[Adopted 1-24-1996 (Sec.
20304 of the 1996 Code)]
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. III)]
To impose a tax on the gross income or gross operating income
of corporations and persons furnishing utility services in the Village
of Dryden, as authorized by § 5-530 of the Village Law of
the State of New York.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. III)]
Pursuant to the authority granted by § 5-530 of the
Village Law of the State of New York, a tax equal to 1% of its gross
income from and after the first day of June, 1971, is hereby imposed
upon every utility doing business in the Village of Dryden, New York,
which is subject to the supervision of the state department of public
service, which has a gross income for 12 months ending May 31 in excess
of $500, except motor carriers of brokers subject to such supervision
under article three-b of the public service law,[1] and a tax equal to 1% of its gross operating income from
and after the first day of June, 1971, is hereby imposed upon every
other utility doing business in the Village of Dryden, New York, which
has a gross operating income for the 12 months ending May 31 in excess
of $500, which taxes shall have application only within the territorial
limits of the Village of Dryden, New York and shall be in addition
to any and all other taxes and fees imposed by any other provision
of law. Such taxes shall not be imposed on any transaction originating
or consummated outside of the territorial limits of the Village of
Dryden, New York, notwithstanding that some act be necessarily performed
with respect to such transaction within such limits.
[1]
Editor's Note: Article 3-B of the Public Service Law was repealed
by c. 267 of the Laws of 1970, effective March 1, 1971. Section 240
the Transportation Law provides for the transfer of functions to the
Department of Transportation; see now Transportation Law Art. 8, § 170
et seq.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. III)]
Words and phrases used in this article, unless otherwise noted,
shall have the same meanings as ascribed to them in § 186-a
of the Tax Law.
Every utility subject to tax under this article shall keep such
records of its business and in such form as the Village Treasurer
may require, or as the Village Board may require, and such records
shall be preserved for a period of three years, except that the Village
Treasurer or the Village Board may consent to their destruction within
that period or may require that they be kept longer.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. III)]
Every utility subject to tax hereunder shall file, on or before
March 15 for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2016, and on
or before April 15 for each year for taxable years beginning on or
after January 1, 2016, a return, and in the case of the first such
return, for all preceding calendar months during which the tax imposed
hereby was effective. Every return shall state the gross income or
gross operating income for the period covered thereby. Returns shall
be filed with the Village Treasurer on a form to be furnished by him/her
for such purpose and shall contain such other data, information or
matter as he/she may require to be included therein. The Village Treasurer,
in order to ensure payment of the tax imposed, may require at any
time a further or supplemental return, which shall contain any data
that may be specified by him/her, and he/she may require any utility
doing business in the Village of Dryden, New York, to file an annual
return, which shall contain any data specified by him/her, regardless
of whether the utility is subject to tax under this article. Every
return shall have annexed thereto an affidavit of the head of the
utility making the same, or of the owner or of a copartner thereof,
or of a principal officer of the corporation, if such business is
conducted by a corporation, to the effect that the statements contained
therein are true.
At the time of filing a return as required by this article,
each utility shall pay to the Village of Dryden the tax imposed by
this article for the period covered by such return. Such tax shall
be due and payable at the time of filing the return, or, if a return
is not filed when due, on the last day on which the return is required
to be filed.
A.
In case any return filed pursuant to this article shall be insufficient
or unsatisfactory to the Village Treasurer, and if a corrected or
sufficient return is not filed within 20 days after the same is required
by notice from him/her, or if no return is made for any period, the
Village Treasurer shall determine the amount of tax due from such
information as he/she is able to obtain, and if necessary, may estimate
the tax on the basis of external indices or otherwise. He/she shall
give notice of such determination to the person liable for such tax.
Such determination shall finally and irrevocably fix such tax, unless
the person against whom it is assessed shall, within 30 days after
the giving of notice of such determination, apply to the Village Treasurer
for a hearing, or unless the Village Treasurer, of his/her own motion,
shall reduce the same. After such hearing, the Village Treasurer shall
give notice of his/her decision to the person liable for the tax.
Such decision may be reviewed by a proceeding under Article 78 of
the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State of New York if application
therefor is made within 90 days after the giving of notice of such
decision. An order to review such decision shall not be granted unless
the amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with interest and penalties
thereof, if any, shall be first deposited with the Village Treasurer
and an undertaking filed with him/her, in such amount and with such
sureties as a justice of the Supreme Court shall approve, to the effect
that, if such proceeding be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the applicant
will pay all costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution
of such proceeding, or at the option of the application, such undertaking
may be in a sum sufficient to cover the tax, interest, penalties,
costs and charges aforesaid, in which event the applicant shall not
be required to pay such tax, interest and penalties as a condition
precedent to the granting of such order.
B.
Except in the case of 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 required by this article the tax may be assessed at any time.
