[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of East Rutherford as indicated in article histories.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 8-19-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-16]
It is the purpose of this article to implement
the provisions of P.L. 2003, c. 114, which authorizes the governing
body of a municipality to adopt an ordinance imposing a tax at a uniform
percentage rate not to exceed 1% on charges of rent for every occupancy
on or after July 1, 2003, but before July 1, 2004, and not to exceed
3% on charges of rent for every occupancy on or after July 1, 2004,
of a room or rooms in a hotel subject to taxation pursuant to Subsection
(d) of Section 3 of P.L. 1966, c. 40 (N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3), which shall
be in addition to any other tax or fee imposed pursuant to statute
or local ordinance or resolution by any governmental entity upon the
occupancy of a hotel room.
There is hereby established a hotel and motel
room occupancy tax in the Borough of East Rutherford, which shall
be fixed at a uniform percentage rate of 1% on charges of rent for
every occupancy of a hotel or motel room in the Borough of East Rutherford
on or after October 1, 2003, but before July 1, 2004, and 3% on charges
of rent for every occupancy of a hotel or motel room in the Borough
of East Rutherford on or after July 1, 2004, of a room or rooms in
a hotel subject to taxation pursuant to Subsection (d) of Section
3 of P.L. 1966, c. 40, N.J.S.A. 54:32B-3 (sales tax).
The hotel and motel room occupancy tax shall
be in addition to any other tax or fee imposed pursuant to statute
or local ordinance or resolution by any governmental entity upon the
occupancy of a hotel room.
In accordance with the requirements of P.L.
2003, c. 114:
A. All taxes imposed by this article shall be paid by
the purchaser.
B. A vendor shall not assume or absorb any tax imposed
by this article.
C. A vendor shall not in any manner advertise or hold
out to any person or to the public in general, in any manner, directly
or indirectly, that the tax will be assumed or absorbed by the vendor,
that the tax will not be separately charged and stated to the customer
or that the tax will be refunded to the customer.
D. Each assumption or absorption by a vendor of the tax
shall be deemed a separate offense, and each representation or advertisement
by a vendor for each day that the representation or advertisement
continues shall be deemed a separate offense.
E. Any person who violates any provision of this article
shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding
$500 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days, or both.
The continuation of each successive day shall constitute a separate
offense, and the person or persons allowing or permitting the continuation
of the violations may be punished as provided for above for each separate
offense.
The tax imposed by this article shall be collected
on behalf of the Borough of East Rutherford by the person collecting
the rent from the hotel or motel customer. Each person required to
collect the tax herein imposed shall be personally liable for the
tax imposed, collected or required to be collected hereunder. Any
such person shall have the same right in respect to collecting the
tax from a customer as if the tax were a part of the rent and payable
at the same time; provided that the Chief Financial Officer of the
Borough of East Rutherford shall be joined as a part in any action
or proceeding brought to collect the tax.
[Adopted 6-20-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-14]
A. Local tax established. There is hereby established a local transfer
and user tax imposed as follows:
(1) A local transfer tax shall be imposed on receipts from the sale of
cannabis by a cannabis cultivator to another cannabis cultivator;
receipts from the sale of cannabis items from one cannabis establishment
to another cannabis establishment; or any combination thereof.
(2) The tax rate shall be 2% of the receipts from each sale by a cannabis
cultivator; 2% of the receipts from each sale by a cannabis manufacturer;
and 1% of the receipts from each sale by a cannabis wholesaler.
(3) A user tax shall be imposed on any concurrent license holder, as
permitted by Section 33 of P.L. 2021, c. 16 (N.J.S.A. 24:6I-46), operating
more than one cannabis establishment. The user tax shall be imposed
on the value of each transfer or use of cannabis or cannabis items
not otherwise subject to the transfer tax, from the license holder's
establishment that is located in the Borough of East Rutherford to
any of the other license holder's establishments, whether located
in the municipality or another municipality. The value of each transfer
or use of cannabis or cannabis items for user tax computation shall
equal the statewide average retail price of an ounce of usable cannabis
for consumer purchase, as determined by the Cannabis Regulatory Commission,
less 10% or the third-party dispensary wholesale price, whichever
is less.
[Amended 5-21-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-06]
(4) The local transfer and user tax shall be subject to all applicable
requirements in P.L. 2021, c. 16 (N.J.S.A. 40:48I-1).
A. The local cannabis transfer tax and user tax imposed pursuant to
this section shall be in addition to any other tax imposed by law.
B. The local cannabis transfer tax and user tax shall be collected or
paid and remitted to the Borough by the cannabis business from the
cannabis business purchasing or receiving the cannabis or cannabis
item.
