,
owns, operates or controls equipment in the public right-of-way that
is used or designed to be used to transmit telecommunications in any
form.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS RETAILER or RETAILER or CARRIER
Includes every person engaged in the business of making sales
of telecommunications at retail as defined in this article. The City
may, in its discretion, upon application, authorize the collection
of the fee hereby imposed by any retailer not maintaining a place
of business within this state who, to the satisfaction of the City,
furnishes adequate security to ensure collection and payment of the
fee. When so authorized, it shall be the duty of such retailer to
pay the fee upon all of the gross charges for telecommunications in
the same manner and subject to the same requirements as a retailer
maintaining a place of business within the City.
WIRELESS TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Includes cellular mobile telephone services, personal wireless
services as defined in Section 704(C) of the Telecommunications Act
of 1996 (Public Law No. 104-104), 42 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7),
as now or hereafter amended, including all commercial mobile radio
services, and paging services.
A. Every telecommunications provided as defined in this article shall register with the City within 30 days after the effective date of this article or becoming a telecommunications provider, whichever is later, on a form to be provided by the City; provided, however, that any telecommunications retailer that has filed a return pursuant to §
271-4C of this article shall be deemed to have registered in accordance with this section.
B. Every telecommunications provider who has registered with the City pursuant to Subsection
A has an affirmative duty to submit an amended registration form or current return as required by §
271-4C, as the case may be, to the City within 30 days from the date of the occurrence of any changes in the information provided by the telecommunications provider in the registration form or most recent return on file with the City.
A. A City telecommunications infrastructure maintenance fee is hereby
imposed upon all telecommunications retailers in the amount of 1%
of all gross charges charged by the telecommunications retailer to
service addresses within the City for telecommunications originating
or received in the City.
B. Upon the effective date of the infrastructure maintenance fee authorized
in this article, the City infrastructure maintenance fee authorized
hereunder shall be the only fee or compensation for the use of all
public rights-of-way within the City by telecommunications retailers.
Imposition of the infrastructure maintenance fee provided under this
article does not, however, serve as a limitation on the levying of
any taxes or imposition of any fees otherwise authorized by law.
C. The City telecommunications infrastructure maintenance fee authorized by this section shall be collected, enforced, and administered as set forth in §
271-4 of this article.
A. A telecommunications retailer shall charge to and collect from each
customer an additional charge in an amount equal to the City infrastructure
maintenance fee attributable to that customer's service address.
B. Unless otherwise approved by the Mayor of the City, the infrastructure
maintenance fee shall be remitted by the telecommunications retailer
to the City not later than the last day of the month subsequent to
the month in which a bill is issued to the customer; provided, however,
that the telecommunications retailer may retain an amount not to exceed
2% of the City infrastructure maintenance fee collected by it to reimburse
itself for expenses incurred in accounting for and remitting the fee.
C. Remittance of the municipal infrastructure fee to the City shall
be accompanied by a return, in a form to be prescribed by the Mayor
of the City, which shall contain such information as the Mayor of
the City may reasonably require.
D. Any infrastructure maintenance fee required to be collected pursuant to this article and any such infrastructure maintenance fee collected by such telecommunications retailer shall constitute a debt owed by the telecommunications retailer to the City. The charged imposed under Subsection
A by the telecommunications retailer pursuant to this article shall constitute a debt of the purchaser to the telecommunications retailer who provides such services until paid and, if unpaid, is recoverable at law in the same manner as the original charge for such services.
E. If it shall appear that an amount of infrastructure maintenance fee
has been paid that was not due under the provisions of this article,
whether as a result of a mistake of fact or an error of law, then
such amount shall be credited against any infrastructure maintenance
fee due, or to become due, under this article from the telecommunications
retailer who made the erroneous payment; provided, however, the Mayor
of the City may request, and the telecommunications retailer shall
provide, written substantiation for such credit. However, no claim
for such credit may be made more than three years after the date of
the erroneous payment unless:
(1) The
credit is used only to offset a claim of underpayment made by the
City within the applicable statutory period of limitations; and
(2) The
credit derives from an overpayment made by the same telecommunications
retailer during the applicable statutory period of limitations.