Any notice authorized or required under the provisions of this
article may be given by mailing the same to the persons for whom it
is intended, in a postpaid envelope, addressed to such person at the
address given by him/her in the last return filed by him/her under
this article, or, if no return has been filed, 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 to run from
the date of such mailing of such notice.
Any person failing to file a return or corrected return, or
to pay any tax or any portion thereof, within the time required by
this article shall be subject to a penalty of 5% of the amount of
tax due, plus 1% of such tax for each month of delay or fraction thereof,
excepting the first month, after such return was required to be filed
or such tax became due, but the Village Treasurer, for cause shown,
may extend the time for filing any return, and if satisfied that the
delay was excusable, may remit all or any portion of the penalty fixed
by the foregoing provisions of this section.
If, within one year from the payment of any tax or penalty,
the payer thereof shall make application for a refund thereof and
the Village Treasurer or the court shall determine that such tax or
penalty or any portion thereof was erroneously or illegally collected,
the Village Treasurer shall refund the amount so determined. For like
cause and within the same period, a refund may be so made on the initiative
of the Village Treasurer. However, no refund shall be made of a tax
or penalty paid pursuant to a determination of the Village Treasurer
as hereinbefore provided unless the Village Treasurer, after a hearing
as hereinbefore provided, or of his/her own motion, shall have reduced
the tax or penalty or if it shall have been established in a proceeding
under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State
of New York that such determination was erroneous or illegal. All
refunds shall be made out of moneys collected under this article.
An application for a refund, made as hereinbefore provided, shall
be deemed an application for the revision of any tax or penalty complained
of and the Village Treasurer may received additional evidence with
respect thereto. After making his/her determination, the Village Treasurer
shall give notice thereof to the person interested, and he/she shall
be entitled to an order to review such determination under said Article
78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State of New York, subject
to the provision hereinbefore contained relating to the granting of
such an order.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. III)]
The tax imposed by this article shall be charged against and
be paid by the utility and may be added as a separate item to bills
rendered by the utility to customers or others, but shall constitute
a part of the operating costs of such utility.
Whenever any person shall fail to pay any tax or penalty imposed
by this article, the Village Attorney shall, upon request of the Village
Board, bring an action to enforce payment of the same. The proceeds
of any judgment obtained in any such action shall be paid to the Village
Treasurer. Each such tax and penalty shall be a lien upon the property
of the person liable to pay the same, in the same manner and to the
same extent that the tax and penalty imposed by § 186-a
of the Tax Law is made a lien.
In the administration of this article, the Village Treasurer
shall have power to make such reasonable rules and regulations, not
inconsistent with law, as may be necessary for the exercise of his/her
powers and the performance of his/her duties, and to prescribe the
form of blanks, reports and other records relating to the administration
and enforcement of the tax, to take testimony and proofs, under oath,
with a reference to any matter within the line of his/her official
duty under this article, and to subpoena and require the attendance
of witnesses and the production of books, papers and documents.
A.
Except in accordance with proper judicial order or as otherwise provided
by law, it shall be unlawful for the Village Treasurer, or any agent,
clerk or employee of the Village of Dryden, New York, to divulge or
make known in any manner the amount of gross income or gross operating
income, or any particulars set forth or disclosed in any return under
this article. The officer 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 under the provisions
of this article, or on behalf of the State Tax Commission in an action
or proceeding under the provisions of the Tax Law of the State of
New York, 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 person or his/her duly authorized
representative of a copy of any return filed by him/her; nor to prohibit
the publication of statistics so classified as to prevent the identification
of particular returns and the items thereof; or the publication of
delinquent lists showing the names of persons who have failed to pay
their taxes at the time and in the manner provided for by this article,
together with any relevant information which, in the opinion of the
Village Treasurer, may assist in the collection of such delinquent
taxes; or the inspection by the Village Attorney, or other legal representative
of the Village of Dryden, New York, of the return of any person who
shall bring action to set aside or review the tax based thereon, or
against whom an action has been instituted in accordance with the
provisions of this article.
B.
Failure to comply with any of the provisions of this article shall
be deemed a violation, and the violator shall be punished as set forth
on the Village of Dryden Fine Schedule, which Fine Schedule may be
established by resolution and thereafter amended from time to time
by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees.
[Amended 4-10-2014 by L.L. No. 3-2014]
C.
Notwithstanding any provisions of this article, the Village Treasurer
may exchange with the chief fiscal officer of any city or any other
village in the State of New York information contained in returns
filed under this article, provided such city or other village grants
similar privileges to the Village of Dryden, New York, and provided
such information is to be used for tax purposed only, and Village
Treasurer shall, upon request, furnish the state tax commission with
any information contained in such returns.
All taxes and penalties received by the Village Treasurer under
this article shall be paid into the treasury of the Village of Dryden,
New York, and shall be credited to and deposited in the general fund
of this Village.
