[Added 5-14-2019 by Ord.
No. 19-12]
The following words and phrases shall, for the purposes of this
article, have the following meanings:
Any container, regardless of material used in its construction,
in which two or more packs of cigarettes are placed.
Any product that contains nicotine, is intended to be burned
or heated under ordinary conditions of use, and consists of or contains
(i) any roll of tobacco wrapped in paper or in any substance not containing
tobacco; (ii) tobacco, in any form, that is functional in the product,
which because of its appearance, the type of tobacco used in the filler,
or its packaging and labeling, is likely to be offered to, or purchased
by, consumers as a cigarette; or (iii) any roll of tobacco used in
the filler, or its packaging and labeling, likely to be offered to,
or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette described in clause (i)
of this definition. The term "cigarette" includes "roll-your-own"
tobacco, which means any tobacco which, because of its appearance,
type, packaging or labeling, is suitable for use and likely to be
offered to, or purchased by, consumers as tobacco for making cigarettes.
For purposes of this definition of "cigarette," 0.09 ounces of "roll-your-own"
tobacco shall constitute one individual cigarette.
Commissioner of the Revenue of the City.
Every manufacturer, manufacturer's representative, wholesaler,
or other person, who sells, receives, stores, possesses, distributes,
or transports cigarettes for resale within or into the City.
Every package, box, can, or other container of any cigarettes,
irrespective of the material from which such container is made, and
in which retail sales of cigarettes are normally made or intended
to be made. Packs are those containers of cigarettes from which individual
cigarettes are ordinarily taken when the ultimate user consumes them.
Every person to whom a seller transfers title to any cigarette
within the City's corporate limits.
Every person who transfers title to any cigarette, or in
whose place of business title to any cigarette is transferred, within
the City's corporate limits, for any purpose other than resale.
Every act or transaction, irrespective of the method or means
employed, whereby a seller transfers title to any cigarette to any
person within the City's corporate limits.
A small heat set of paper or decalcomania to be sold by the
Director of Finance, or as the Commissioner of the Revenue authorizes,
to be affixed to every pack of cigarettes sold at retail in the City.
A.
The City levies, upon the sale of each pack or part of a pack of
cigarettes sold within City limits, a tax of $0.35 per pack, regardless
of the number of cigarettes within the pack. The tax shall be paid
and collected in the manner and at the time hereinafter prescribed,
provided that the tax payable for each cigarette or cigarette pack
sold or used within the City shall be paid but once.
B.
The tax shall not apply to free distribution of sample cigarettes
in packs containing five or fewer cigarettes.
C.
The tax this article levies shall be in addition to all other taxes
that any other ordinance or law levies.
A.
The tax this article imposes shall be evidenced by the use of a stamp,
and each dealer or retailer liable for the tax shall pay it at the
time the stamps are purchased from the Director of Finance. The stamps
shall be affixed in such a manner that their removal will require
continued application of water or steam.
B.
All unstamped cigarette packs in a retailer's possession on the effective
date of this article shall be inventoried and reported to the Commissioner
not later than July 1, 2019. The Commissioner shall provide the retailer
with a report form, and the retailer shall remit the tax for the unstamped
packs along with the completed report. Such reporting shall continue
monthly until all unstamped cigarette packs have been sold. The Commissioner
may confiscate any unstamped cigarette packs not reported or for which
the tax has not been paid.
C.
It shall be the duty of each dealer or retailer liable for the tax
to report monthly to the Commissioner separately the following information:
(1)
The quantity of stamped cigarettes each dealer sells or delivers
to a retailer;
(2)
The quantity of stamps on hand, both affixed and unaffixed, on the
last day of the month and the quantity of stamps or stamped cigarettes
received; and
(3)
Such further information as the Commissioner may require for this
article's proper administration and enforcement.
D.
The Commissioner is authorized to enter into an arrangement with
the Virginia Department of Taxation to allow a dealer or retailer
to use a dual die or stamp to evidence the payment of both the City
and the state cigarette tax.
E.
When, upon examination and audit of any invoices, records, books,
canceled checks, or memoranda relating to the purchase, sale, receipt,
storage, or possession of cigarette products taxed herein, any dealer
or retailer liable for the tax is unable to furnish the Commissioner
with evidence of sufficient tax payments and stamp purchases for cigarettes
that he sold, used, stored, received, purchased, or possessed, the
prima facie presumption shall arise that he received, sold, used,
stored, purchased, or possessed such cigarettes without the proper
tax having been paid. The Commissioner shall, from the results of
the examination and audit, assess the tax due and unpaid. This subsection
shall not apply to cigarettes destined for resale outside the City
limits.
