As used in this article, unless the context clearly indicates
a different meaning, the following words shall have the meanings ascribed
them in this section.
CUSTOMER
Any person paying consideration to an operator for the disposal
of disposable material.
GROSS RECEIPTS
Includes the total of the landfill receipts received by an
operator during a taxable period.
INSIDE CUSTOMER
A customer who transports his disposable material to the
sanitary landfill site.
LANDFILL RECEIPTS
Includes:
A.
The total consideration paid by an inside customer; and
B.
The portion of the consideration paid by an outside customer
which is allocated to landfill operations as is hereinafter set forth.
OPERATOR
Any person operating a sanitary landfill.
OUTSIDE CUSTOMER
A customer for whom the operator performs substantial additional
services, such as collection or transportation of disposable material,
off the premises of the sanitary landfill.
PERSON
Any natural person, partnership, unincorporated association,
or corporation.
SANITARY LANDFILL
Any place where disposable material is dumped, stored, treated,
buried or otherwise disposed of.
STANDARD UNIT RATES
The standard rates paid by paying inside customers per truckload,
ton, yard, or other measures, during the taxable period. Quantity
discounts actually given to inside customers during the taxable period
may be considered in determining the standard unit rate to be applied
to an outside customer when the quantity of disposable material handled
for the outside customer equals or exceeds the quantity for which
an inside customer has received the discount.
A tax for general revenue purposes is hereby levied upon operators
for the privilege of engaging in the sanitary landfill business within
the Township of Reserve at the rate of 5% of the gross receipts from
such business, from the effective date of this article during the
year 1984, and thereafter from year to year on a calendar year basis.
No person shall engage in such business without complying with all
of the provisions of this article and paying the tax hereby levied.
In calculating the gross receipts from the sanitary landfill
business, the operator shall include the total consideration received
from the inside customer and shall include such portion of the consideration
received from outside customers as shall be allocated to landfill
receipts pursuant to the following section.
Where a landfill operator performs substantial off the premises
services, such as collection or transportation of disposable material
for a customer, an allocation of the total consideration paid by the
customer shall be made so as to impose the tax levied by this article
on the on-site operations as follows:
A. Any operator who serves inside customers and outside customers may
apply his standard unit rates to the quantity of material handled
for outside customers and allocate that sum to the landfill receipts
for such outside customers.
B. Any operator who does not serve inside customers may apply the average
standard unit rates charged by the other operators in the Township
to the quantity of material he handles for outside customers and allocate
that sum to his landfill receipts for such outside customers.
C. If the applicable formula set forth in Subsection
A or
B does not fairly allocate the total receipts between an operator's landfill operation and his other services, such operator shall present satisfactory evidence thereof to the Township Treasurer. If the Treasurer is satisfied by such evidence, he shall then establish a formula which does fairly allocate such receipts, but, in such event, the Treasurer must notify all other operators in Reserve Township, and such other operators shall have the option of having their receipts form outside customers allocated in the same manner. The new formula shall be effective for the operator who requested its establishment as of the date of his request, and shall be effective as of the same date for all other operators who notify the Treasurer in writing of their election to have their receipts allocated thereby within 30 days of receipt of notice from the Treasurer. If an operator elects at some later time to have his receipts allocated according to the new formula, his election shall be effective as of the date the Treasurer receives his election in writing.
Each operator shall maintain, separately with respect to each
sanitary landfill, complete and accurate records of all transactions,
gross receipts, contracts, and landfill receipts. Each operator shall
allow the Treasurer and his designated employees and agents access
to all such records and evidence at all reasonable times and shall
provide verification of same, as the Treasurer may require. The Treasurer
and agents designated by him are hereby authorized to examine the
books, papers and records of each operator in order to verify the
accuracy of any return made, or if no return has been made, to ascertain
the tax due.
Any information gained by the Treasurer, his agents, or any
other official or agent of the Township pursuant to the administration
of this article shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed except
for official purposes or in accordance with proper judicial order
or for purposes expressly authorized by this article. The Treasurer
and his agents shall have the duty to disclose the average standard
unit rates, on request, to any operator having a proper use of them
and any change in formula allowed by the Treasurer to any operator
shall be disclosed to all operators.
The Treasurer is hereby authorized to accept payment under protest
of any taxes claimed by the Township in any case where the taxpayer
disputes the validity or amount of the Township's claim to tax. If
it is thereafter judicially determined that the Township has been
overpaid, the amount of overpayment shall be refunded to the taxpayer.
The Treasurer shall collect, by suit or otherwise, all taxes,
interest, costs, fines and penalties due under this article and unpaid.
If, for any reason, any tax is not paid when due, interest at the
rate of 6% per year on the amount of unpaid tax and an additional
penalty of 1/2% of 1% per month shall be added to the tax and collected.
The taxpayer shall also be liable for all costs of collection.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
This article shall be enforced by a criminal action in the same
manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the
Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure. Any person, partnership,
corporation or other entity who or which violates or permits a violation
of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary
proceeding, pay a fine of not more than $1,000, plus the costs of
prosecution, and in default of the payment of the fine and costs of
prosecution, shall be imprisoned for a period not exceeding 90 days.
If a final decision of a court of competent jurisdiction holds
any provision of this article or the application of any provision
to any person or circumstance to be illegal or unconstitutional, the
other provisions of this article and the application to other persons
and circumstances shall remain in full force and effect. It is hereby
declared to be the intent of the Township Commissioners of Reserve
Township that this article would have been adopted if such unconstitutional,
illegal or invalid provision had not been included herein.
This article shall become effective in 30 days.