This article enacted hereunder shall be known as the "Business Privilege Tax."
[Adopted 3-14-1988 by Ord. No. 452, § 1 (Ch. 24, Part 3, of the 2005 Code of Ordinances)]
The following words and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
The Borough of Rockledge.
Includes, but shall not be limited to, all businesses, trades, occupations, professions and vocations in which there is offered any service or services to the general public or a limited number thereof, including those enterprises engaged in by hotel operators, motel operators, parking lot and garage operators, warehousemen, lessors of real and tangible personal property, physicians and surgeons, osteopaths, podiatrists, chiropractors, veterinarians, optometrists, pharmacists, lawyers, dentists, engineers, architects, chemists, certified public accountants, public accountants, funeral directors, promoters, factors, commission merchants, agents, brokers, manufacturers' representatives, advertising and public relations agencies, real estate brokers, insurance brokers and agents, cable television operators, operators of places of amusement providing either passive or active recreation, vending machine operators, barbershop operators and beauty shop operators, cleaning, pressing and dyeing establishment operators, laundry operators, shoe repair shop operators, tailors, upholsterers, electrical, plastering, bricklaying, carpentry, heat, ventilating, plumbing and painting contractors engaged in the class of heavy building or other construction of any kind or in the alteration, maintenance or repair thereof, repairers or consultants of electrical electronic and automotive machinery or equipment or other machinery and equipment and other wares and merchandise. The terms as hereinbefore defined in this section shall not include the following: employees, agencies of the government of the United States or of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or nonprofit corporations or associations organized solely and exclusively for religious, educational or charitable purposes and not conducting any regular or established business competing commercially with any other person subject to the tax herein imposed, or those persons, entities, transactions and other matters exempted by the provisions of the Local Tax Enabling Act or other applicable law.
The collector of business privilege and mercantile license taxes of the Borough of Rockledge or any other person from time to time designated by Borough Council.
Includes both cash and credit transactions made by a person for services rendered, including both services, labor and any materials entered into or becoming component parts of the services performed within the Borough.
An individual, a partnership, a limited partnership, an association, a corporation or any other legal entity which engages in a taxable activity.
The Secretary of the Borough of Rockledge.
Any act or instance of helping or benefiting another for a consideration.
The twelve-month period beginning the first day of January and ending the last day of December.
Any business that is conducted at one location for less then 60 consecutive calendar days.
A.
The registration and tax provisions of this article apply to any person engaging in any business, trade, occupation, profession or vocation in which there is offered any service or services to the general public or a limited number of the general public for a consideration, except for persons who are wholesale or retail vendors or dealers in goods or who conduct restaurants or other places where food or beverages are sold and who are thus subject to the mercantile tax.
B.
This article applies not only to businesses in existence at the beginning of the license year, but also to businesses begun during the tax year or carried on in the Borough for any part of the tax year.
A.
If the taxpayer has a place of business in the Borough and one or more places of business outside the Borough, only those receipts properly allocable to the place of business in the Borough are taxable. For this purpose, a person may be considered to have a place of business outside the Borough if services are rendered at a fixed location outside the Borough which are of such duration, size and complexity that the person would be considered doing business at such location.
B.
Generally, receipts will be considered allocable to the place of business in the Borough if any significant aspect of the transaction occurs at or arises out of the place of business. For example, if a contract is made at the place of business in the Borough, the receipts arising from that contract may be allocable to the Borough even though all or part of the contract is to be performed outside the Borough. The fact that the receipts from any transaction may be subject to tax in the jurisdiction outside the Borough does not necessarily mean that those receipts are not allocable to the Borough and subject to this tax. However, in appropriate cases, the principles set out in § 507-16 below may be applied to allocate business within and without the Borough.
In general, the gross receipts upon which the tax is imposed is the value of all cash, credits or property received by a person which is attributable to the carrying on of business in the Borough, undiminished by any costs of doing business. A receipt generally will be considered attributable to the Borough if any part of the transaction or service giving rise to the receipt takes place within the Borough. The broad reach of this general rule is limited in certain situations by the ordinance and by state and federal law, as more fully explained hereinafter.