F.
The dealer or retailer liable for the tax shall be notified by certified
mail or hand delivery of such deficiency; and the tax, penalty, and
interest assessed shall be due and payable within 10 days after notice
of the deficiency.
G.
Every dealer and retailer in the City shall keep complete records
for the current year and the three preceding calendar years of all
cigarettes that the dealer or retailer delivers or sells and shall
make all such records available for examination upon demand by the
Commissioner or other authorized person at any reasonable time. The
Commissioner is authorized to examine the records, papers, and cigarettes
in any premises where a retailer stores, sells, or offers for sale
cigarettes.
A.
For the purpose of making stamps available for use, the Director
of Finance shall sell stamps by the roll for the tax payments this
article imposes. In the sale of such stamps, the Director of Finance
shall allow a discount of $0.01 per stamp to cover the costs incurred
in affixing the stamps to cigarette packs.
B.
Stamps shall be placed upon each pack of cigarettes in a manner so
as to be readily visible to the purchaser.
C.
Every retailer shall examine each cigarette pack prior to making
it available for sale, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the
pack has the proper stamps affixed to it as this article provides.
Retailers who sell, offer for sale, store, possess, distribute,
purchase, receive, or transport cigarettes in or into the City shall,
upon the Commissioner's request, notify the Commissioner of their
dealers' names and addresses and the name, address, and Virginia Retail
Sales and Use Certificate of Registration number for each of the retailers'
separate places of business.
A.
A retailer shall display packs of cigarettes so that the stamps are
readily visible.
C.
Any vending machine located within the City containing cigarettes
upon which the stamp has not been affixed, or containing cigarettes
placed so as to not allow the stamp's visual inspection through the
vending machine's viewing area, shall be presumed to contain untaxed
cigarettes in violation of this article.
D.
Any cigarettes, vending machines, counterfeit stamps, or other property found in violation of this article shall be considered contraband goods; and the Commissioner may seize them. In addition to any tax due, the violating dealer or retailer shall be subject to the penalties prescribed in § 258-70.
E.
In lieu of seizure, the Commissioner may seal such vending machines
to prevent the cigarettes' continued illegal sale or removal. The
removal of the seal from a vending machine by any unauthorized person
shall be a violation of this article. Nothing in this article shall
prevent the vending machine's seizure at any time after it is sealed.
F.
Any cigarette vending machine shall be plainly marked with the owner's
name, address, and telephone number.
G.
Any seized and confiscated cigarettes, vending machines, or other property used in the furtherance of any illegal evasion of the tax must be redeemed by the original owner within 30 days by payment of the tax and penalties as prescribed in § 258-70. Such confiscated items may be disposed of by sale as the Commissioner deems appropriate 30 days after notice of intent to do so is provided to the person from whom the items were seized. No credit from the Commissioner's sale of cigarettes, vending machines, or other property seized shall be allowed toward the tax, penalties, or interest the violator owes.
The Director of Finance may, from time to time, provide for
the issuance and exclusive use of stamps of a new design and forbid
the use of stamps of any other design.
A.
Should any person, after acquiring from the Director of Finance the
appropriate stamps, cease to engage in a business necessitating the
use of stamps, or should any such stamps become mutilated and unfit
for use, the person shall be entitled to a refund of the face amount
of any stamps so acquired and not used, less $0.01 per stamp. To receive
the refund, the person shall present the stamps and an affidavit to
the Director of Finance showing that the person acquired the stamps
and that they have not been used, and providing the reason for requesting
a refund.
B.
In the case of stale-dated cigarettes, a refund of the stamps' face
amount, less $0.01 per stamp, shall be made upon furnishing the Commissioner
with (i) a count of pre-stamped packs that have not been sold and
have been removed from the market, and (ii) an affidavit of the manufacturer
affirming the number of packs returned.
The Commissioner is authorized to adopt policies and regulations
to administer and enforce this article's provisions. The Commissioner
is empowered to delegate any of the powers and duties this article
specifies to one or more deputies or assistants, except as the law
prohibits.
A.
Any person violating any provision of this article, or performing
any act or failing to perform any act for the purpose of evading the
payment of the cigarette tax, shall be guilty of a Class I misdemeanor.
Conviction and punishment for a violation shall not relieve a person
from any tax payment this article imposes. In addition, any person
who shall perform any act or fail to perform any act for the purpose
of evading the payment of the tax this article imposes shall pay a
penalty in the amount of 50%, and interest at the rate of 10% per
year, of any tax that is overdue and unpaid.
B.
Each day's violation of, or noncompliance with, any of this article's
provisions may constitute a separate offense.
