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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNS-2161 - Amending Sections and Adding Article XI to Chapter 21 of Santa Ana Municipal Code...ORDINANCE NO. NS- 2161 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA AMENDING SECTIONS 21- 1, 21-72, 21-73, 21-75, 21-76, 21-77, 21-78 AND 21-117 AND ADDING ARTICLE XI TO CHAPTER 21 OF THE SANTA ANA M I/NICIPAL CODE, RELATING TO THE BUSINESS LICENSE TAX. THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: ~: That section 21-71 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: 21-71. Term of license; &nnual and quarterly. Ail annual license renewals shall be for the period of twelve months as specified hereinafter. (a) Ail annual license renewals based upon a flat rate shall be for the twelve month period beginning January first of the current year and shall expire on the thirty-first day of December of the current year. (b) Ail annual license renewals based upon a variable flat rate shall be for the twelve month period beginning July first of the current year and shall expire on the thirtieth day of June of the following year. (c) Ail annual license renewals based upon gross receipts shall be for the twelve month period beginning on April first of the current year and shall expire on the thirty-first day of March of the following year. (d) Ail quarterly licenses shall be for the period of three (3) months beginning on the first day of January and ending on the thirty-first day of March; on the first day of April and ending on the thirtieth day of June; on the first day of July and ending on the thirtieth day of September; on the first day of October and ending on the thirty-first day of December. ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page 2 ~1 9 $~CTION 2: That section 21-72 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 21-72 · Term of license; new; annual and quarterly. (a) Ail new annual licenses issued and based upon a flat rate shall be for the period of time remaining in the twelve month period beginning January first of the current year and shall expire on the thirty-first day of December of the current year; provided, however, that all new annual licenses issued between December first of the current year and December thirty-first of the current year shall be for the period of the month of December of the current year as well as the entire period of the following twelve months ending on December thirty-first. (b) Ail new annual licenses issued and based upon a variable flat rate shall be for the period of time remaining in the twelve month period beginning July first of the current year and shall expire on the thirtieth day of June of the following year; provided, however, that all new annual licenses issued between May first of the current year and May thirty-first of the current year shall be for the period of the month of May of the current year as well as the entire period of the following twelve months ending June thirtieth. (c) Ail new annual licenses issued and based upon gross receipts shall be for the period of time remaining in the twelve month period beginning April first of the current year and shall expire on the thirty-first day of March of the following year; provided, however, that all new annual licenses issued between March first of the current year and March thirty-first of the current year shall be for the period of time in the month of March of the current year as well as the entire period of the following twelve months ending March thirty-first. (d) All new quarterly licenses issued shall be for the time remaining in the individual quarter. ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page 3 SECTION 3: That section 21-73 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Bec. 21-73. Renewal due dates. (a) The flat rate license taxes required to be paid by the provisions of this chapter, if paid annually shall become due and payable on the first day of December and shall become delinquent on the first day of January of each year, or if paid quarterly shall become due and payable on the first day of December, March, June and September and shall become delinquent on the first day of January, April, July and October respectively. (b) The variable flat rate license taxes required to be paid by the provisions of this chapter, if paid annually shall become due and payable on the first day of June and shall become delinquent on the first day of July of each year, or if paid quarterly shall become due and payable on the first day of June, September, December and March and shall become delinquent on the first day of July, October, January and April respectively. (c) The gross receipts license taxes required to be paid by the provisions of this chapter, if paid annually shall become due and payable on the first day of March and shall become delinquent on the first day of April of each year, or if paid quarterly shall become due and payable on the on the first day of March, June, September and December and shall become delinquent on the first day of April, July, September and January respectively. (d) The gross receipts license tax and the variable flat rate license tax for the current year shall each be based respectively on the filed gross receipts statement and the filed variable flat rate assessment statement. The flat rate license tax for the current year shall be based on the schedule of flat rate taxes as specified by the provisions of this chapter. (e) Any business holding a currently valid annual city business license tax receipt and desiring to pay tax quarterly may elect upon renewal to do so by making application and paying a quarterly fee equal to twenty-five (25) per cent of the