A tax return may be filed on a cash basis or on an accrual basis, but the return must be prepared in accordance with the method of accounting regularly employed in keeping the books of the taxpayer. A person who keeps his/her books on the cash basis will report his/her gross receipts on the basis of amounts actually received during the period used as the measure of the tax. A taxpayer who keeps his/her books on the accrual basis will report the receipts from all sales made or services rendered during the period used as the measure of the tax, irrespective of the date when such moneys are collected from the customer. In either case, the taxpayer must file on a calendar-year basis beginning January 1 and ending December 31, regardless of the taxpayer's fiscal year.
A.
Refunds, credits or allowances given by a person to a customer on account of defects in services rendered or in goods, wares, and merchandise sold or returned may be deducted from the amount of the gross receipts of the person.
B.
Adjustments allowed to customers may be deducted from gross receipts if they are deducted on the face of the invoice as a medium of adjusting the price or fee for the service and if they are not reimbursed to the person by his/her supplier or some other person.
C.
Federal, state and local taxes are not included in gross receipts if they are collected from the customer and are separately stated on the evidence of charge or sale.
This article excludes from the definition of gross receipts the receipts from services performed from a place of business regularly maintained outside the Borough by the taxpayer to a place of business regularly maintained outside the Borough by the customer, provided that such performance is not made for the purpose of evading the tax. Services or deliveries to a residence located outside the Borough do not qualify for this exclusion. Also, this exclusion does not apply to factors or commission merchants, except with respect to sales of goods which they have taken title to and sold for their own account.
Under certain circumstances receipts from sales in interstate or foreign commerce may be exempt from tax in whole or in part, even though they are allocable to a place of business in the Borough under § 507-11 above. Receipts are not automatically exempt from tax merely because the sale invoices interstate or foreign commerce. The controlling principles in determining whether any such receipts are subject to tax are that there be some nexus between the business activity carried on in the Borough and the imposition of the tax and that there be a fair method of allocation of receipts to the business carried on in the Borough which will avoid an undue burden on interstate commerce. Bearing these principles in mind, the following methods of allocation will be followed by the Borough:
A.
Receipts directly payable or paid to a place of business located within the Borough shall be considered allocable to the Borough and subject to tax.
B.
If the collector determines, either upon his/her own initiative or upon application by the taxpayer, that the receipts covered in Subsection A above do not properly reflect all receipts attributable to the activity carried on in the Borough, then to the extent possible (bearing in mind the accounting system used by the taxpayer and any other information reasonably capable of being derived from the books and records of the taxpayer) a separate accounting shall be made with respect to each place of business in the Borough, and all receipts attributable to the place of business shall be considered allocable to the Borough and subject to tax.
C.
If the collector determines, either on his/her own initiative or upon application by the taxpayer, that the provisions of Subsections A and B above do not properly reflect all receipts attributable to the activity carried on in the Borough, a different method of allocation may be used, with due regard to the extent of the receipts, property and wages of the taxpayer within the Borough; the nature of the business concerned; the number of jurisdictions in which the receipts may be taxed, and such other factors as may be considered relevant.
D.
All receipts from interstate commerce, whether taxable or nontaxable under the foregoing rules, must be included on the return filed by the taxpayer, and a deduction for the nontaxable receipts shall be allowed thereon.
A person who may engage in a business with gross receipts from wholesale or retail sales of merchandise or restaurant as well as receipts from services is not required to obtain both a registration certificate under this article and a mercantile license under Article IV, Mercantile License Tax. Either a mercantile license or a business privilege registration, whichever is appropriate to the majority of the taxpayer's gross receipts, shall be obtained.
A separate certificate of registration must be obtained each year for each place of business in the Borough. The certificate must be obtained on or before the first day of each new tax year (as defined above) if the business was begun prior to that tax year. If a business is begun or a new place of business established during the tax year, the certificate must be obtained prior to commencing business. The certificate shall be valid for the location for which it was issued and the applicant only and shall not be assignable.
The certificate is issued for a tax year (as defined above) of each year. A certificate obtained at any time during the year is valid only from the date of issue until the end of the year with respect to which it is issued.
Before the issuance of a certificate, the applicant shall make payment to the collector of a registration fee for each place of business. The fee shall be $10.
All registration fees due under this article and not paid by the first day of the tax year (as defined above) shall bear interest at the rate of 1% per month or fractional part of a month from the day they are due and payable until paid. If any person shall neglect or refuse to obtain a registration certificate as herein required, an additional penalty of 10% of the registration fee shall be added by the collector and collected.