F. Amounts paid under this article by telecommunications retailers shall
not be included in the tax base under any of the following acts as
described immediately below:
(1) "Gross charges" for purposes of the Telecommunications Excise Tax
Act (35 ILCS 630/1 et seq.);
(2) "Gross receipts" for purposes of the municipal utility tax as prescribed
in Section 8-11-2 of the Illinois Municipal Code (65 ILCS 5/8-11-2);
(3) "Gross charges" for purposes of the municipal telecommunications
tax as prescribed in Section 8-11-17 of the Illinois Municipal Code
(65 ILCS 5/8-11-17);
(4) "Gross revenue" for purposes of the tax on annual gross revenue of
public utilities prescribed in Section 2-202 of the Public Utilities
Act (220 ILCS 5/2-202).
G. The City shall have the right, in its discretion, to audit the books
and records of all telecommunications retailers subject to this article
to determine whether the telecommunications retailer has properly
accounted to the City for the City infrastructure maintenance fee.
Any underpayment of the amount of the City infrastructure maintenance
fee due to the City by the telecommunications retailer shall be paid
to the City, plus 5% of the total amount of the underpayment determined
in an audit, plus any costs incurred by the City in conducting the
audit, in an amount not to exceed 5% of the total amount of underpayment
determined in an audit. Said sum shall be paid to the City within
21 days after the date of issuance of an invoice for same.
H. The Mayor of the City, or his or her designee, may promulgate such further or additional regulations concerning the administration and enforcement of this article, consistent with its provisions, as may be required from time to time and shall notify all telecommunications retailers that are registered pursuant to §
271-2 of this article of such regulations.
Nothing in this article shall excuse any person or entity from
obligations imposed under any law, including, but not limited to:
A. Generally applicable taxes; and
B. Standards for construction on, over, under, or within, use of or
repair of the public rights-of-way, including standards relating to
freestanding towers and other structures upon the public rights-of-way,
as provided; and
C. Any liability imposed for the failure to comply with such generally
applicable taxes or standards governing construction on, over, under,
or within, use of or repair of the public rights-of-way; and
D. Compliance with any ordinance or provision of this article concerning
uses or structures not located on, over, or within the right-of-way.
Any franchise, license, or similar agreements between telecommunications
retailers and the City entered into before the effective date of this
article regarding the use of public rights-of-way shall remain valid
according to and for their stated terms except for any fees, charges
or other compensation to the extent waived.
Any telecommunications provider who violates, disobeys, omits, neglects or refuses to comply with any of the provisions of this article shall be subject to fine in accordance with Chapter
1, Article
III, Penalties and Enforcement, of the City Code.
Nothing in this article shall be construed as limiting any additional
or further remedies that the City may have for enforcement of this
article.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion
of this article is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional
by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed
a separate, distinct, and independent provision and such holding shall
not affect the validity of the remaining portions hereof.
A. The City hereby waives all fees, charges, and other compensation
that may accrue, after the effective date of the waiver, to the City
by a telecommunications retailer pursuant to any existing City franchise,
license, or similar agreement with a telecommunications retailer during
the time the City imposes the telecommunications infrastructure maintenance
fee. This waiver shall only be effective during the time the infrastructure
maintenance fee provided for in this article is subject to being lawfully
imposed on the telecommunications retailer and collected by the telecommunications
retailer from the customer.
B. The City Clerk shall send a notice of the waiver by certified mail,
return receipt requested, to each telecommunications retailer with
whom the City has a franchise.
C. The City infrastructure maintenance fee provided for in this article
shall become effective and imposed on the first day of the month not
less than 90 days after the City provides written notice by certified
mail to each telecommunications retailer with whom the City has an
existing franchise, license, or similar agreement that the City waives
all compensation under such existing franchise, license, or similar
agreement during such time as the fee is subject to being lawfully
imposed and collected by the retailer and remitted to the City. The
infrastructure maintenance fee shall apply to gross charges billed
on or after the effective date as established in the preceding sentence.
This article shall be effective on August 1, 1999.
[Adopted 1-2-2001 by Ord.
No. 01-1]
This article shall be known as, and may be cited as, the "Locally
Imposed and Administered Tax Rights and Responsibility Ordinance."
The provisions of this article shall apply to the City's procedures
in connection with all of the City's locally imposed and administered
taxes.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
ACT
The Local Government Taxpayers' Bill of Rights Act (50 ILCS
45/1 et seq.).
CITY
The City of Waverly, Illinois.
HEARING OFFICER
An administrative individual appointed by the Mayor with
the advice and consent of the corporate authorities to conduct hearings
and to issue final determinations regarding the collection of all
locally imposed and administered taxes.