annual rate. (f) Ail daily or monthly license taxes shall be paid in advance. SECTION 4: That section 21-75 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: 8mo. 21-75. Notification of flat rate tax due. Notification of business license tax due, when said taxes are 3 ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page 4 based upon flat rates, will be given by first class United States mail no later than the fifteenth day of December, provided that failure to receive such notification shall not exempt the licensee from all requirements under this chapter. SECTION 5: That section 21-76 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Bee. 2X-76. Renewal statement; variable fiat rate; submission end filing; notifioation of variable flat rate tax renewal. (a) Where the license is based on a variable flat rate, the applicant shall submit to the collector, for his or her guidance in ascertaining the amount of license tax to be paid by the applicant, a written statement upon a form to be provided by the collector, written under penalty of perjury or sworn to before a person authorized to administer oaths, setting forth such information concerning the nature, location, intended duration and ownership of applicant's business as well as any additional information required by the collector to enable him or her to ascertain the amount of license tax to be paid by said applicant pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. The filing dates for the submission of renewal statements and the payment of business license tax due shall be during the period from the first day of June to the thirtieth day of June of each calendar year. In the case of a variable flat tax based upon the number of persons engaged or employed, the statement shall be for the preceding twelve-month period beginning April first of the preceding year and ending March thirty-first of the current year. (b) Where a category or class of variable flat rate licenses is based on a variable flat rate applied to a fixed amount or number which then thereafter does not vary, then, at the discretion of the collector, the variable flat rate assessment statement may be omitted and a notification of business license tax due may be given at the same time and in the same manner as is applied in the case of flat rate business license. Said business license tax shall then be due and payable and shall become delinquent in the same manner as flat rate business licenses. (¢) Notification of business license tax renewal, when such taxes are based upon variable flat rates, will be given by first class United States mail no later than the fifteenth day of May, provided that failure to receive such notification shall not exempt the licensee from all requirements under this chapter. ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page S :225 ~: That section 21-77 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Bec. 21-77. Renewal statement; gross receipts; submission and filing; notification of gross receipts tax renewal. (a) In all cases where the license is based on gross receipts, the applicant shall submit to the collector, for his or her guidance in ascertaining the amount of the license to be paid ~y the applicant, a written statement upon a form to be provided by the collector, written under penalty of perjury or sworn to before a person authorized to administer oaths, setting forth such information concerning the nature, location, intended duration, and ownership of applicant's business as well as applicant's gross receipts during the preceding calendar year as may be required by the collector to enable him or her to ascertain the amount of license tax to be paid by said applicant pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. The filing dates for the submission of gross receipts statements and the payment of business license tax due shall be during the period from the first day of March to the thirty-first day of March. (b) Notification of business license tax renewal, when said taxes are based upon gross receipts, will be given by first class United States mail no later than the fifteenth day of February, provided that failure to receive such notification shall not exempt the licensee from all requirements under this chapter. SECTION 7: That section 21-78 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Bec. 21-78. Miscalculation of tax, application of deposit or credit amount; effect. (a) Where the applicant has submitted a timely renewal statement and remitted the tax owed as required pursuant to sections 21-76 and 21-77, no penalty or interest shall accrue for thirty (30) days on any amount ascertained to be deficient, where said deficiency is determined to be the result of the applicant's miscalculation of the amount of the business license tax owed. (b) Where a deposit or credit amount exists and the applicant has submitted a timely renewal statement, no penalty or interest shall accrue for thirty (30) days on the any amount ascertained to be deficient. (c) Notification of deficient business license tax due, will be given by first class United States mail given no later than the fifteenth day of the first month following the due dates for the submission of renewal statements as set forth in sections 21-76 and 5 ORDINANCE NS-2t61 Page 6 21-77. (d) Failure to receive such notifications shall not exempt the licensee from all requirements under this chapter. SEC I_~: That section 21-117 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Soo. 21-1L7. Hew business license tax. (a) A license tax for a new business shall be paid in advance, or a deposit taken in lieu thereof prior to any new business activity being undertaken. (b) All new businesses for whom flat fees are