Bill Text: NY S06149 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to the imposition of an occupancy tax in the town of DeWitt to benefit Willis Carrier Park and promote tourism.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-06-19 - PRINT NUMBER 6149B [S06149 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S06149-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6149

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 20, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sen. ANTONACCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
          ment Operations

        AN  ACT  to amend the tax law, in relation to the imposition of an occu-
          pancy tax in the town of DeWitt; and providing for the repeal of  such
          provisions upon expiration thereof

          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-ff  to
     2  read as follows:
     3    §  1202-ff.  Occupancy  tax in the town of DeWitt. (1) Notwithstanding
     4  any other provision of law to the contrary, the town of DeWitt,  in  the
     5  county  of  Onondaga,  is  hereby  authorized and empowered to adopt and
     6  amend local laws imposing in such town a tax, in addition to  any  other
     7  tax  authorized and imposed pursuant to this article, such as the legis-
     8  lature has or would have the power and authority to impose upon  persons
     9  occupying  any  room  for  hire  in  any hotel. For the purposes of this
    10  section, the term "hotel" shall mean a building or portion of  it  which
    11  is  regularly  used and kept open as such for the lodging of guests. The
    12  term "hotel" includes an apartment hotel, a motel or a  boarding  house,
    13  whether  or  not meals are served. The rate of such tax shall not exceed
    14  two and three-quarters (2.75) percent of the per diem  rental  rate  for
    15  each room whether such room is rented on a daily or longer basis.
    16    (2)  Such  taxes may be collected and administered by the chief fiscal
    17  officer of the town of DeWitt by such means and in such manner as  other
    18  taxes  which  are  now  collected and administered by such officer or as
    19  otherwise may be provided by such local law.
    20    (3) Such local laws may provide that any taxes imposed shall  be  paid
    21  by  the  person liable therefor to the owner of the room for hire in the
    22  tourist home, inn, club, hotel, motel or other similar place  of  public
    23  accommodation  occupied or to the person entitled to be paid the rent or

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11460-01-9
        S. 6149                             2

     1  charge for the room for hire in the  tourist  home,  inn,  club,  hotel,
     2  motel or other similar place of public accommodation occupied for and on
     3  account  of  the  town of DeWitt imposing the tax and that such owner or
     4  person  entitled  to  be paid the rent or charge shall be liable for the
     5  collection and payment of the tax; and that such owner or  person  enti-
     6  tled  to be paid the rent or charge shall have the same right in respect
     7  to collecting the tax from the person occupying the room for hire in the
     8  tourist home, inn, club, hotel, motel or other similar place  of  public
     9  accommodation,  or  in  respect  to  nonpayment of the tax by the person
    10  occupying the room for hire in the tourist home, inn, club, hotel, motel
    11  or similar place of public accommodation, as if the taxes were a part of
    12  the rent or charge and payable at the same time as the rent  or  charge;
    13  provided,  however, that the chief fiscal officer of the town, specified
    14  in such local laws, shall be joined as a party in any action or proceed-
    15  ing brought to collect the tax by the owner or by the person entitled to
    16  be paid the rent or charge.
    17    (4) Such local laws may provide for the  filing  of  returns  and  the
    18  payment of the taxes on a monthly basis or on the basis of any longer or
    19  shorter period of time.
    20    (5)  This  section shall not authorize the imposition of such tax upon
    21  any of the following:
    22    a. The state of New York,  or  any  public  corporation  (including  a
    23  public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another
    24  state  or  the  dominion of Canada), improvement district or other poli-
    25  tical subdivision of the state;
    26    b. The United States of America, insofar as it is  immune  from  taxa-
    27  tion;
    28    c.  Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest, fund
    29  or foundation organized and operated exclusively for religious, charita-
    30  ble or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty  to  chil-
    31  dren  or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the
    32  benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no substantial part
    33  of the activities of which  is  carrying  on  propaganda,  or  otherwise
    34  attempting  to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing in
    35  this paragraph shall include an organization operated  for  the  primary
    36  purpose  of  carrying  on a trade or business for profit, whether or not
    37  all of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in
    38  this paragraph; or
    39    d. A permanent resident of a hotel or motel. For the purposes of  this
    40  section, the term "permanent resident" shall mean a natural person occu-
    41  pying  any room or rooms in a hotel or motel for at least thirty consec-
    42  utive days.
    43    (6) Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder
    44  shall be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or  any
    45  other  reason  whatsoever by a proceeding under article seventy-eight of
    46  the civil practice law and rules if application therefor is made to  the
    47  supreme  court  within  thirty  days  after the giving of notice of such
    48  final determination, provided, however, that any such  proceeding  under
    49  article  seventy-eight  of the civil practice law and rules shall not be
    50  instituted unless:
    51    a. The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest and
    52  penalties thereon as may be provided for by local  laws  or  regulations
    53  shall be first deposited and there shall be filed an undertaking, issued
    54  by  a  surety  company authorized to transact business in this state and
    55  approved by the superintendent of financial services of this state as to
    56  solvency and responsibility, in such amount as a justice of the  supreme
        S. 6149                             3