LOCAL TAX ADMINISTRATOR
The City's Mayor is charged with the administration and collection
of the locally imposed and administered taxes, including staff, employees
or agents to the extent they are authorized by the local tax administrator
to act in the local tax administrator's stead. The local tax administrator
shall have the authority to implement the terms of this article to
give full effect to this article. The exercise of such authority by
the local tax administrator shall not be inconsistent with this article
and the Act.
LOCALLY IMPOSED AND ADMINISTERED TAX or TAX
Each tax imposed by the City that is collected or administered
by the City not an agency or department of the state. It does not
include any taxes imposed upon real property under the Property Tax
Code (35 ILCS 200/1-1 et seq.) or fees collected by the City other
than infrastructure maintenance fees.
NOTICE
Each audit notice, collection notice or other similar notice
or communication in connection with each of the City's locally imposed
and administered taxes.
TAX ORDINANCE
Each ordinance adopted by the City that imposes any locally
imposed and administered taxes.
TAXPAYER
Any person required to pay any locally imposed and administered
tax and generally includes the person upon whom the legal incidence
of such tax is placed and with respect to consumer taxes includes
the business or entity required to collect and pay the locally imposed
and administered tax to the City.
Unless otherwise provided, whenever notice is required to be
given, the notice is to be in writing mailed not less than 14 calendar
days prior to the day fixed for any applicable hearing, audit or other
scheduled act of the local tax administrator. The notice shall be
sent by the local tax administrator as follows:
A. First class or express mail, or overnight mail, addressed to the
persons concerned at the persons' last known address; or
B. Personal service of delivery.
Any notice, payment, remittance or other filing required to
be made to the City pursuant to any tax ordinance shall be considered
late unless it is:
A. Physically received by the City on or before the due date; or
B. Received in an envelope or other container displaying a valid, readable
United States postmark dated on or before the due date, properly addressed
to the City, with adequate postage prepaid.
Any payment or remittance received for a tax period shall be
applied in the following order:
A. First to the tax due for the applicable period;
B. Second to the interest due for the applicable period; and
C. Third to the penalty for the applicable period.
A. The City shall not refund or credit any taxes voluntarily paid without
written protest at the time of payment in the event that a locally
imposed and administered tax is declared invalidly enacted or unconstitutional
by a court of competent jurisdiction. However, a taxpayer shall not
be deemed to have paid the tax voluntarily if the taxpayer lacked
knowledge of the facts upon which to protest the taxes at the time
of payment or if the taxpayer paid the taxes under duress.
B. The statute of limitations on a claim for credit or refund shall
be four years after the end of the calendar year in which payment
in error was made. The City shall not grant a credit or refund of
locally imposed and administered taxes, interest, or penalties to
a person who has not paid the amounts directly to the City.
C. The procedure for claiming a credit or refund of locally imposed
and administered taxes, interest or penalties paid in error shall
be as follows:
(1) The taxpayer shall submit to the local tax administrator in writing
a claim for credit or refund together with a statement specifying:
(a)
The name of the locally imposed and administered tax subject
to the claim;
(b)
The tax period for the locally imposed and administered tax
subject to the claim;
(c)
The date of the tax payment subject to the claim and the cancelled
check or receipt for the payment;
(d)
The taxpayer's recalculation, accompanied by an amended or revised
tax return, in connection with the claim; and
(e)
A request for either a refund or a credit in connection with
the claim to be applied to the amount of tax, interest and penalties
overpaid, and, as applicable, related interest on the amount overpaid;
provided, however, that there shall be no refund and only a credit
given in the event the taxpayer owes any monies to the City.
(2) Within 10 days of the receipt by the local tax administrator of any
claim for a refund or credit, the local tax administrator shall either:
(b)
Deny the claim, in whole or in part, together with a statement
as to the reason for the denial or the partial grant and denial.
(3) In the event the local tax administrator grants, in whole or in part,
a claim for refund or credit, the amount of the grant for refund or
credit shall bear interest at the rate of 5% per annum, based on a
year of 365 days and the number of days elapsed, from the date of
the overpayment to the date of mailing of a refund check or the grant
of a credit.
Any request for proposed audit pursuant to any locally administered
tax shall comply with the notice requirements of this article.
A. Each notice of audit shall contain the following information:
(2) The time period of the audit; and
(3) A brief description of the books and records to be made available
for the auditor.
B. Any audit shall be conducted during normal business hours; and if
the date and time selected by the local tax administrator is not agreeable
to the taxpayer, another date and time may be requested by the taxpayer
within 30 days after the originally designated audit and during normal
business hours.
