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

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



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         6149--A

                               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  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        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

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11460-02-9

        S. 6149--A                          2

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

        S. 6149--A                          3

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

        S. 6149--A                          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 October 1, 2019 and shall expire and
     6  be deemed repealed September 1, 2022.
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