A.
The application for certificate of registration forms shall be available from the collector appointed by the Borough. Failure to obtain or receive the application form shall not excuse any person from the obligation to file and obtain the registration certificate or the business privilege tax return or payment of the applicable tax hereunder.
B.
Each application for registration shall be signed by the applicant if a natural person, and in the case of an association or a partnership, by a member or partner thereof, and in the case of a corporation, by an officer thereof.
C.
All applications for certificate of registration shall be filed with the collector at the address specified by the collector.
D.
In the case of loss, defacement, or destruction of any certificate, the person to whom the certificate was issued shall apply to the collector for a new certificate, for which a fee of $1 shall be charged.
A.
Every person engaging in a business, trade, occupation, profession or vocation in the Borough shall pay an annual business privilege tax for the year at the rate of 1 1/2 mills on his/her gross receipts; provided, however, that in no event shall the annual business privilege tax herein imposed be less than $15.
B.
All persons required to pay a business privilege tax under the provisions of this section shall be exempted from paying such tax upon the same subject matter of taxation upon which they are required to pay a mercantile license tax under that section applicable to the latter tax.
A return must be filed and an estimated tax must be paid for each tax year at the time set forth in § 507-25 below. The estimated tax is computed on the estimated gross receipts for the tax year which is determined as described in § 507-26 below. At the end of each tax year the actual gross receipts for the year must be determined and an appropriate adjustment made in the tax due. This adjustment will be shown on the final return for the tax year. The final return for the prior tax year will be combined with, and thus filed at the same time as, the estimated return for the current year and a single payment made in an amount equal to the estimated tax for the current year, increased or decreased by the adjustment for actual gross receipts for the prior year.
Every person subject to this article shall file a return as follows:
A.
If the person has commenced business whether for a full year or less than one full year prior to January 1 of a tax year, the return shall be filed on or before May 1 following the tax year.
B.
If the person commences business after the start of any tax year (as defined above), the return shall be filed within 40 days from the date of commencing business.
C.
If the person is engaged in a business which is temporary, seasonal or itinerant in its nature, the return shall be filed within seven days of the date of the completion of such business.
D.
If the person discontinues, terminates or otherwise ceases business activity at the registered location, the return shall be filed within 30 days of such cessation of business activity.
The estimated gross receipts for any tax year shall be determined as follows:
A.
If the taxpayer has been engaged in business in the Borough for a full year prior to January 1 of a tax year, the actual gross receipts for that prior year shall be the estimated gross receipts for the tax year.
B.
If the taxpayer has been engaged in business in the Borough prior to January 1 of the tax year but for less than one full year, the estimated gross receipts for any tax year shall be the average monthly gross receipts for the prior year multiplied by 12.
C.
If the taxpayer commences business in the Borough during the tax year, the estimated gross receipts shall be determined by multiplying the gross receipts for the first month of business by the number of months remaining in the tax year.
D.
In the case of a temporary, seasonal or itinerant business for which a return is filed as provided in § 507-25 above, no estimate is computed. Instead, the tax is imposed on the actual gross receipts during the period covered by the return.
E.
Any person who engages in business with gross receipts from wholesale or retail sales of merchandise or from a restaurant and from service, who registers under this article, as opposed to Article IV, Mercantile License Tax, shall combine and report gross receipts in a single return, but at the rates applicable, respectively, to gross receipts under the business privilege tax or mercantile license tax.
A.
At the time of filing the tax return on May 1 of any tax year, except as hereinbefore provided, the person shall pay in a single payment an amount equal to the estimated tax for the current tax year and any balance due for actual gross receipts for the prior tax year at the rates applicable under the business privilege tax.
B.
Any person with a decrease in actual gross receipts from that estimated on the prior year's return shall be entitled to a credit on the estimated tax for the current year in an amount equal to the overpayment of tax for the prior year.
C.
To the extent that a person, as defined in this article, is located in the Borough and has paid business privilege taxes to another taxing jurisdiction for a place of business outside the Borough under those conditions referred to in § 507-11, for any taxable year commencing with 1987, in good faith and not for purposes of evading this taxing ordinance, for which said person has also paid taxes to the Borough of Rockledge, the Borough will give a tax credit to said person up to the dollar amount of taxes represented, based upon the taxing rate in existence in Rockledge for the tax year in which paid. Sufficient proof and documentation should be submitted with the filing of the return to enable the collector to make a determination as to whether the request for credit is proper on a case-by-case basis.
