Chapter 7.56 — LIBRARY RELIEF ACT OF 1980

Sections: 7.56.010 Title and purpose. 7.56.020 Definitions. 7.56.030 Imposition of tax.

7.56.035 Exemption for very low-income homeowners. 7.56.040 Limited authority of City Council to annually increase the tax hereby imposed to reflect cost of living and personal income growth increases. 7.56.050 Term of tax imposition. 7.56.060 Duties of the Director of Finance--Notice of decision. 7.56.070 Interest and penalties. 7.56.080 Refund of tax, penalty or interest paid more than once, or erroneously or illegally collected. 7.56.090 Collection of unpaid taxes. 7.56.100 Savings clause. 7.56.110 Violation--Penalty. 7.56.120 Increase appropriations limit.

This chapter may be cited as the "Library Relief Act of 1980." The tax imposed under this chapter is solely for the purpose of raising income and revenue which is necessary to assure the provision of the usual and current expenses of operating the City of Berkeley Library Services at the level which permits library operations six days a week at branch libraries, and seven days a week at the Central Library, holidays and summer Sundays excepted, and permits the purchase of library books and other materials at levels which are commensurate with the libraries’ hours of service and staffing.

Section 4 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution (Proposition 13) allows two-thirds of the qualified electors of the City to impose a special tax within the City, provided the special tax is not an ad valorem tax on real property or a transaction tax or a sales tax on the sale of real property within the City. The tax imposed by the Library Relief Act of 1980, as amended, is a special tax which is authorized for elector approval by Section 4 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution. (Ord. 5894-NS § 1, 1988; Ord. 5262-NS § 1, 1980)

For purposes of this chapter only the following terms shall be defined as set forth below:

A. "Building" shall mean any structure having a roof supported by columns or by walls and designed for the shelter or housing of any person, chattel or property of any kind. The word "building" includes the word "structure."

B. "Commercial," "Industrial" and "Institutional" shall refer to all buildings and improvements within the City that are not classified by this chapter as dwelling units.

C. "Dwelling" shall mean a building or portion of a building designed for human occupancy.

D. "Dwelling unit" shall mean a building or portion of a building designed for or occupied exclusively by one family.

E. "Family" shall mean one or more persons related by blood, marriage or adoption, and, in addition, any domestic servants or gratuitous guests thereof who are living together in a single dwelling unit and maintaining a common household. Family shall also mean all unrelated persons who live together in a single dwelling unit and maintain a common household.

F. "Improvements" shall mean all buildings or structures erected or affixed to the land.

G. "Square footage" shall mean the total gross horizontal areas of all floors, including usable basement and cellars, below the roof and within the outer surface of the main walls of buildings (or the center lines of party walls separating such buildings or portions thereof) or within lines drawn parallel to and two feet within the roof line of any building or portion thereof without walls (which includes, notwithstanding paragraph 3 below, the square footage of all porches), and including pedestrian access walkways or corridors, but excluding the following:

1. Areas used for off-street parking spaces or loading berths and driveways and maneuvering aisles relating
thereto.

2. Areas which are outdoor or semi-outdoor areas included as part of the building to provide a pleasant
and healthful environment for the occupants thereof and the neighborhood in which the building is located.
This exempted area is limited to stoops, balconies and to natural ground areas, terraces, pools and patios
which are landscaped and developed for active or passive recreational use, and which are accessible for use
by occupants of the building.

3. Arcades, porticoes, and similar open areas which are located at or near street level, which are accessible
to the general public, and which are not designed or used as sales, display, storage, service or production
areas.

H. "Structure" shall mean anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires location on the ground or attachment to something having location on the ground.

I. "Parcel" shall mean a unit of real estate in one ownership as shown on the most current official assessment role of the Alameda County Assessor. (Ord. 5894-NS § 1, 1988; Ord. 5262-NS § 2, 1980)

There is hereby imposed a tax on the square footage of all improvements in the City of Berkeley, except where the improvements are otherwise exempt from taxation by Section 7.56.100 and/or Section 7.56.035 of this chapter.

The rate of tax for the fiscal year 1989--90 to support the usual and current expenses of operating the City of Berkeley Library Services, is increased 5.7 percent over last year’s rate, and is hereby fixed and apportioned upon the square feet of improvements, as defined below:

A. For all dwelling units, the tax shall be imposed at the rate of $0.0761 per square foot.

B. For all industrial, commercial and institutional buildings, the tax shall be imposed at the rate of $0.1151 per square foot. (Ord. 5942-NS § 2, 1989; Ord. 5894-NS § 1, 1988; Ord. 5262-NS § 3, 1980)

Effective January 1, 1989, the tax imposed by this chapter shall not apply to any property owned by any person whose total personal income, from all sources, for the previous calendar year, does not exceed that level which shall constitute "very low-income," as may be established by resolution of the City Council. For the first year during which the exemption created by this section is in effect, the level which shall constitute "very low-income" shall not exceed seven thousand dollars. Any taxpayer claiming the exemption under this section shall be required to demonstrate his or her entitlement thereto annually by submitting an application and supporting documentation to the City Manager or his or her designee in the manner and at the time established in regulations and/or guidelines hereafter promulgated by the City Manager subject to review by the City Council in its discretion. Such applications shall be on forms provided by the City Manager, or his or her designee, and shall provide and/or be accompanied by such information as the City Manager shall require, including but not limited to, federal income tax returns and W-2 forms. (Ord. 5894-NS § 2, 1988)

hereby imposed to reflect cost of living and personal income growth increases.

