Alameda Municipal Code § 5-2 License Required

It shall be unlawful for any person, either for himself/herself or for any other person, to commence, conduct, carry on or engage in any business in this chapter specified, in the City without first having procured a license from the City to do so, or without complying with any and all regulations of such business contained in this chapter; and the carrying on of any business without first having procured a license from the City to do so, or without complying with any and all regulations of this chapter shall constitute a separate violation of this code for each and every day that such business is so carried on or conducted.

(Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N.S.)

a. A separate license must be obtained for each and every branch establishment or separate place of business in which a business is conducted, except a branch establishment operated by a person licensed under subsection 5-4.1p of this code, in which case a duplicate license for each branch establishment shall be issued for a fee set by City Council resolution for each such place; provided, that warehouses and storage plants used in connection with and incidental to a business licenses under the provisions of this chapter shall not be deemed to be separate places of business or branch establishments.

b. In the event any business may be categorized as a separate and clearly defined administrative headquarters and as one or more of the categories set forth in Section 5-4.1 at any fixed place of business, the License Collector shall reasonably and fairly allocate and apportion the taxes owed under this chapter between the or among the categories. The License Collector is authorized to establish reasonable regulations and procedures to establish a reasonable and fair allocation between such categories.

(Ord. No. 2655 N.S. 1: Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N.S.)

The term "license" as used in this chapter shall not be construed to mean a permit. The fees prescribed by this chapter constitute a tax for municipal revenue purposes only, and are not regulatory permit fees.

The payment of a license fee required by the provisions of this chapter, and its acceptance by the City, and the issuance of a license to any person shall not entitle the person so paying such tax, nor the holder of such license, to carry on any business unless he has complied with all of the requirements of this code and all other applicable laws, nor to carry on any business in or on any building or premises designated in such license in the law, nor to carry on any business or activity for which a permit is required as a prerequisite to the conduct of such business or activity, nor to carry on any business or activity which is unlawful.

(Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N. S.)

No license shall be issued hereunder when the provisions of this Code or of some other ordinance of the City require a permit to be obtained as a prerequisite to engage in or conduct such business, until such permit is first applied for and obtained. Any license issued in violation of the provisions of this subsection shall be void.

(Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N.S.)

a. All license fees shall be paid in advance, in lawful money of the United States, at the office of the License Collector.

b. Except as herein otherwise provided, all licenses required hereunder shall be for terms and shall be due and payable as follows:

1. The term of annual licenses shall be one (1) year beginning July 1 of each year;

2. The term of quarterly licenses shall be for three (3) months beginning, respectively, on July 1, October 1, January 1 and April 1 of each year.

All license fees shall be due and payable on the first day of the license term for which the license is required. Daily licenses shall be due and payable each day in advance. All such licenses shall be valid only for the period issued.

(Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N.S.)

Except as herein otherwise provided, when any business required herein to pay an annual or quarterly license fee shall commence to do business after the beginning of the current annual or quarterly license term, such license shall be issued for a period expiring on the last day of the current license term in which the same is issued and the license fee shall be an amount which bears the same proportion to the license fee for the full term as the number of months remaining in such term, including the month in which such license is issued, bears to the total number of months in the full term, provided the amount is not less than the amount set by City Council resolution.

(Ord. No. 2655 N.S. 2: Ord. No. 834 N.S.; Ord. No. 2295 N.S.)

Where any person, by use of advertising mediums, including but not limited to radio, television, signs, circulars, cards, telephone books or newspapers, shall advertise, hold out or represent that he/she is in business in the City, or when any person holds an active license or permit issued by a governmental agency indicating that he/she is in business in the City, or when any person makes a sale, takes an order, renders a commercial service or performs any other similar act within the City, then such facts shall be considered prima facie evidence that he/she is conducting a business in the City.

(Ord. No. 2655 N.S. 3)