C. The local cannabis transfer tax and user tax shall be stated, charged,
and shown separately on any sales slip, invoice, receipt, or other
statement or memorandum of the price paid or payable, or equivalent
value of the transfer, for the cannabis or cannabis item.
D. Every cannabis business required to collect the local cannabis transfer
tax and user tax imposed by this section shall be personally liable
for the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax imposed, collected,
or required to be collected under this section. Any cannabis business
shall have the same right with respect to collecting the local cannabis
transfer tax and user tax from another cannabis business or the consumer
as if the Local Cannabis Transfer Tax or User Tax was a part of the
sale and payable at the same time, or with respect to nonpayment of
the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax by the cannabis business
or consumer, as if the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax was
a part of the purchase price of the cannabis or cannabis item, or
equivalent value of the transfer of the cannabis or cannabis item,
and payable at the same time; provided, however, that the Chief Financial
Officer of the Borough shall be joined as a party in any action or
proceeding brought to collect a local cannabis transfer tax and user
tax.
E. No cannabis business required to collect the local cannabis transfer
tax and user tax pursuant to this section shall advertise or hold
out to any person or to the public in general, in any manner, directly
or indirectly, that the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax will
not be separately charged and stated to another cannabis business
or the consumer, or that the local cannabis transfer tax and user
tax will be refunded to the cannabis business or the consumer.
F. All revenues collected from the local cannabis transfer tax and user
tax pursuant to this section shall be remitted to the Chief Financial
Officer of the Borough. The Chief Financial Officer shall collect
and administer the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax imposed
by this section. The Borough shall enforce the payment of delinquent
local cannabis transfer tax and user tax in the same manner as provided
for municipal real property taxes.
G. In the event that the local cannabis transfer tax and user tax imposed
by this section is not paid as and when due by a cannabis business,
the unpaid balance, and any interest accruing thereon, shall be a
lien on the parcel of real property comprising the cannabis business
in the same manner as all other unpaid municipal taxes, fees, or other
charges. The lien shall be superior and paramount to the interest
in the parcel of any owner, lessee, tenant, mortgagee, or other person,
except the lien of municipal taxes, and shall be on a parity with
and deemed equal to the municipal lien on the parcel for unpaid property
taxes due and owing in the same year. In the event of a delinquency,
the Chief Financial Officer shall file with the Tax Collector a statement
showing the amount and due date of the unpaid balance and identifying
the lot and block number of the parcel of real property that comprises
the delinquent cannabis business. The lien shall be enforced as a
municipal lien in the same manner as all other municipal liens are
enforced.
The Borough's Chief Financial Officer or his delegate is charged
with the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this
article, and is empowered to prescribe, adopt, promulgate and enforce
rules and regulations relating to any matter pertaining to the administration
and enforcement of this article, including provisions for the reexamination
and corrections of declarations and returns, and of payments alleged
or found to be incorrect, or as to which an overpayment is claimed
or found to have occurred, and to prescribe forms necessary for the
administration of this article. Should a cannabis establishment fail
or refuse to provide adequate information to the Chief Financial Officer
to determine the amount of tax due, the Chief Financial Officer may
use information provided to the Chief Financial Officer from other
sources (e.g., the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission or Department
of Treasury) to determine the amount of tax liability.
A. It shall be the duty of the Chief Financial Officer to collect and
receive the taxes, fines, and penalties imposed by this article. It
shall also be the duty of the Chief Financial Officer to keep a record
showing the date of such receipt. The Chief Financial Officer is authorized
to enter into agreements with the State of New Jersey to obtain information
to facilitate administration of the tax. The Chief Financial Officer
is authorized to issue a ruling upon written request of a taxpayer
or upon his or her own volition.
B. The Chief Financial Officer is hereby authorized to examine the books,
papers, and records of any taxpayer to verify the accuracy of any
declaration or return, or if no declaration or return was filed, to
ascertain the tax due. Every taxpayer is hereby directed and required
to give to the Chief Financial Officer, or to any agent designated
by him/her, the means, facilities and opportunity for such examinations
and investigations, as are hereby authorized.
Taxpayers liable for the transfer tax are required to keep such
records as will enable the filing of true and accurate returns or
the tax and such records shall be preserved for a period of not less
than three years from the filing date or due date, whichever is later,
in order to enable the Chief Financial Officer or any agent designated
by him or her to verify the correctness of the declarations or returns
filed. If records are not available in the Borough to support the
returns which were filed or which should have been filed, the taxpayer
will be required to make them available to the Chief Financial Officer
either by producing them at a location in the Borough or by paying
for the expenses incurred by the Chief Financial Officer or his or
her agent in traveling to the place where the records are regularly
kept.