made the basis for fixing the amount of such license shall pay in advance an amount equal to one-quarter (1/4) of the annual fee therefor for each quarter and fraction of a quarter remaining during the period for which the new license is issued, except as otherwise specified hereinafter. (c) Ail new businesses for whom the gross receipts of such business is made the basis for fixing the amount of such license shall pay their annual fee based on actual gross receipts received during the period for which the new license is issued. For any business which is commenced subsequent to April first, the renewal fee shall be based upon an annualization of the actual' gross receipts received during the period for which the new license is issued. In the event an applicant fails to submit a report of the actual gross receipts received pursuant to Section 21-77, the fee shall be based on the collector's estimate of the actual gross receipts received pursuant to section 21-79. In lieu of payment in advance, each applicant shall post a deposit in the amount hereinafter indicated. (1) Ail new businesses beginning business on or after April first of the current year but before April first of the following year shall post a deposit of two hundred dollars ($200.00). (2) Ail new businesses beginning business on or after March first of the current year but before April first of the current year shall post a deposit equivalent to one and one-twelfth (1-1/12) of the required deposit for all new businesses beginning April first. Where an applicant's fee is determined to be in excess of the amount of the specified deposit, said deficiency shall be added without interest or penalty to the amount of the applicant's renewal fee as calculated pursuant to sections 21-77 or 21-79. Where an applicant ceases to transact and carry on the business 6 ORDINANCE NS 2161 Page 7 licensed on or before the expiration of the period for which the new license is issued, and where the applicant's fee is determined to be in excess of the amount of the specified deposit, the applicant shall remain liable for said deficiency which shall be deemed due and collectible at the same time and in the same matter as all other annual gross receipts fees due and payable upon renewal. Where an applicant's fee is determined to be less than the amount of the specified deposit, said surplus shall be applied without interest as a credit against the amount of the applicant's renewal fee as calculated pursuant to sections 21-77 or 21-79. Where an applicant ceases to transact and carry on the business licensed on or before the expiration of the period for which the new license is issued, and where the applicant's fee is determined to be less than the amount of the specified deposit, said surplus may be requested by applicant as a refund; provided, however, that such request must be made in writing and must be made within one (1) year of the expiration of the initial license period. (d) Notwithstanding subsection (b) above, unless an adjustment or exemption is obtained pursuant to this chapter, the minimum tax pursuant to this section shall be ten dollars ($10.00) per year. SECTION 9: That Chapter 21 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended by adding an article thereto, to be numbered XI, and consisting of sections 21-122, 21-123, 21-124 and 21-125, which said article reads as follows: ARTICLE XI. ~SBESSHENT BY LIEN Beo. 2L-~22. Nonpayment of tax; assessment by lien. The amount of any business license tax, penalty or interest imposed by this chapter shall be deemed a debt to the city; and any person carrying on any such business without first having procured a business license therefor shall be liable to an action in the name of the city in any court of competent jurisdiction as hereinabove provided for in section 21-24. An action to collect the business license tax must be commenced within three years of the date the business tax becomes due. An action to collect the penalty for non-payment of the business license tax must be commenced within three years of the date the penalty accrues. The amount of business license tax, penalty and interest imposed under the provisions of this chapter is hereby assessed against the business property on which the tax is imposed in those instances where the owner of the business and the business property 7 ORDinANCE S-2161 Page 8 1 are one and the same, or where the business property is leased or rented by the owner-lessor as commercial or residential rental property as hereinabove defined in section 21-3. If the business license taxes are not paid when due, such tax, penalty and interest shall constitute an assessment against such business property for the amount thereof, which lien shall continue until the amount thereof, including all penalties and interest are paid, or until it is discharged of record. The conviction and punishment of any person for transacting and carrying on any business within the city without a business license shall not excuse or exempt such person from the application of the lien provisions of this section; nor shall it serve as a bar to a civil action brought in the name of the city, in any court of competent jurisdiction. Bec. 21-123. Notice of hearing of lien. The collector shall file with the city manager a written notice of those persons against whose property the city will file liens. Upon receipt of such notice the city manager shall present same to the city council, and the city council shall forthwith, by resolution, fix a time and a place for a public hearing on such notice. The collector shall cause a copy of such notice to be served upon the owner of the business/business property not less than ten (10) days prior to the time fixed for