Beverly Hills Municipal Code Art. 3 Uniform Transient Occupancy Tax

This article shall be known as the UNIFORM TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX LAW OF THE CITY. (1962 Code § 8-3)

The following definitions shall apply to this article:

HOTEL: Any structure, or any portion of any structure, which is occupied, or intended or designed for occupancy, by transients for dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes and shall include any hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, studio hotel, bachelor hotel, lodging house, rooming house, apartment house, dormitory, public or private club, mobile home at a fixed location, or other similar structure, or portion thereof.

OCCUPANCY: The use or possession, or the right to the use or possession, of any room, or portion thereof, in any hotel for dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes.

OPERATOR: The person who is the proprietor of the hotel, whether in the capacity of owner, lessee, sublessee, mortgagee in possession, licensee, or any other capacity. Where the operator performs functions through a managing agent of any type of character other than an employee, the managing agent shall also be deemed an operator for the purposes of this article and shall have the same duties and liabilities as the principal. Compliance with the provisions of this article by either the principal or the managing agent shall be considered to be compliance by both.

PERSON: Any individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, association, social club, fraternal organization, joint stock company, corporation, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, trustee, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a unit.

RENT: The consideration charged, whether or not received, for the occupancy of space in a hotel valued in money, whether to be received in money, goods, labor, or otherwise, including all receipts, cash, credits, property, and services of any kind or nature, without any deduction therefrom.

TRANSIENT: Any person who exercises occupancy or is entitled to occupancy by reason of concession, permit, right of access, license, or other agreement for a period of thirty (30) consecutive calendar days or less, counting portions of calendar days as full days; provided, however, in the event of the existence of a rental agreement between the operator and any person for the occupancy of space of a hotel, which agreement permits such person to sublet such space to third persons either with or without the prior consent of the operator, then "transient" shall also mean such person to whom such space is sublet for dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes. Any such person so occupying space in a hotel shall be deemed to be a transient until the period of thirty (30) days has expired, unless there is an agreement in writing between the operator and the occupant providing for a longer period of occupancy. (1962 Code § 8-3)

For the privilege of occupancy in any hotel, each transient shall be subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of fourteen percent (14%) of the rent charged by the operator. Such tax shall constitute a debt owed by the transient to the city, which debt shall be extinguished only by payment to the operator or to the city. The transient shall pay the tax to the operator of the hotel at the time the rent is paid. If the rent is paid in installments, a proportionate share of the tax shall be paid with each installment. The unpaid tax shall be due upon the transient's ceasing to occupy space in the hotel. If for any reason the tax due is not paid to the operator of the hotel, the director of finance administration may require that such tax shall be paid directly to the city. (1962 Code § 8-3; amd. Ord. 91-O-2125, eff. 9-3-1991; Ord. 94-O-2189, eff. 2-1-1994; Ord. 96-O-2258, 5-7-1996)

No tax shall be imposed upon any person or any occupancy which is beyond the jurisdiction of the city to impose a tax pursuant to this article. Any exemption under this section shall require an exemption claim, on the form designated by the director of finance administration, signed by the operator under penalty of perjury and filed with the city. If the claim is legally justified, the director of finance administration shall approve the claim for exemption. (1962 Code § 8-3)

Each operator shall collect the tax imposed by the provisions of this article to the same extent and at the same time as the rent is collected from each transient. The amount of tax shall be separately stated from the amount of the rent charged, and each transient shall receive a receipt for payment from the operator. No operator of a hotel shall advertise or state in any manner, whether directly or indirectly, that the tax or any part thereof will be assumed or absorbed by the operator, or that it will not be added to the rent, or that, if added, any part will be refunded, except in the manner provided in this article. (1962 Code § 8-3)

The operator of any hotel renting an occupancy to transients shall register such hotel with the director of finance administration. A "transient occupancy registration certificate" shall then be issued to the operator, and the certificate shall at all times be posted in a conspicuous place on the premises. Such certificate shall contain the following information:

A. The name of the operator;

B. The address of the hotel;

C. The date upon which the certificate was issued; and

D. A statement as follows:

This Transient Occupancy Registration Certificate signifies that the person named on the face hereof has fulfilled the requirements of the Uniform Transient Occupancy Tax Law by registering with the City of Beverly Hills for the purpose of collecting from transients the Transient Occupancy Tax and remitting such tax to the director of finance administration of the City.

(1962 Code § 8-3)

Each operator shall, on or before the last day of the month immediately following the close of the prior month, or at the close of any shorter reporting period which may be designated by the director of finance administration, make a return on the form designated by the director of finance administration stating the total rents charged and received, and the amount of tax collected for transient occupancies during such period. At the time the return is filed, the full amount of the tax collected shall be remitted to the city. The director of finance administration may establish shorter reporting periods and require payment in the form of a cashier's check for any certificate holder when deemed necessary in order to ensure collection of the tax, and may require further information in such return. Returns and payments shall be due immediately upon cessation of business for any reason. All taxes collected by operators pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be held in trust for the account of the city until payment thereof is made to the city. (1962 Code § 8-3; amd. Ord. 92-O-2155, eff. 12-11-1992)

A. Any operator who fails to remit any tax imposed by the provisions of this article within the designated time shall pay a delinquency penalty as follows:

1. On the first day of the first month that the tax is due and on each subsequent calendar day, one percent (1%) of the tax, or unpaid portion thereof; provided, however, the amount of such penalty to be added for the first month of delinquency shall in no event exceed ten percent (10%) of the amount of the tax due.