All cannabis establishments operating in the Borough are required
to file a transfer tax return with the Chief Financial Officer to
report their sales during each calendar quarter and the amount of
tax in accordance with the provisions of this article. Returns shall
be filed, and payments of tax imposed for the preceding calendar quarter
shall be made on or before the last day of April, July, October, and
January, respectively. A taxpayer who has overpaid the transfer tax,
or who believes it is not liable for the tax, may file a written request
on an amended tax return with the Chief Financial Officer for a refund
or a credit of the tax. For amounts paid as a result of a notice asserting
or informing a taxpayer of an underpayment, a written request for
a refund shall be filed with the Chief Financial Officer within two
years of the date of the payment.
The returns filed by taxpayers, and the records and files of
the Chief Financial Officer respecting the administration of the transfer
tax, shall be considered confidential and privileged and neither the
Borough nor any employee or agent engaged in the administration thereof
or charged with the custody of any such records or files, nor any
former officer or employee, nor any person who may have secured information
therefrom, shall divulge, disclose, use for their own personal advantage,
or examine for any reason other than a reason necessitated by the
performance of official duties any information obtained from the said
records or files or from any examination or inspection of the premises
or property of any person. Neither the Chief Financial Officer nor
any employee engaged in such administration or charged with the custody
of any such records or files shall be required to produce any of them
for the inspection of any person or for use in any action or proceeding
except when the records or files or the facts shown thereby are directly
involved in an action or proceeding under the provisions of the State
Uniform Tax Procedure Law or of the tax law affected, or where the determination
of the action or proceeding will affect the validity or amount of
the claim of the Borough under the tax provisions of this article.
The Chief Financial Officer may initiate an audit by means of
an audit notice. If, as a result of an examination conducted by the
Chief Financial Officer, a return has not been filed by an taxpayer
or a return is found to be incorrect and transfer taxes are owed,
the Chief Financial Officer is authorized to assess and collect any
tax due. If no return has been filed and tax is found to be due, the
tax actually due may be assessed and collected with or without the
formality of obtaining a return from the taxpayer. Deficiency assessments
(i.e., where a taxpayer has filed a return but is found to owe additional
tax) shall include taxes for up to three years to the date when the
deficiency is assessed. Where no return was filed, there shall be
no limit to the period of assessment. Upon proposing an assessment,
the Chief Financial Officer shall send the taxpayer an interim notice
by certified mail, return receipt requested, which advises the taxpayer
of additional taxes that are due. Should the taxpayer wish to dispute
the assessment administratively by requesting a hearing with the Chief
Financial Officer, it must do so within 30 days of the date of such
interim notice. If, after the Chief Financial Officer sends an interim
notice, a taxpayer fails to timely request a hearing with the Chief
Financial Officer or requests a hearing and after conducting a hearing,
the chief financial officer determines that the taxes are due, the
Chief Financial Officer shall send the taxpayer by certified mail,
return receipt requested, a final notice. Should the taxpayer wish
to dispute the assessment set forth in the final notice, he or she
must initiate an appeal in the New Jersey Tax Court within 90 days
after the mailing of any final notice regarding a decision, order,
finding, assessment, or action hereunder.
Limitations shall apply to lawsuits for collection of taxes
as follows: When a return has been filed but no tax paid, any suit
brought to recover the tax due and unpaid shall be filed within two
years after the return was due or filed, whichever is later. Where
no return was filed or a fraudulent return was filed, there shall
be no limits to file suit for the collection of taxes. Where, before
the expiration of the time prescribed in this section for the filing
a lawsuit against the taxpayer, both the Chief Financial Officer and
the taxpayer have consented in writing to its extension after such
time, the suit may be filed at any time prior to the expiration of
the period agreed upon. The period so agreed upon may be extended
by subsequent agreements in writing made before the expiration of
the period previously agreed upon.
Any person who receives an interim notice from the Chief Financial
Officer may within 30 days after the date of an interim notice, request
a hearing with the Chief Financial Officer. Any person who fails to
request such a hearing in a timely manner waives the right to administratively
contest any element of the assessment. The Chief Financial Officer
shall accept payments of disputed tax amounts under protest pending
appeals; however, any request for refund of such monies must be filed
in accordance with this section.
Any aggrieved taxpayer may, within 90 days after the mailing
of any final notice regarding a decision, order, finding, assessment,
or action hereunder, or publication of any rule, regulation or policy
of the Chief Financial Officer, appeal to the Tax Court pursuant to
the jurisdiction granted by N.J.S.A. 2B:13-2a(3) to review actions
or regulations of municipal officials by filing a complaint in accordance
with New Jersey Court Rule 8:3-1. The appeal provided by this section
shall be the exclusive remedy available to any taxpayer for review
of a final decision of the Chief Financial Officer in respect to a
determination of liability for the tax imposed by this article.