     1  court  shall  approve to the effect that if such proceeding be dismissed
     2  or the tax confirmed the petitioner will pay all costs and charges which
     3  may accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding; or
     4    b.  At  the option of the petitioner, such undertaking may be in a sum
     5  sufficient to cover the taxes, interests and penalties  stated  in  such
     6  determination  plus the costs and charges which may accrue against it in
     7  the prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the  petitioner  shall
     8  not  be required to pay such taxes, interest or penalties as a condition
     9  precedent to the application.
    10    (7) Where any taxes imposed hereunder  shall  have  been  erroneously,
    11  illegally or unconstitutionally collected and application for the refund
    12  therefor  duly  made  to the proper fiscal officer or officers, and such
    13  officer or officers shall have made a determination denying such refund,
    14  such determination shall be reviewable by  a  proceeding  under  article
    15  seventy-eight  of  the  civil practice law and rules, provided, however,
    16  that such proceeding is instituted within thirty days after  the  giving
    17  of  the notice of such denial, that a final determination of tax due was
    18  not previously made, and that an undertaking is filed  with  the  proper
    19  fiscal  officer  or  officers in such amount and with such sureties as a
    20  justice of the supreme court shall approve to the effect  that  if  such
    21  proceeding  be dismissed or the taxes confirmed, the petitioner will pay
    22  all costs and charges which  may  accrue  in  the  prosecution  of  such
    23  proceeding.
    24    (8)  Except in the case of a willfully false or fraudulent return with
    25  intent to evade the tax, no assessment of additional tax shall  be  made
    26  after  the  expiration  of  more  than  three years from the date of the
    27  filing of a return, provided, however, that where  no  return  has  been
    28  filed as provided by law the tax may be assessed at any time.
    29    (9)  All  revenues  resulting from the imposition of the tax under the
    30  local laws shall be paid into the treasury of the town  of  DeWitt,  and
    31  shall  be  credited to and deposited in the general fund of the town but
    32  will be attributed to specific line items  in  the  annual  DeWitt  town
    33  budget  dedicated  to the town's Willis Carrier Park and tourism infras-
    34  tructure improvements promoting tourism  and  increases  in  hotel/motel
    35  industry room occupancy, and that such funds may thereafter be allocated
    36  and  utilized for the aforesaid purposes of paying for the construction,
    37  re-construction, maintenance, upkeep, and  operations  of  the  town  of
    38  DeWitt  Willis  Carrier Park, the construction, re-construction, mainte-
    39  nance, upkeep, and operations of any appurtenant facilities or  services
    40  thereto,  the  payment  or  re-payment of any bond, loan, note, or other
    41  financing instrument, the debt associated with which  was  incurred  for
    42  the construction, re-construction, maintenance, upkeep, and operation of
    43  the   said   Park,   appurtenant   facilities,  and  services,  and  the
    44  construction, re-construction, maintenance or upkeep of town infrastruc-
    45  ture and services utilized  in  connection  with  the  tourism  and  the
    46  hotel/motel  industry  within  the  town of DeWitt ("tourism infrastruc-
    47  ture"). Not less than thirty percent of the revenues from the imposition
    48  of the tax shall be allocated and utilized  for  tourism  infrastructure
    49  and services within the town of Dewitt.
    50    (10) Each enactment of such a local law may provide for the imposition
    51  of  a hotel or motel tax for a period of time no longer than three years
    52  from the date of its enactment.  Nothing in this section shall  prohibit
    53  the  adoption and enactment of local laws, pursuant to the provisions of
    54  this section, upon the expiration of any other local law adopted  pursu-
    55  ant to this section.
        S. 6149                             4

     1    (11)  If  any  provision of this section or the application thereof to
     2  any person or circumstance shall be held invalid, the remainder of  this
     3  section  and  the  application  of  such  provision  to other persons or
     4  circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
     5    §  2.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
     6  deemed repealed September 1, 2022.