A.
It shall be the duty of the collector to collect and receive all fees, taxes, interest, files and penalties imposed by this article and to maintain a record of all payments received, the date thereof and to issue receipts therefor.
B.
The collector shall pay all fees, taxes, interest, files and penalties collected, received or recovered under the provisions of this article into the treasury of the Borough for the use and benefit of the Borough.
The collector may request such books and accounting records as will enable him/her to determine the accuracy of the taxpayer's return. The taxpayer claiming exemptions or exclusions for any portion of his/her gross receipts must maintain complete records of such items; otherwise such claims will be disallowed.
The collector is authorized to examine not only the books, papers and records of any taxpayer or supposed taxpayer in order to verify the accuracy of any return made, or if no return was made, to ascertain whether a tax should be imposed and, if so, the amount of such tax. He/she is further authorized to examine any person connected with any business concerning any gross receipts of the business which were or should have been returned for taxation, and for this purpose may compel the production of books, papers, records and the attendance of all persons before him/her, whether as parties or witnesses, whom he/she believes to have knowledge of such business or gross receipts.
Suits for recovery of taxes may be brought within the applicable statute of limitations in Pennsylvania, commencing from the date of assessment or date due, whichever is later, by the collector or Borough Solicitor as other debts due the Borough are by law recoverable.
If for any reason the tax is not paid when due, interest at the rate of 1% of the amount of unpaid tax for each month or fraction thereof during which the tax remains unpaid shall be added to the tax. A penalty in the amount of 10% of the tax due shall be added if the taxpayer has neglected or refused to file a return or make any payment.
A.
Administrative or executive offices. Receipts of a taxpayer whose only office in the Borough is an administrative or executive office may or may not be taxable, depending on the activity performed in the office. The general rule is that receipts for services will not be taxable in the Borough if no part of the service is performed in the Borough. If the activity at such an office relates only to internal bookkeeping functions of the taxpayer, then those activities are not part of the service which is being rendered to customers. However, administrative matters which do relate to the service rendered, e.g., processing of orders, arranging shipments, making telephone calls to customers or clients, or overseeing or controlling employees engaged in performing such services are generally part of the service for which payment is received. Accordingly, if any of these kinds of services are performed at the place of business in the Borough, then the entire receipt for that service is a taxable receipt unless an allocation pursuant to §§ 507-26 and 507-27 is appropriate. For rules with respect to the sale of goods, see the regulations relating to the mercantile license tax.
B.
Leased departments.
(1)
Return by lessor. Where a person leases a department of his/her business to another, such person shall include in his/her return all commissions charged to the lessee for rent, services rendered, property furnished or supplies, etc. A schedule must be attached to the return containing the name of the lessee and a description of the department operated. Should a change occur in the ownership or status of any leased department, the lessor shall notify the collector of such change.
(2)
Return by lessee. Every lessee shall file his/her own return, setting forth his/her entire gross receipts, without deducting any expense or commissions charged to him/her by the lessor.
C.
Persons engaged in professions or vocations or in rendering personal services.
(1)
General. A person who is engaged in a profession or vocation or in rendering personal services in the Borough in any capacity, except as an employee of another, is subject to tax under this article. All compensation, however characterized, received in such capacity must be included in the tax base.
(2)
Attorneys. An attorney may exclude that portion of the receipts from legal services which are distributed directly to or on behalf of a client, such as a distribution of a sum of money recovered in a lawsuit, the sale of real estate, or a collection matter. An attorney may exclude any fee or portion of a fee paid to another attorney where a matter has been forwarded either from or to the first attorney to or by the second attorney, except where either is an employee of the other (see generally § 507-30).
(3)
Accountants. An accountant may exclude services rendered to clients outside of the Borough only if all activity connected with the rendering of such services, including the audit, summary and completion of the financial statement, takes place at the client's business situs outside the Borough.
(4)
Physicians and surgeons.
(a)
A physician with offices in the Borough must include in his/her gross receipts all revenues derived from such offices, i.e., place of business.
(b)
A physician with offices located outside the Borough may exclude from gross receipts revenues derived from such offices, i.e., place of business.