2. On the first day of the second month that the tax is due and on the first day of each subsequent month, ten percent (10%) of the tax, or unpaid portion thereof; provided, however, the amount of all penalties to be added shall in no event exceed fifty percent (50%) of the amount of the tax due.

B. For purposes of this article, postmarks of the United States postal service shall be accepted as the date of payment made, provided the transmitting envelope contains a postage cancellation stamp showing cancellation not later than eleven fifty nine o'clock (11:59) P.M. on the due date.

C. If the director of finance administration shall determine that the nonpayment of any remittance due pursuant to the provisions of this article is due to fraud, an additional penalty in the amount of twenty five percent (25%) of the amount of the tax shall be added thereto in addition to the penalties set forth in subsection A of this section.

D. In addition to the penalties imposed, any operator who fails to timely remit any tax imposed by the provisions of this article shall pay interest at the rate of one and one-half percent (11/2%) per month, or fraction thereof, on the amount of the tax, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which the remittance first became delinquent until paid.

E. Every penalty imposed, and all interest which accrues pursuant to the provisions of this section shall become a part of the tax required to be paid by the provisions of this article. (1962 Code § 8-3; amd. Ord. 92-O-2155, eff. 12-11-1992)

If any operator fails or refuses to collect the tax imposed by this article, or to make within the time provided herein, any report or remittance of such tax, or any portion thereof, the director of finance administration shall proceed to obtain facts and information on which to base an estimate of the tax due. The director of finance administration shall then proceed to determine and assess against such operator the tax, interest, and penalties provided for by the provisions of this article. The director of finance administration shall then notify the operator of the amount so assessed in writing by personal service or in accordance with title 1, chapter 5, article 1 of this code. Within ten (10) days after the service or mailing of such notice, the operator may file an application with the director of finance administration for a hearing and reconsideration of the amount assessed. If an application by the operator for a hearing is not made within the time prescribed, the tax, interest, and penalties, if any, as determined by the director of finance administration shall become final and conclusive and immediately be due and payable. When a hearing is requested, the director of finance administration shall hold a hearing upon at least five (5) days' written notice of such hearing to the operator. The notice shall direct the operator to show cause, at the time and place fixed for the hearing, why the amount as determined by the director of finance administration should not be imposed. The operator shall be afforded the opportunity to testify and present evidence at the hearing relative to any tax, penalty, or interest imposed by the director of finance administration. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the director of finance administration shall reconsider the imposition of any tax, penalty, or interest based on the evidence presented at the hearing, and shall then impose the appropriate tax, penalty, and interest, and shall notify the operator of the amount due and reasons therefore in accordance with title 1, chapter 5, article 1 of this code. The amount determined by the director of finance administration shall be due and payable on the fifteenth day after mailing of notice to the operator, unless the decision of the director of finance administration is appealed to the city council pursuant to section 3-1-310 of this article. (1962 Code § 8-3)

Any operator aggrieved by any decision of the director of finance administration relative to the amounts of such tax, interest, or penalties may appeal to the council as provided in title 1, chapter 4, article 1 of this code. (1962 Code § 8-3)

It shall be the duty of every operator liable for the collection and payment to the city of any tax imposed by the provisions of this article to keep and preserve, for a period of three (3) years thereafter, all records pertaining to the amount of such tax for which such operator is liable. The director of finance administration shall have the right to inspect such records at all reasonable times. (1962 Code § 8-3)

A. Whenever the amount of any tax, interest, or penalty imposed by this article has been overpaid, or paid more than once, or erroneously or illegally collected or received by the city, a claim for refund may be filed with the city. The claim shall be on the form designated by the director of finance administration, shall state the specific grounds upon which the claim is based, shall be signed under penalty of perjury, and shall be filed with the director of finance within three (3) years of payment.

B. An operator may claim a refund where the person from whom the tax was collected was not a transient, provided, however, a refund shall not be allowed unless the amount of the tax so collected has either been refunded to the transient or credited to rent subsequently payable by the transient to the operator.

C. A transient may obtain a refund of taxes overpaid, paid more than once, or erroneously or illegally collected or received by the city by filing a claim in the manner provided in subsection A of this section, but only when the tax was paid by the transient directly to the director of finance administration or when the transient, having paid the tax to the operator, establishes to the satisfaction of the director of finance administration that the transient has been unable to obtain a refund from the operator who collected the tax.

D. No refund shall be paid pursuant to the provisions of this section unless a claim is filed as provided in this section and the claimant establishes entitlement thereto by written records. (1962 Code § 8-3)

Any tax required to be paid by any transient pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be deemed a debt owed by the transient to the city. Any such tax collected by an operator which has not been paid to the city shall be deemed a debt owed by the operator to the city. Any person owing money to the city pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be liable to an action brought in the name of the city for the recovery of such amount. (1962 Code § 8-3)