such hearing. The collector shall give notice in the following manner: (1) By serving it personally, or causing it to be served personally by a duly authorized agent; or (2) By depositing it in the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the owner of the business/business property at the address listed in the most recent property ownership records provided to the city by the county assessor. As of the date that the collector causes notice to be served or mailed shall comprise proper service. When made by mail, service shall be deemed complete at the time of deposit in the United States mail. 21-124. Collection of delinquent taxes by special tax roll assessment. With the conformation of the report by the city council, the delinquent business license tax charges contained therein which remain unpaid by the owner of the business/business property shall constitute a special assessment against said business property and shall be collected at such time as is established by the county 8 ORDINANCE NS-2161 .~33 Page 9 assessor for inclusion in the next property tax assessment. The collector shall report to the county assessor for inclusion in the next property tax assessment the total sum of unpaid delinquent business license tax charges consisting of the delinquent business license taxes, penalties, interest at the rate of twelve (12) percent per annum from the date of recordation to the date of lien, an administrative charge of fifty dollars ($50.00) and a release of lien filing fee in an amount equal to the amount charged by the Orange County Recorder's office. Thereafter, said special assessment may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary municipal taxes are collected, and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedures of sale as provided for delinquent ordinary municipal taxes. The special assessment liens shall be subordinate to liens except for those of state, county and municipal taxes with which it shall be upon parity. The lien shall continue until the assessment and all interest and charges due and payable are paid. All laws applicable to the levy, collection and enforcement of municipal taxes shall be applicable to said special assessments. Sec. 21-125. Recordation of lien for delinquent charges. Upon confirmation of the report of delinquent business license tax charges by the city council, a lien on the real property of the delinquent business/business property owner for delinquent business license tax charges which were assessed will be recorded with the recorder of the county of orange. ~: Sections 1 throUgh 8 of this ordinance shall become effective on January 1, 1993, subject to the following modifications: During the period January 1 through March 31, 1993, all applicants for an annual license renewal based upon gross receipts shall pay an amount equal to 125% of the annual business license tax otherwise due, and all applicants applying for a new annual business license based on gross receipts shall post a deposit equal to 125% of the annual business license tax deposit otherwise due. The business license granted therefor shall expire March 31, 1994. During the period January 1 through March 31, 1993, all applicants for an annual license renewal based upon a variable rate shall pay an amount equal to 150% of the annual business license tax otherwise due and all applicants for a new annual business license based upon a variable rate shall post a deposit equal to 150% of the annual business license tax deposit otherwise due. During the period April 1 through June 30, 1993, all 9 ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page 10 applicants for an annual license renewal based upon a variable rate shall pay an amount equal to 125% of the annual business license tax otherwise due and all applicants for a new annual business license based upon a variable rate shall post a deposit equal to 125% of the annual business license tax deposit otherwise due. The bus~nes~ license ~rantad therafor ~hall exDtre June 30, 1994. Ail other sections of this ordinance shall become effective 30 days following the date of adoption of this ordinance. ~CTION 11: If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The city Council of the city of Santa Ana hereby declares that it would have adopted this ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases, or portions be declared invalid or unconstitutional. SECTION 12: Neither the adoption of this ordinance nor the repeal hereby of any ordinance shall in any manner affect the prosecution for violation of ordinances, which violations were committed prior to the effective date hereof, nor be construed as affecting any of the provisions of such ordinance relating to the collection of any such license or penalty or the penal provision applicable to any violation thereof, nor to affect the validity of any bond or cash deposit in lieu thereof, required to be posted, filed or deposited pursuant to any ordinance and all rights and obligations thereunder appertaining shall continue in full force and effect. 235 10 ORDINANCE NS-2161 Page 11 537 ADOPTED this 15th ATTEST: COUNCILMEMBERS: Young Aye Pulido Aye Acosta Aye Griset MoGuigan ~=~nt Norton Nay Richardson Ay~ day of June 1992. Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: city Attorney CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY & PUBLICATION State of California County of Orange I, JANICE C. GUY, Clerk of the Council, do hereby certify the attached Ordinance ~5- ~/~ / to be the original ordinance adopted by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana on ~-/.~'--~ ; and that said ordinance was published in accordance with the Charter of the city of Santa Ana. C~he Council, Date C~ty of Santa Ana