(c)
A physician with hospital affiliations within the Borough must include in his/her gross receipts all revenue derived or generated by his/her connection with such hospitals.
(d)
A physician with hospital affiliations outside the Borough may deduct from gross receipts all revenues derived or generated by his/her connection with such hospitals.
D.
Principal and agent.
(1)
General. Receipts from sales made or services rendered by an agent for the account of his/her principal are to be reported by the principal. It is immaterial in such cases whether the customer or client remits directly to the principal or to the agent for transmittal to the principal. The agent is required to report as gross receipts only the commissions withheld by him/her as compensation for his/her services before remitting to this principal and any commission paid to him/her after remitting to his/her principal. No deduction from gross receipts may be taken by the principal for commission paid to or withheld by the agent.
(2)
A manufacturer's representative is taxable on his/her gross commissions unless his/her relationship to his/her principal is that of employer and employee. This relationship of employer and employee exists if the principal pays social security and unemployment compensation taxes on behalf on the person claiming exemption and if, in the event of an accident in the course of employment, the manufacturer's representative might become entitled to workers' compensation (see also § 507-25).
(3)
Undisclosed principal. A person selling property, including real property, or rendering services, for an unknown or undisclosed principal is subject to tax as a principal unless there is disclosed in the agent's return the identity of the principal and the amount of the sale made on his/her behalf.
(4)
Conditions as to recognition of agency. A person will be regarded as acting as agent or broker in promoting or soliciting sales or rendering services for the account of a principal when it appears:
(a)
The contract of agreement between such persons clearly establishes the relationship of principal and agent.
(b)
The books and records of the agent or broker show the name of the actual owner of the property on whose behalf the sale is made.
(c)
The books and records of the agent or broker show the amount of gross sales or service charges and the amount of commission due thereon.
(5)
Collection by agent. Money or property received by a taxpayer as agent for transmittal to a third party is not to be reported by such taxpayer as gross receipts, but any commission received by him/her for his/her services as agent must be included in gross receipts.
(6)
This section shall apply to advertising agencies, public relations, and any other service business which meets the agency criteria set forth herein.
E.
Insurance agents, brokers and underwriters.
(1)
General agents. General agents for insurance companies are required to report as gross receipts the entire commissions received as compensation for their own efforts on policies sold by them directly and the overriding commissions received by them upon business produced by brokers or subagents.
(2)
Brokers or subagents. Brokers or subagents are required to report as gross receipts the commissions received as compensation for their services.
(3)
Offices outside Borough. Where a general agent or an insurance broker maintains a branch office outside the Borough, the commissions attributable to such branch office may be excluded from gross receipts. Commissions will be deemed attributable to the Borough office, and hence subject to inclusion in the measure of the tax, if they result from the efforts of brokers, subagents or employees who work in, or from, or are attached to the Borough office.
(4)
Employee of single company. An employee of a single company is not subject to the business privilege tax on his/her earnings from that company but must file a return showing any additional gross commissions he/she received for services rendered on behalf of other companies. Factors indicating employee relationship are as follows:
(a)
The agent devotes his/her entire time to a particular company except for writing an occasional policy with another company because his/her prime company does not carry the requested coverage or has rejected such coverage.
(b)
The agent is considered to be an employee by his/her prime company. He receives pension benefits, makes social security payments through them, is subject to all fringe benefits, and is otherwise treated as an employee of the company.
(c)
The agent does not employ solicitors, subagents, or other than clerical help, to whom he/she pays salaries, commissions or other compensation.
(d)
The agent is housed by his/her prime company.
(e)
The agent is not a general agent of his/her prime company.
F.
Theaters and motion picture houses. Persons operating theaters or motion picture houses and other places of amusement where admission is charged in the Borough, whether owner or lessee, are subject to the business privilege tax on the gross receipts from house or film rental and from commissions received on vending machine sales, public telephone booths and sources of revenue other than sale of tickets of admission (which are exempt from tax by state law) or the sale of goods, wares and merchandise subject to mercantile license tax.
G.
Persons erecting buildings or otherwise altering, repairing or improving real property.