C. The taxpayer may request an extension of time to have an audit conducted.
The audit shall be conducted not less than seven days, nor more than
30 days, from the date the notice is given, unless the taxpayer and
the local tax administrator agreed to some other convenient time.
In the event the taxpayer is unable to comply with the audit on the
date in question, the taxpayer may request another date within the
30 days, approved in writing, that is convenient to the taxpayer and
the local tax administrator.
D. Every taxpayer shall keep accurate books and records of the taxpayer's
business or activities, including original source documents and books
of entry denoting the transactions which had given rise or may have
given rise to any tax liability, exemption or deduction. All books
shall be kept in the English language and shall be subject to and
available for inspection by the City.
E. It is the duty and responsibility of every taxpayer to make available
its books and records for inspection by the City. If the taxpayer,
or Tax Collector, fails to provide the documents necessary for audit
within the time provided, the local tax administrator may issue a
tax determination and assessment based on the tax administrator's
determination of the best estimate of the taxpayer's tax liability.
F. If an audit determines there has been an overpayment of a locally
imposed and administered tax as a result of the audit, written notice
of the amount of overpayment shall be given to the taxpayer within
30 days of the City's determination of the amount of overpayment.
G. In the event a tax payment was submitted to the incorrect local government
entity, then upon request by the City, the audit information must
be given to any unit of local government that may be affected by an
overpayment.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
H. The auditor must sign a confidentiality agreement upon request by
the taxpayer. Upon the completion of the audit, the City must issue
an audit closure report to the taxpayer with the results of the audit.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A. The local tax administrator shall send written notice to a taxpayer
upon the local tax administrator's issuance of a protestable notice
of tax due, a bill, a claim denial, or a notice of claim reduction
regarding any tax. The notice shall include the following information:
(1) The reason for the assessment;
(2) The amount of the tax liability proposed;
(3) The procedure for appealing the assessment; and
(4) The obligations of the City during the audit, appeal, refund and
collection process.
B. A taxpayer who receives written notice from the local tax administrator
of a determination of tax due or assessment may file with the local
tax administrator a written protest and petition for hearing, setting
forth the basis of the taxpayer's request for a hearing. The written
protest and petition for hearing must be filed with the local tax
administrator within 45 days of receipt of the written notice of the
tax determination and assessment.
C. If a timely written notice and petition for hearing is filed, the
local tax administrator shall fix the time and place for hearing and
shall given written notice to the taxpayer. The hearing shall be scheduled
for a date within 14 days of receipt of the written protest and petition
for hearing, unless the taxpayer requests a later date convenient
to all parties.
D. If a written protest and petition for hearing is not filed within
the forty-five-day period, the tax determination, audit or assessment
shall become a final bill due and owing without further notice.
E. Upon the showing of reasonable cause by the taxpayer and the full
payment of the contested tax liability along with interest accrued
as of the due date of the tax, the local tax administrator may reopen
or extend the time for filing a written protest and petition for hearing.
In no event shall the time for filing a written protest and petition
for hearing be reopened or extended for more than 90 days after the
expiration of the forty-five-day period.
A. Whenever a taxpayer or a Tax Collector has filed a timely written protest and petition for hearing under §
271-20, above, the local tax administrator shall conduct a hearing regarding any appeal. The taxpayer may request that a hearing officer conduct the hearing rather than the local tax administrator.
B. No continuances shall be granted except in cases where a continuance
is absolutely necessary to protect the rights of the taxpayer. Lack
of preparation shall not be grounds for a continuance. Any continuance
granted shall not exceed 14 days.
C. At the hearing, the local tax administrator/hearing officer shall
preside and shall hear testimony and accept any evidence relevant
to the tax determination, audit or assessment. The strict rules of
evidence applicable to judicial proceedings shall not apply.
D. At the conclusion of the hearing, the local tax administrator/hearing
officer shall make a written determination on the basis of the evidence
presented at the hearing. The taxpayer or Tax Collector shall be provided
with a copy of the written decision.
In the event a determination has been made that a tax is due
and owing, through audit, assessment or other bill sent, the tax must
be paid within the time frame otherwise indicated.
A. Interest. The City hereby provides for the amount of interest to
be assessed on a late payment, underpayment, or nonpayment of the
tax to be 5% per annum, based on a year of 365 days and the number
of days elapsed.
