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A00992 Summary:

A00992 Actions:

A00992 Committee Votes:

A00992 Floor Votes:

A00992 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                           992
 
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                     January 8, 2015
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. ABINANTI -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Ways and Means
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  tax law, in relation to authorizing the town of
          Greenburgh to adopt a local law to impose a hotel/motel occupancy  tax
          for hotels not located in a village; authorizing specified villages in
          the  towns  of  Greenburgh  and Mount Pleasant to adopt a local law to
          impose a hotel/motel occupancy tax in such villages
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  The tax law is amended by adding a new section 1202-cc to
     2  read as follows:
     3    § 1202-cc. Hotel or motel taxes in the town of Greenburgh  and  speci-
     4  fied  villages  therein and in the town of Mount Pleasant.  (1) Notwith-
     5  standing any other provisions of law to the contrary, the town of Green-
     6  burgh, Westchester county, is hereby authorized and empowered  to  adopt
     7  and amend local laws imposing in those portions of such town not located
     8  within  a  village,  and  the villages of Tarrytown, Irvington, Ardsley,
     9  Elmsford, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings-on-Hudson and Sleepy Hollow in the towns
    10  of Greenburgh and Mount Pleasant, Westchester county are hereby  author-
    11  ized  and  empowered  to  adopt  and  amend  local laws imposing in such
    12  villages a tax, in addition to any  other  tax  authorized  and  imposed
    13  pursuant to this article, as the legislature has or would have the power
    14  and authority to impose upon persons occupying rooms in hotels or motels
    15  in such towns or villages therein. For the purposes of this section, the
    16  term  "hotel"  shall mean a building or portion of it which is regularly
    17  used and kept open as such for the lodging of guests. The  term  "hotel"
    18  includes an apartment hotel, a motel or a boarding house, whether or not
    19  meals are served. The rate of such tax shall not exceed three percent of
    20  the  per diem rental rate for each room whether such room is rented on a
    21  daily or longer basis.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04357-01-5
        A. 992                              2
 
     1    (2) Such tax may be collected and administered by the commissioner  of
     2  finance  or  other  fiscal  officer  of the town of Greenburgh or of any
     3  specified village therein or in the town of Mount Pleasant, as the  case
     4  may  be,  by  such means and in such manner as other taxes which are now
     5  collected  and administered by such officers in accordance with the town
     6  or village charter or as otherwise may be provided by such local law.
     7    (3) Such local laws may provide that any tax imposed shall be paid  by
     8  the person liable therefor to the owner of the hotel or motel room occu-
     9  pied  or  to  the  person entitled to be paid the rent or charge for the
    10  hotel or motel room occupied for and on account of the  town  of  Green-
    11  burgh or of any specified village therein or in the town of Mount Pleas-
    12  ant  imposing the tax, and that such owner or person entitled to be paid
    13  the rent or charge shall be liable for the collection and payment of the
    14  tax; and that such owner or person entitled  to  be  paid  the  rent  or
    15  charge  shall  have the same right in respect to collecting the tax from
    16  the person occupying the hotel or motel room, or in respect  to  nonpay-
    17  ment  of  the tax by the person occupying the hotel or motel room, as if
    18  the tax were a part of the rent or charge and payable at the  same  time
    19  as  the  rent  or  charge;  provided,  however, that the commissioner of
    20  finance or other fiscal officers of such towns or villages, specified in
    21  such local law, shall be joined as a party in any action  or  proceeding
    22  brought  to collect the tax by the owner or by the person entitled to be
    23  paid the rent or charge.
    24    (4) Such local laws may provide for the  filing  of  returns  and  the
    25  payment  of  the tax on a monthly basis or on the basis of any longer or
    26  shorter period of time.
    27    (5) This section shall not authorize the imposition of such  tax  upon
    28  the following:
    29    a.  The  state  of  New  York,  or any public corporation, including a
    30  public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another
    31  state or the dominion of Canada, improvement district or other political
    32  subdivision of the state;
    33    b. The United States of America, insofar as it is  immune  from  taxa-
    34  tion;
    35    c.  Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest, fund
    36  or foundation organized and operated exclusively for religious, charita-
    37  ble or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty  to  chil-
    38  dren  or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the
    39  benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no substantial part
    40  of the activities of which  is  carrying  on  propaganda,  or  otherwise
    41  attempting  to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing in
    42  this paragraph shall include an organization operated  for  the  primary
    43  purpose  of  carrying  on a trade or business for profit, whether or not
    44  all of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in
    45  this paragraph; and
    46    d. A permanent resident of a hotel or motel. For the purposes of  this
    47  section, the term "permanent resident" shall mean a natural person occu-
    48  pying  any room or rooms in a hotel or motel for at least thirty consec-
    49  utive days.
    50    (6) Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder
    51  shall be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or  any
    52  other  reason  whatsoever by a proceeding under article seventy-eight of
    53  the civil practice law and rules if application therefor is made to  the
    54  supreme  court  within  thirty  days  after giving of the notice of such
    55  final determination, provided, however, that any such  proceeding  under
        A. 992                              3
 
