This chapter shall be known as the "Uniform Transient
Occupancy Tax Law of the City."
(Ord. 13 § 1, 1971)
Except where the context otherwise requires, the definitions
given in this section govern the construction of this chapter:
"Hotel"
means any structure, or any portion of any structure, which
is occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for
dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes, and includes any hotel, inn,
tourist home or house, motel, studio hotel, bachelor hotel, lodginghouse,
roominghouse, apartment house, dormitory, public or private club,
mobile home or house trailer at a fixed location, or other similar
structure or portion thereof.
"Hotel"
does not include mobile homes located inside mobile home
parks, nor does it include a mobile home when the tenant thereof is
an employee of the owner or operator of the mobile home.
means the use or possession, or the right to the use or possession,
of any room or rooms or portion thereof in any hotel for dwelling,
lodging or sleeping purposes.
means the person who is proprietor of the hotel, whether
in the capacity of owner, lessee, sublessee, mortgagee in possession,
licensee, or any other capacity. Where the operator performs his or
her functions through agent of any type or character other than an
employee, the managing agent shall also be deemed an operator for
the purposes of this chapter and shall have the same duties and liabilities
as his or her principal. Compliance with the provisions of this chapter
by either the principal or the managing agent shall, however, be considered
to be compliance by both.
means any individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, association,
social club, fraternal organization, joint stock company, corporation,
estate, trust, business trust, receiver, trustee, syndicate, or any
other group or combination acting as a unit.
means the consideration charged, whether or not received,
for the occupancy of space in a hotel valued in money, whether to
be received in money, goods, labor or otherwise, including all receipts,
cash, credits and property and services of any kind or nature, without
any deduction therefrom whatsoever.
means any person who exercises occupancy or is entitled to
occupancy by reason of concession, permit, right of access, license
or other agreement for a period of thirty consecutive calendar days
or less, counting portions of calendar days as full days. Any such
person so occupying space in a hotel shall be deemed to be a transient
until the period of thirty days has expired unless there is an agreement
in writing between the operator and the occupant providing for a longer
period of occupancy. In determining whether a person is a transient,
uninterrupted periods of time extending both prior and subsequent
to the effective date of this chapter may be considered.
(Ord. 13 § 2, 1971; Ord. 237, 1980)
For the privilege of occupancy in any hotel, each transient
is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of ten percent of
the rent charged by the operator. Such tax constitutes a debt owed
by the transient to the city, which is extinguished only by payment
to the operator or to the city. The transient shall pay the tax to
the operator of the hotel at the time the rent is paid. If the rent
is paid in installments, a proportionate share of the tax shall be
paid with each installment. The unpaid tax shall be due upon the transient's
ceasing to occupy space in the hotel. If for any reason the tax due
is not paid to the operator of the hotel, the city treasurer may require
that such tax shall be paid directly to the city treasurer.
(Ord. 13 § 3, 1971; Ord. 175 § 1, 1977; Ord. 343 § 1, 1985; Ord. 555 § 1, 1997)
Each operator shall collect the tax imposed by this chapter
to the same extent and at the same time as the rent is collected from
every transient. The amount of tax shall be separately stated from
the amount of the rent charged, and each transient shall receive a
receipt for payment from the operator. No operator of a hotel shall
advertise or state in any manner, whether directly or indirectly,
that the tax or any part thereof will be assumed or absorbed by the
operator, or that it will not be added to the rent, or that if added,
any part will be refunded except in the manner provided in this chapter.
(Ord. 13 § 4, 1971)
Within thirty days after commencing business, or within thirty
days after the effective date of this chapter, whichever is later,
the operator of any hotel renting occupancy to transients shall register
said hotel with the city treasurer and obtain from him or her a "transient
occupancy registration certificate" which shall at all times
be posted in a conspicuous place on the premises. Said certificate
shall, among other things, state the following:
A.
The
name of the operator;
B.
The
address of the hotel;
C.
The
date upon which the certificate was issued;
D.
A statement
as follows:
"This transient occupancy registration certificate signifies
that the person named on the face hereof has fulfilled the requirements
of the Uniform Transient Occupancy Tax Law by registering with the
city treasurer for the purpose of collecting from transients the transient
occupancy tax and remitting said tax to the city treasurer. This certificate
does not authorize any person to conduct any unlawful business or
to conduct any lawful business in an unlawful manner, nor to operate
a hotel without strictly complying with all local applicable laws,
including, but not limited to, those requiring a permit from any board,
commission, department or office of this city. This certificate does
not constitute a permit."
(Ord. 13 § 5, 1971)
Each operator shall, on or before the last day of the month
following the close of each calendar quarter, or at the close of any
shorter reporting period which may be established by the city treasurer,
make a return to the city treasurer, on forms provided by him or her,
of the total rents charged and received and the amount of tax collected
from transient occupancies. At the time the return is filed, the full
amount of the tax collected shall be remitted to the city treasurer.
The city treasurer may establish shorter reporting periods for any
certificate holder if he or she deems it necessary in order to ensure
collection of the tax, and he or she may require further information
in the return. Returns and payments are due immediately upon cessation
of business for any reason. All taxes collected by operators pursuant
to this chapter shall be held in trust for the account of the city
until payment thereof is made to the city treasurer.
(Ord. 13 § 6, 1971)
Any operator who fails to remit any tax imposed by this chapter
within the time required shall pay a penalty of ten percent of the
amount of the tax in addition to the amount of the tax.