A. Subject to the conditions of subsection B below, the City Council of the City of Berkeley is hereby authorized to increase the tax rates imposed by this chapter.

B. The City Council may increase the taxes imposed hereby only upon a finding that the cost of living in the immediate San Francisco Bay Area, or personal income growth in the state of California, as verified by official United States economic reports has increased; and the increase of the taxes imposed hereby shall not exceed this verified increase in the cost of living in the immediate San Francisco Bay Area, or personal income growth in California, whichever is greater. (Ord. 5894-NS § 1 (part), 1988; Ord. 5262-NS § 4, 1980)

The tax imposed by this chapter shall be operative on July 1, 1980. (Ord. 5894-NS § 1 (part), 1988; Ord. 5262-NS § 5, 1980)

It shall be the duty of the Director of Finance to collect and receive all taxes imposed by this chapter, and to keep an accurate record thereof.

The Director of Finance is hereby charged with the enforcement of this chapter, except as otherwise provided herein, and may prescribe, adopt and enforce rules and regulations relating to the administration and enforcement of this chapter, including provisions for the re-examination and correction of returns and payments. The Director of Finance may prescribe the extent to which any ruling or regulation shall be applied without retroactive effect.

Upon disallowing any claim submitted pursuant to Section 7.56.080, the Director of Finance shall mail written notice thereof to the claimant at his/her last known address. (Ord. 5262-NS § 6, 1980)

The City Council is authorized to have the taxes imposed by this chapter collected by the County of Alameda in conjunction with the county’s collection of property tax revenues for the City of Berkeley. In the event that the County of Alameda collects the taxes imposed by this chapter, the imposition of penalties, additional fees and interest upon persons who fail to remit any tax imposed by this chapter, or who fail to remit any delinquent remittance under this chapter, shall be subject to and governed by the rules, regulations and procedures utilized by the County of Alameda in its collection of property taxes for the City of Berkeley, and in its collection of this additional tax for the City of Berkeley.

Every penalty imposed and such interest as accrues under the provisions of this chapter shall become a part of the tax herein required to be paid. (Ord. 5262-NS § 7, 1980)

erroneously or illegally collected.

Whenever the amount of any tax, penalty or interest has been paid more than once or has been erroneously or illegally collected or received by the City under this chapter, it may be refunded provided a verified claim in writing therefor, stating the specific ground upon which said claim is founded, is filed with the director of finance within three years from the date of payment. The claim shall be audited by the director of finance and shall be made on forms provided by the Director of Finance. If the claim is approved by the Director of Finance, the excess amount collected or paid may be refunded or may be credited on any amounts then due and payable from the person from whom it was collected or by whom paid, and the balance may be refunded to such person, his/her administrators or executors. (Ord. 5628-NS § 1, 1984)

The amount of any tax, penalty, and interest imposed under the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed a debt to the City. Any person owing money under the provisions of this chapter shall be liable to an action brought in the name of the City for the recovery of such amount. (Ord. 5262-NS § 9, 1980)

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any person, association, corporation or to any property as to whom or which it is beyond the power of the City Council to impose the tax herein provided. If any sentence, clause, section or part of this chapter, or any tax against any individual or any of the several groups specified herein is found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality, or invalidity shall affect only such clause, sentence, section or part of this chapter and shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses, sections or other parts of this chapter. It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council of the City of Berkeley that this chapter would have been adopted had such unconstitutional, illegal or invalid sentence, clause, section or part thereof not been included herein. (Ord. 5262-NS § 10, 1980)

Any person who fails to perform any duty or obligation imposed by this chapter shall be guilty of an infraction as set forth in Chapter 1.20 of this code. The penalties provided in this section are in addition to the several remedies provided in this chapter. (Ord. 5894-NS § 1, 1988; Ord. 5716-NS § 3 (part), 1986; Ord. 5262-NS § 11, 1980)

Pursuant to California Constitution Article XIIIB, the appropriation limit for the City of Berkeley is hereby increased by the aggregate sum authorized to be levied by this special tax for each of the four fiscal years from 2000-01 through 2003-04. (Ord. 6599-NS § 1, 2000; Ord. 6353-NS, 1996; Ord. 6163-NS § 1, 1992; Ord. 5894-NS § 2, 1988)