     1  article  seventy-eight  of the civil practice law and rules shall not be
     2  instituted unless:
     3    a. The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest and
     4  penalties  thereon  as  may  be  provided for by local law or regulation
     5  shall be first deposited and there is filed an undertaking, issued by  a
     6  surety  company  authorized  to  transact  business  in  this  state and
     7  approved by the superintendent of insurance of this state as to solvency
     8  and responsibility, in such amount as a justice  of  the  supreme  court
     9  shall  approve to the effect that if such proceeding be dismissed or the
    10  tax confirmed the petitioner will pay all costs and  charges  which  may
    11  accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding; or
    12    b.  At  the  option of the petitioner such undertaking may be in a sum
    13  sufficient to cover taxes, interest and penalties stated in such  deter-
    14  mination  plus  the costs and charges which may accrue against it in the
    15  prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the petitioner  shall  not
    16  be  required  to  pay  such  taxes, interest or penalties as a condition
    17  precedent to the application.
    18    (7) Where any tax imposed hereunder shall have been erroneously, ille-
    19  gally or unconstitutionally collected and  application  for  the  refund
    20  thereof  duly  made  to  the proper fiscal officer or officers, and such
    21  officer or officers shall have made a determination denying such refund,
    22  such determination shall be reviewable by  a  proceeding  under  article
    23  seventy-eight  of  the  civil practice law and rules, provided, however,
    24  that such proceeding is instituted within thirty days after  the  giving
    25  of  the notice of such denial, that a final determination of tax due was
    26  not previously made, and that an undertaking is filed  with  the  proper
    27  fiscal  officer  or  officers in such amount and with such sureties as a
    28  justice of the supreme court shall approve to the effect  that  if  such
    29  proceeding  be  dismissed  or the tax confirmed, the petitioner will pay
    30  all costs and charges which accrue in the prosecution of  such  proceed-
    31  ing.
    32    (8)  Except in the case of a willfully false or fraudulent return with
    33  intent to evade the tax, no assessment of additional tax shall  be  made
    34  after  the  expiration  of  more  than  three years from the date of the
    35  filing of a return, provided, however, that where  no  return  has  been
    36  filed as provided by law the tax may be assessed at any time.
    37    (9)  Revenues  resulting from the imposition of tax authorized by this
    38  section shall be paid into the treasury of the town of Greenburgh or  of
    39  the  specified  village  therein  or  in the town of Mount Pleasant, and
    40  shall be credited to and deposited in the general fund of such  town  or
    41  village;  and may thereafter be allocated at the discretion of the board
    42  of legislators of the town of Greenburgh or  of  the  specified  village
    43  therein  or  in  the  town  of  Mount  Pleasant  for any town or village
    44  purpose.
    45    (10) If any provision of this section or the  application  thereof  to
    46  any  person or circumstance shall be held invalid, the remainder of this
    47  section and the application  of  such  provision  to  other  persons  or
    48  circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
    49    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.