§ 1202-O*2 — Hotel or motel taxes in the city of Lockport, Niagara county

* § 1202-o. Hotel or motel taxes in the city of Lockport, Niagara\ncounty. (1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary,\nthe city of Lockport, Niagara county is hereby authorized and empowered\nto adopt and amend local laws imposing in such county a tax, in addition\nto any other tax authorized and imposed pursuant to this article such as\nthe legislature has or would have the power and authority to impose upon\npersons occupying hotel or motel rooms in such county. For the purposes\nof this section, the term "hotel" or "motel" shall mean and include any\nfacility providing lodging on an overnight basis and shall include those\nfacilities designated and commonly known as "bed and breakfast", inns,\nand tourist homes. The rates of such tax shall not exceed five percent\n(5%) of the per diem rental rate for each room, provided, however, that\nsuch tax shall not be applicable to a permanent resident of a hotel or\nmotel. For the purposes of this section the term "permanent resident"\nshall mean a person occupying any room or rooms in a hotel or motel for\nat least fourteen consecutive days.\n (2) Such tax may be collected and administered by the city treasurer\nor other fiscal officers of the city of Lockport by such means and in\nsuch manner as other taxes which are now collected and administered by\nsuch officers or as otherwise may be provided by such local law.\n (3) Such local laws may provide that any tax imposed shall be paid by\nthe person liable therefor to the owner of the hotel or motel room\noccupied or to the person entitled to be paid the rent or charge for the\nhotel or motel room occupied for and on account of the city of Lockport\nimposing the tax and that such owner or person entitled to be paid the\nrent or charge shall be liable for the collection and payment of the\ntax; and that such owner or person entitled to be paid the rent or\ncharge shall have the same right in respect to collecting the tax from\nthe person occupying the hotel or motel room, or in respect to\nnonpayment of the tax by the person occupying the hotel or motel room,\nas if the tax were a part of the rent or charge and payable at the same\ntime as the rent or charge; provided, however, that the city treasurer\nor other fiscal officers of the city, specified in such local law, shall\nbe joined as a party in any action or proceeding brought to collect the\ntax by the owner or by the person entitled to be paid the rent or\ncharge.\n (4) Such local laws may provide for the filing of returns and the\npayment of the tax on a monthly basis or on the basis of any longer\nperiod of time.\n (5) This section shall not authorize the imposition of such tax upon\nany transaction, by or with any of the following in accordance with\nsection twelve hundred thirty of this chapter:\n a. The state of New York, or any public corporation (including a pub-\nlic corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another\nstate or the dominion of Canada), improvement district or other\npolitical subdivision of the state;\n b. The United States of America, insofar as it is immune from\ntaxation;\n c. Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest, fund\nor foundation organized and operated exclusively for religious,\ncharitable or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty to\nchildren or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to\nthe benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no substantial\npart of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise\nattempting to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing in\nthis paragraph shall include an organization operated for the primary\npurpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit, whether or not\nall of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in\nthis paragraph.\n (6) Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder\nshall be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or any\nother reason whatsoever by a proceeding under article seventy-eight of\nthe civil practice law and rules if application therefor is made to the\nsupreme court within thirty days after the giving of the notice of such\nfinal determination, provided, however, that any such proceeding under\narticle seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules shall not be\ninstituted unless:\n a. The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest and\npenalties thereon as may be provided for by local law or regulation\nshall be first deposited and there is filed an undertaking, issued by a\nsurety company authorized to transact business in this state and\napproved by the superintendent of financial services of this state as to\nsolvency and responsibility, in such amount as a justice of the supreme\ncourt shall approve to the effect that if such proceeding be dismissed\nor the tax confirmed the petitioner will pay all costs and charges which\nmay accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding; or\n b. At the option of the petitioner such undertaking may be in a sum\nsufficient to cover the taxes, interests and penalties stated in such\ndetermination plus the costs and charges which may accrue against it in\nthe prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the petitioner shall\nnot be required to pay such taxes, interest or penalties as a condition\nprecedent to the application.\n (7) Where any tax imposed hereunder shall have been erroneously,\nillegally or unconstitutionally collected and application for the refund\nthereof duly made to the proper fiscal officer or officers, and such\nofficer or officers shall have made a determination denying such refund,\nsuch determination shall be reviewable by a proceeding under article\nseventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules, provided, however,\nthat such proceeding is instituted within thirty days after the giving\nof the notice of such denial, that a final determination of tax due was\nnot previously made, and that an undertaking is filed with the proper\nfiscal officer or officers in such amount and with such sureties as a\njustice of the supreme court shall approve to the effect that if such\nproceeding be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the petitioner will pay\nall costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution of such\nproceeding.\n (8) Except in the case of a wilfully false or fraudulent return with\nintent to evade the tax, no assessment of additional tax shall be made\nafter the expiration of more than three years from the date of the\nfiling of a return, provided, however, that where no return has been\nfiled as provided by law the tax may be assessed at any time.\n (9) All revenues resulting from the imposition of the tax under the\nlocal laws shall be paid into the treasury of the city of Lockport and\nshall be credited to and deposited in the general fund of the city,\nthereafter to be allocated at the discretion of the common council of\nthe city of Lockport for the purposes of tourism and economic\ndevelopment; provided, however, that such local laws shall provide that\nthe city shall be authorized to retain the necessary revenue to defer\nnecessary expenses of the city in administering such tax. The revenue\nderived from the tax, after deducting the amount provided for\nadministering such tax, as so authorized by local law, shall be\nallocated to enhance the general economy of the city of Lockport as\nfollows: (a) from the first four percent (4%), twenty-five percent of\nsuch revenue from this tax shall be used for the promotion of community\nand economic development in the city of Lockport; and the remaining\nseventy-five percent of the first four percent (4%) of said revenue\nshall be allocated and paid to a not-for-profit corporation under\ncontract with the county for the promotion of tourism in the county; (b)\nthe additional one percent (1%) of such revenue from this tax shall be\ndedicated to the operation of the discover Niagara shuttle.\n (10) Each enactment of such a local law may provide for the imposition\nof a hotel or motel tax for a period of time no longer than three years\nfrom the date of its enactment. Nothing in this section shall prohibit\nthe adoption and enactment of local laws, pursuant to the provisions of\nthis section, upon the expiration of any other local law adopted\npursuant to this section.\n (11) If any provision of this section or the application thereof to\nany person or circumstance shall be held invalid, the remainder of this\nsection and the application of such provision to other persons or\ncircumstances shall not be affected thereby.\n * NB There are 3 §1202-o's\n