[Adopted 2-5-1974 as Art. II of the 1974 Code]
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 June 1, 1950, is hereby imposed upon every utility doing business in the Village of Ossining 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 or brokers subject to such supervision under § 240 et seq. of the Transportation Law, and a tax equal to 1% of its gross operating income is hereby imposed for the same period upon every other utility doing business in the Village of Ossining which has a gross operating income for 12 months ending May 31 in excess of $500, which taxes shall have application only within the territorial limits of the Village of Ossining, and shall be in addition to any and all other taxes and fees imposed by any other provision of law for the same period. Such taxes shall not be imposed on any transaction originating or consummated outside of the territorial limits of the Village of Ossining, notwithstanding that some act be necessarily performed with respect to such transaction within such limits.
[Amended 8-3-1999 by L.L. No. 2-1999]
Words and phrases in this article shall be the same as those words and phrases defined in § 186-A, Subdivisions 2, 2-a and 2-b, 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 Treasurer may require, and such records shall be preserved for a period of three years, except that the Treasurer may consent to their destruction within that period or may require that they be kept longer.
[Amended 8-3-1999 by L.L. No. 2-1999]
The filing of quarterly returns shall conform to provisions of § 186-a, Subdivision 4, of the Tax Law.
At the time of filing a return as required by this article, each utility shall pay to the Treasurer 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.
In case any return filed pursuant to this article shall be insufficient or unsatisfactory to the Treasurer, and if a corrected or sufficient return is not filed within 20 days after the same is required by notice from the Treasurer, or if no return is made for any period, the Treasurer shall determine the amount of tax due from such information as he or she is able to obtain, and, if necessary, may estimate the tax on the basis of external indices or otherwise. The Treasurer 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 Treasurer for a hearing or unless the Treasurer of his or her own motion shall reduce the same. After such hearing, the Treasurer shall give notice of his or her decision to the person liable for the tax. The decision of the Treasurer may be reviewed by certiorari if application therefor is made within 30 days after the giving of notice of such decision. An order of certiorari shall not be granted unless the amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with penalties thereon, if any, shall be first deposited with the Treasurer and an undertaking filed with him in such amount and with such sureties as a Justice of the Supreme Court shall approve, to the effect that, if such order be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the applicant for the order will pay all costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution of the certiorari proceeding or, at the option of the applicant, such undertaking may be in a sum sufficient to cover the tax, penalties, costs and charges aforesaid, in which event the applicant shall not be required to pay such tax and penalties as a condition precedent to the granting of such order.
Any notice authorized or required under the provisions of this article may be given by mailing the same to the person for whom it is intended, in a postpaid envelope, addressed to such person at the address given by him in the last return filed by him 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 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 Treasurer, if satisfied that the delay was excusable, may remit all or any portion of such penalty.
If, within one year from the payment of any tax or penalty, the payer thereof shall make application for a refund thereof, and the Treasurer or the court shall determine that such tax or penalty or any portion thereof was erroneously or illegally collected, the 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 Treasurer. However, no refund shall be made of a tax or penalty paid pursuant to a determination of the Treasurer as hereinbefore provided, unless the Treasurer, after a hearing as hereinbefore provided, or of his or her own motion, shall have reduced the tax or penalty or it shall have been established in a certiorari proceeding 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 Treasurer may receive additional evidence with respect thereto. After making his or her determination, the Treasurer shall give notice thereof to the person interested, and he or she shall be entitled to a certiorari order to review such determination, subject to the provisions hereinbefore contained relating to the granting of such an order.
The tax imposed by this article shall be charged against and be paid by the utility and shall not 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 Corporation Counsel shall, upon the request of the Treasurer, bring an action to enforce payment of the same. The proceeds of any judgment obtained in any such action shall be paid to the 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 Treasurer shall have power to make such reasonable rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law, as may be necessary for the exercise of his or her powers and the performance of his or 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 reference to any matter within the line of his or 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 the proper judicial order or as otherwise provided by law, it shall be unlawful for the Treasurer, or any agent, clerk or employee of the Village of Ossining 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 in any court, except on behalf of the Village of Ossining in an 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 or her duly authorized representative, of a copy of any return filed by him, 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 Treasurer, may assist in the collection of such delinquent taxes; or the inspection by the Corporation Counsel or other legal representatives of the Village of Ossining 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. 
Any offense against the foregoing secrecy provisions shall be punishable as provided in of Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article III, General Penalty; and if the offender be an officer, agent, clerk or employee of the Village of Ossining, he or she shall be dismissed from office, and shall be incapable of holding any office or employment in the Village of Ossining for a period of five years thereafter.
[Amended 8-3-1999 by L.L. No. 2-1999]
C. 
Notwithstanding any provisions of this article, the Treasurer may exchange with the chief fiscal officer of any other city or first class village in the State of New York, information contained in returns filed under this article, provided that such other city or village grants similar privileges to the Village of Ossining, and provided that such information is to be used for tax purposes only, and the Treasurer shall, upon request, furnish the State Tax Commission with any information contained in such returns.
All taxes and penalties received by the Treasurer for taxes heretofore or hereafter imposed under this article shall be credited and deposited by him in the general fund of the Village.