(Ord. 13 § 7(a), 1971)
Any operator who fails to remit any delinquent remittance on
or before a period of thirty days following the date on which the
remittance first became delinquent shall pay a second delinquency
penalty of ten percent of the amount of the tax in addition to the
amount of the tax and the ten percent penalty first imposed.
(Ord. 13 § 7(b), 1971)
If the city treasurer determines that the nonpayment of any remittance due under this chapter is due to fraud, a penalty of twenty-five percent of the amount of the tax shall be added thereto in addition to the penalties stated in Sections 3.12.070 and 3.12.080.
(Ord. 13 § 7(c), 1971)
In addition to the penalties imposed, any operator who fails
to remit any tax imposed by this chapter shall pay interest at the
rate of one-half of one percent per month or fraction thereof on the
amount of the tax, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which
the remittance first became delinquent until paid.
(Ord. 13 § 7(d), 1971)
Every penalty imposed and such interest as accrues under the provisions of Sections 3.12.070 through 3.12.100 shall become a part of the tax herein required to be paid.
(Ord. 13 § 7(e), 1971)
If any operator fails or refuses to collect said tax and to make, within the time provided in the law, any report and remittance of said tax or any portion thereof required by this chapter, the city treasurer shall proceed in such manner as he or she may deem best to obtain facts and information on which to base his or her estimate of the tax due. As soon as the city treasurer shall procure such facts and information as he or she is able to obtain upon which to base the assessment of any tax imposed by the provisions of this chapter and payable by any operator who has failed or refused to collect the same and to make such report and remittance, he or she shall proceed to determine and assess against such operator the tax, interest and penalties provided for by this chapter. In case such determination is made, the city treasurer shall give a notice of the amount so assessed by serving it personally or by depositing it in the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the operator so assessed at his or her last known place of address. Such operator may within ten days after the serving or mailing of such notice make application in writing to the city treasurer for a hearing on the amount assessed. If application by the operator for a hearing is not made within the time prescribed, the tax, interest and penalties, if any, determined by the city treasurer shall become final and conclusive and immediately due and payable. If such application is made, the city treasurer shall give not less than five days' written notice in the manner prescribed in this section to the operator to show cause at a time and place fixed in said notice why said amount specified therein should not be fixed for such tax, interest and penalties. At such hearing, the operator may appear and offer evidence why such specified tax, interest and penalties should not be so fixed. After such hearing, the city treasurer shall determine the proper tax to be remitted and shall thereafter give written notice to the person in the manner prescribed herein of such determination and the amount of such tax, interest and penalties. The amount determined to be due shall be payable after fifteen days unless an appeal is taken as provided in Section 3.12.130.
(Ord. 13 § 8, 1971)
Any operator aggrieved by any decision of the city treasurer with respect to the amount of such tax, interest and penalties, if any, may appeal to the council by filing a notice of appeal with the city clerk within fifteen days after the serving or mailing of the determination of tax due. The council shall fix a time and place for hearing such appeal, and the city clerk shall give notice in writing to such operator at his or her last known place of address. The findings of the council shall be final and conclusive and shall be served upon the appellant in the manner prescribed in Section 3.12.120 for service of notice of hearing. Any amount found to be due shall be immediately due and payable upon the service of notice.
(Ord. 13 § 9, 1971)
It shall be the duty of every operator liable for the collection
of and payment to the city of any tax imposed by this chapter, to
keep and preserve, for a period of three years, all records as may
be necessary to determine the amount of such tax as he or she may
have been liable for the collection of and payment to the city, which
records the city treasurer shall have the right to inspect at all
reasonable times.
(Ord. 13 § 10, 1971)
A.
Whenever the amount of any tax, interest or penalty has been overpaid or paid more than once or has been erroneously or illegally collected or received by the city under this chapter, it may be refunded as provided in subsections B and C of this section provided a claim in writing therefor, stating under penalty of perjury the specific grounds upon which the claim is founded, is filed with the city within one year of the date of payment. The claim shall be on forms which comply with Chapter 1.24 of this code.
B.
An operator
may claim a refund or take as credit against taxes collected and remitted
the amount overpaid, paid more than once or erroneously or illegally
collected or received when it is established in a manner prescribed
by the city treasurer that the person from whom the tax has been collected
was not a transient; provided, however, that neither a refund nor
a credit shall be allowed unless the amount of the tax so collected
has either been refunded to the transient or credited to rent subsequently
payable by the transient to the operator.
C.
Any transient may obtain a refund of taxes overpaid or paid more than once or erroneously or illegally collected or received by the city by filing a claim in the manner provided in subsection A of this section, but only when the tax was paid by the transient directly to the city treasurer or when the transient, having paid the tax to the operator, establishes to the satisfaction of the city treasurer that the transient has been unable to obtain a refund from the operator who collected the tax.
D.
No refund
shall be paid under the provisions of this section unless the claimant
establishes his or her right thereto by written records showing entitlement
thereto.
(Ord. 13 § 11, 1971; Ord. 700 § 2, 2011)
Any tax required to be paid by any transient under the provisions
of this chapter shall be deemed a debt owed by the transient to the
city. Any such tax collected by an operator which has not been paid
to the city shall be deemed a debt owed by the operator to the city.
Any person owing money to the city under the provisions of this chapter
shall be liable to an action brought in the name of the city for the
recovery of such amount.
(Ord. 13 § 12, 1971)
Any person violating any of the provisions of this law shall be punishable as set forth in Chapter 1.12.
(Ord. 13 § 13, 1971)