B. Late filing and payment penalties. If a tax return is not filed within
the time and manner provided by the controlling tax ordinance, a late
filing penalty of 5% of the amount of tax required to be shown as
due on a return shall be imposed; and a late payment penalty of 5%
of the tax due shall be imposed. If no return is filed within the
time or manner provided by the controlling tax ordinance and prior
to the City issuing a notice of tax delinquency or notice of tax liability,
then a failure to file penalty shall be assessed equal to 25% of the
total tax due for the applicable reporting period for which the return
was required to be filed. A late filing or payment penalty shall not
apply if a failure-to-file penalty is imposed by the controlling ordinance.
The local tax administrator shall have the authority to waive
or abate any late filing penalty, late payment penalty or failure-to-file
penalty if the local tax administrator shall determine reasonable
cause exists for delay or failure to make a filing.
The City may enter into an installment contract with the taxpayer
for the payment of taxes under the controlling tax ordinance. The
local tax administrator may not cancel any installment contract so
entered unless the taxpayer fails to pay any amount due and owing.
Upon written notice by the local tax administrator that the payment
is 30 days delinquent, the taxpayer shall have 14 working days to
cure any delinquency. If the taxpayer fails to cure the delinquency
within the fourteen-day period or fails to demonstrate good faith
in restructuring the installment contract with the local administrator,
the installment contract shall be canceled without further notice
to the taxpayer.
The City, through the local tax administrator, shall review
all tax returns in a prompt and timely manner and inform taxpayers
of any amounts due and owing. The taxpayer shall have 45 days after
receiving notice of the reviewed tax returns to make any request for
refund or provide any tax still due and owing.
A. No determination of tax due and owing may be issued more than four
years after the end of the calendar year for which the return for
the applicable period was filed or for the calendar year in which
the return for the applicable period was due, whichever occurs later.
B. If any tax return is not filed or if, during any four-year period
for which a notice of tax determination assessment may be issued by
the City, the tax paid was less than 75% of the tax due, the statute
of limitations shall be six years maximum after the end of the calendar
year in which the return for the applicable period was due or end
of the calendar year in which the return for the applicable period
was filed.
C. No statute of limitations shall apply if a fraudulent tax return
was filed by the taxpayer.
For any locally imposed and administered tax for which a taxpayer
has not received a written notice of an audit, investigation, or assessment
from the local tax administrator, a taxpayer is entitled to file an
application with the local tax administrator for a voluntary disclosure
of the tax due. A taxpayer filing a voluntary disclosure application
must agree to pay the amount of tax due, along with interest of 1%
per month, for all periods prior to the filing of the application
but not more than four years before the date of filing the application.
A taxpayer filing a valid voluntary disclosure application may not
be liable for any additional tax, interest, or penalty for any period
before the date the application was filed. However, if the taxpayer
incorrectly determined and underpaid the amount of tax due, the taxpayer
is liable for the underpaid tax along with applicable interest on
the underpaid tax, unless the underpayment was the result of fraud
on the part of the taxpayer, in which case the application shall be
deemed invalid and void. The payment of tax and interest must be made
by no later than 90 days after the filing of the voluntary disclosure
application or the date agreed to by the local tax administrator.
However, any additional amounts owed as a result of an underpayment
of tax and interest previously paid under this section must be paid
within 90 days after a final determination and the exhaustion of all
appeals of the additional amount owed or the date agreed to by the
local tax administrator, whichever is longer.
Any locally administered tax ordinance shall be published via
normal or standard publishing requirements. The posting of a tax ordinance
on the internet shall satisfy the publication requirements. Copies
of all tax ordinances shall be made available to the public upon request
at the City Clerk's office.
The local tax administrator shall establish an internal review
procedure regarding any liens filed against any taxpayers for unpaid
taxes. Upon a determination by the local tax administrator that the
lien is valid, the lien shall remain in full force and effect. If
the lien is determined to be improper, the local tax administrator
shall:
A. Timely remove the lien at the City's expense;
B. Correct the taxpayer's credit record; and
C. Correct any public disclosure of the improperly imposed lien.
This article shall be liberally construed and administered to
supplement all of the City's tax ordinances. To the extent that any
tax ordinance is in conflict with or inconsistent with this article,
this article shall be controlling.
If any section, paragraph or provision of this article shall
be held to be invalid or unenforceable for any reason, the invalidity
or unenforceability of such section, paragraph or provision shall
not affect any of the remaining provisions of this article.