(1)
General. A contractor or subcontractor, resident or nonresident, engaged in the business of erecting buildings or otherwise altering, repairing or improving real property or other major construction work is required to report as gross receipts all receipts derived from the performance of such contract. The amount of receipts to be included in the tax base shall be the full contract price, that is the total amount received or receivable by way of a fixed or determinable amount under the terms of the contract. The contract price will be considered to include all charges made by a contractor, or subcontractor, for materials, labor, supervision, overhead costs and profit. In the case of the general contractor, prime contractor or subcontractor employing lower-tier subcontractors, no deduction may be made with respect to amounts paid to subcontractors and material suppliers, unless it can be shown that the subcontractor has paid the business privilege tax to the Borough on the same gross receipts stemming from the same contract.
(2)
Cost-plus contracts. A general contractor performing contracts on the basis of a "cost-plus-a-fixed-fee" or "cost-plus-a-percentage" is required to report as gross receipts the full contract price as explained above, unless he/she has no connection whatsoever with the purchase of materials and/or the hiring of labor. In cases where the owner of the property buys the materials and hires all labor in his/her own name and pays the general contractor a fixed fee or a percentage of the total cost to supervise and direct the construction project, the general contractor will be required to report only the gross amount of the fee or percentage received. Where the owner authorizes the general contractor to make for him/her such purchases of tangible personal property, or hire such labor or engage such subcontractors as are necessary for the performance of the contract and pledges his/her credit and is liable in the first instance to the material suppliers, laborers or subcontractors, as distinguished from merely guaranteeing payment of them or undertaking to reimburse the general contractor for the cost of such materials, services or subcontracts; and agrees to make payment directly to the material suppliers, laborers and subcontractors, such sales or services will be regarded as made directly to the owner, and the general contractor will not be required to include such items in his/her gross receipts.
(3)
Contractors or subcontractors permanently or temporarily doing business in the Borough shall register and file a tax return (general contractors are required to withhold final payment to subcontractors, temporarily doing business in the Borough, until proof of payment of the tax is furnished to them by such contractors).
(4)
Contractors or subcontractors with an office in the Borough, who are engaged in the performance of building, construction or engineering contracts at a point outside the territorial limits of the Borough, may exclude from the measure of the tax the gross receipts derived therefrom, provided that a bona fide field office was maintained on the premises of the project during the performance of the contract wherein all control over such project was exercised to the extent that it constituted the doing of local business at the situs of the job. Receipts for services performed outside the Borough may also be excluded if it can be shown that no part of the service was performed in the Borough in accordance with §§ 507-26 and 507-28 of this article.
H.
Contractors who repair, alter and improve tangible personal property. Persons engaged in business in the Borough as contractors who repair, alter and improve tangible personal property for the account of others are subject to tax under the provisions of this article. When contractors perform labor or services on articles of tangible personal property furnished by the other party to the contract, such contractors are required to report only the amount due them for labor or services rendered.
I.
Real estate brokers.
(1)
Real estate brokers and agents are required to report as taxable receipts the commissions and fees received for the services rendered as agent in promoting the purchase and sale, the rental of the lease and/or management of real property for others.
(2)
A real estate broker or agent may exclude from his/her tax base any commissions paid by him/her to another broker on account of a contract or purchase or sale initiated, executed or cleared in conjunction with the broker to whom the commission or part of the commission is paid.
(3)
If a real estate broker takes title to real property in his/her own or a straw name and sells the property, he/she is required to include the gross selling price of the property as taxable receipts, reduced by the purchase price of the real property. Closing, transfer and any other expenses or purchase cost may not be deducted.
(4)
Multilist dealers or brokers, resident or nonresident, are subject to the tax on commissions or sales on real property located in the Borough.
(5)
Listing fees received by dealers, brokers or agents in the Borough are taxable gross receipts, even if the sale is made by an office outside the Borough.
J.
Buildings, hotels, apartment houses, boardinghouses, nursing homes, etc.
(1)
Persons operating hotels, apartment houses, boardinghouses, nursing homes, rooming houses and all other such establishments are taxable on receipts from renting of rooms, furnishing of meals and any other services rendered which are not subject to tax under this article.
(2)
Any person carrying on the business of renting buildings, offices, space, stores, dwelling houses, etc., shall include gross rentals received in the tax base. No deductions may be made for depreciation, cost of maintenance, repairs, etc.
(a)
Persons who have obtained real property with no affirmative action on their part, that is, fortuitously through inheritance, gift, reverter or other legal processes, and who furnish only those elementary services and maintenance which are required by law, are not subject to the tax unless the property was received from a person who engaged in the business of renting the property and that business is continued by the recipient.
(b)
Business corporations which hold rental property as a source of income in addition to their regular business, which may or may not be real estate, are subject to the tax, whether or not services are rendered.
(c)
Persons, corporations or partnerships holding rental property in the Borough, who employ rental agents or other such assistance in administering such property, are doing business within the meaning of this article and are subject to the tax, whether or not they provide services.
(d)
Agencies or entities which manage and/or operate cooperatives and/or condominiums must pay the tax based on all receipts received for maintenance, cleaning, and other service provided, including insurance. Receipts received from owner-tenants for taxes, interest and principal payments may be excluded from the taxable gross receipts.
K.
Receipts from securities transactions. For the purpose of determining the gross receipts from the sale of stocks, bonds and/or other securities for a person engaged in a financial business, the cost thereof shall be deducted from the amount realized on the sale. Such cost shall consist of the purchase price of the property plus any brokerage paid on acquisition. The amount realized on the sale shall consist of the gross receipts therefrom without deducting stamp or transfer taxes or any brokerage paid.
L.
Social and recreational clubs.
(1)
Under state law the Borough may not tax "membership in or membership dues, fees, or assessments of charitable, religious, beneficial or nonprofit organizations, including but not limited to sportsmen's, recreational, golf and tennis clubs, Girl and Boy Scout troops and councils." Accordingly, receipts from such sources are not subject to either the business privilege tax or the mercantile license tax.
(2)
Many such organizations, however, sell food, beverages and recreational equipment to, or perform noncharitable services (such as catering services) for members as a regular part of their activities. Although such items may be exempt from federal income tax, they are not exempt from the Borough taxes. Accordingly, any such organization which does offer its members such goods or services must register under one or the other ordinance and pay the tax as appropriate. (This rule does not apply to religious, charitable or educational organizations which are entirely exempt from tax.)
M.
Public official. Persons who act as agents or officials of the United States, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any political subdivision thereof are not subject to this article with respect to their activities as such agents or officials. For this purpose, notaries public are considered agents of the commonwealth.
N.
Public utilities. The Borough may not tax the gross receipts of a public utility subject to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission which are derived from supplying services at rates specified in tariffs authorized or approved by the PUC. Receipts derived from advertising and rentals or charges levied for services not subject to PUC regulation are subject to tax.
O.
Government contracts. Receipts from the performance of contracts entered into with the Borough of Rockledge or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or the United States of America, or any subdivision of such governments, are to be included in the measure of the tax.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person who fails, refuses or neglects to comply with the provisions of this article may be punishable, upon conviction before a Magisterial District Judge, by a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs of prosecution and, in default of payment of fine and costs, imprisonment not exceeding 30 days. Each day that this article has not been complied with shall constitute a separate violation. Examples of violations which may result in such penalty are:
A.
Failing or refusing to obtain a certificate of registration.
B.
Making any false or untrue statement on a return.
C.
Failing or refusing to appear before the collector in person with his/her books, records or accounts for examination when required under the provisions of this article to do so, or to permit inspection of the books, records or accounts of any business in the custody or control of the person when the right to make such inspection by the collector is requested.
D.
Failing or refusing to file a return required by the business privilege tax provisions of this article.
E.
Failing or refusing to pay business privilege tax or estimated business privilege tax required by the business privilege tax provisions of this article.
Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to empower the Borough to levy and collect the taxes hereby imposed on any person, or any business, or any portion of any business not within the taxing power of the Borough under the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The provisions of this article are severable and if any of its provisions or exemptions shall be held to be illegal, invalid or unconstitutional, or invalid or unconstitutional as to any part of the period designated herein as the tax year, the decisions of any Court shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions of this article or affect or impair its application upon any other part of the said tax year, and the requirements as to the tax shall operate as of the effective date of this article and the computation of tax and payment thereof shall be applied and adjusted accordingly.
It is the intent of the Borough Council that any Section now in effect which imposes a special license fee on specific types or kinds of business shall be and remain in full force and effect.
The collector is required to give bond to the Borough of Rockledge in an amount of $25,000 with surety provided by any corporate surety authorized to do business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Borough Council may provide for the payment of the premium on any such bond by the Borough.