Gilroy Municipal Code § 13.1 Definitions

Unless it is apparent from the context that another meaning is intended, the following words when used herein shall have the meaning attached to them by this section:

(a)

“Business”

means professions, trades, and occupations and all and every kind of calling carried on for profit or livelihood.

(b)

“Fixed place of business”

is defined to be the premises within the city where a business is continuously conducted from day to day and regularly kept open for the purposes of such business, and is intended to and shall include apartment houses, auto courts, hotels, inns, motels, motor courts, group residences, and trailer parks.

(c)

Transient Business.

Every business not conducted at a fixed place of business is, for the purposes of this chapter, termed a “transient business,” whether the person conducting such transient business is or is not, a resident of the city.

(d)

Gross Receipts.

As used in this chapter, “gross receipts” shall mean the total amount of the sale price of all sales and the total amount charged or received for the performance of any act, service, or employment of whatever nature it may be for which a charge is made or credit allowed, whether or not such service, act or employment is done as a part of or in connection with the sale of materials, goods, wares, or merchandise. Included in “gross receipts” shall be all receipts, cash, credits, and property of any kind or nature, and any amount for which credit is allowed by the seller to the purchaser without any deduction therefrom on account of the cost of the property sold, the cost of the materials used, labor or service costs, interest paid or payable, or losses or other expenses whatsoever. Excluded from “gross receipts” shall be cash discounts allowed and taken on sales; any tax required by law to be included in or added to the purchase price and collected from the consumer or purchaser; and such part of the sale price of property returned by purchasers upon recision of the contract of sale as is refunded either in cash or by credit.

(Ord. No. 646, § 1; Ord. No. 900, § 1, 11-2-1970; Ord. No. 85-7, §§ 1, 2, 2-19-1985; Ord. No. 91-4, § 1, 3-4-1991)

The carrying on of any business, trade, calling, profession, or occupation without first having procured a license from the city so to do, or without complying with any and all regulations of such business, trade, calling, profession, or occupation, shall be deemed a separate violation of this chapter for each and every day that such business, trade, calling, profession, or occupation is carried on.

(Ord. No. 646, § 2; Ord. No. 91-4, § 2, 3-4-1991)

Editor’s note: Ord. No. 91-4, § 3, adopted March 4, 1991, repealed § 13.3 in its entirety. Former § 13.3 was concerned with separate violations of chapter, and derived from § 3 of Ord. No. 646.

(a) A separate license must be obtained for each branch or location of a fixed place of business transacted and carried on, and for each separate type of business at the same location, and each license shall authorize the licensee to transact and carry on only the business licensed thereby at the location or in the manner designated in such license; provided, the warehouses and distributing plants used in connection with and identical to a business licensed under the provisions of this chapter shall not be deemed to be separate places of business or branch establishments. Every person engaging in a business at a fixed place of business in the city, as herein defined, and who has procured a license therefor, shall have the right to deliver the goods, wares or merchandise for which such license was issued, at any place in the city, without procuring any additional license therefor.

(b) Every person engaging in any transient business in the city, as herein defined, and who has procured a license therefor, shall have the right to sell the goods, wares or merchandise or engage in the business for which such transient license was issued at a fixed place of business without procuring any additional license therefor.

(c) In the issuance of transient licenses and licenses for fixed places of business, no discrimination or distinction shall ever be made against nonresidents of the city in favor of residents of the city, and residents and nonresidents of the city shall be entitled to equal rights in all matters relating to the issuances of licenses.

(Ord. No. 646, § 4; Ord. No. 91-4, § 4, 3-4-1991)

It shall be the duty of the license collector to issue a license under this chapter for every person liable to pay a license hereunder, and to state in each license the period of time covered thereby, the name of the person to whom issued, the name of the business licensed, the character of business licensed, and the location or place of business where the same is to be carried on.

(Ord. No. 646, § 5; Ord. No. 85-7, § 3, 2-19-1985)

No license granted or issued under any provision of this chapter shall be in any manner transferred or assigned, or authorize any person, other than is therein mentioned or named to carry on the licensed business.

(Ord. No. 646, § 6)

Every person having a license under the provisions of this chapter for carrying on business at a fixed place of business, shall keep such license posted for exhibition while in force in some conspicuous part of such place of business. Every person having such a license and not having a fixed place of business, shall carry such license with him at all times while carrying on the business for which the same was granted. Every person having a license shall produce and exhibit the license, when applying for a renewal thereof, and whenever requested to do so by any police officer, or by any officer authorized to issue, inspect, or collect licenses.

(Ord. No. 646, § 7; Ord. No. 91-4, § 5, 3-4-1991)

Editor’s note: Ord. No. 91-4, § 6, adopted March 4, 1991, repealed § 13.8 in its entirety. Former § 13.8 was concerned with a license for being a debt to the city, and derived from § 8 of Ord. No. 646.

The conviction and punishment of any person for transacting any business without a license shall not excuse or exempt such person from the payment of such license fee due or unpaid at the time of such conviction, and nothing herein shall prevent a criminal prosecution for any violation of the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 646, § 9)

All license fees shall be paid in advance in lawful money of the United States at the office of the license collector of the city, or such other place as the city council may subsequently designate by resolution or ordinance.

(Ord. No. 646, § 10)

On the first day of January of each year, every person, required to pay a general business license tax as provided by section 13.39 shall file with the license collector a verified affidavit in writing, showing the gross annual receipts of the business of such person for which a license tax is required to be paid, for the previous year. If the business be owned, conducted, or carried on, by a corporation, such affidavit must be sworn to and filed by its president, vice-president, secretary, assistant secretary, treasurer, assistant treasurer, chief accounting officer, or managing agent.

(Ord. No. 646, § 12; Ord. No. 85-7, § 4, 2-19-1985)

The license collector, or any deputy license collector, may, in all cases, examine the books and accounts of any person required to file such affidavit, for the purpose of verifying the same or for the purpose of determining the amount of gross receipts of such person. If any person owning, conducting, or carrying on, any business in the city, and required to file such affidavit as provided in this chapter, shall fail, neglect, or refuse to file any such affidavit with the license collector within thirty (30) days after the same is required to be filed as herein provided, or shall fail or refuse to permit the license collector, or any deputy license collector, to examine the books and accounts of such business for the purpose of verifying any filed affidavit or determining the amount of gross receipts, the license collector shall arbitrarily assess the license tax on such business at the rate of two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) per year until such affidavit is filed, examination of books and accounts permitted and the proper fee and penalties are determined and paid.

(Ord. No. 646, § 12; Ord. No. 85-7, § 5, 2-19-1985)

All affidavits filed pursuant to the provisions of the two preceding sections shall be confidential and shall not be subject to public inspection. It shall be the duty of the license collector to so preserve and keep the affidavits that the contents thereof may not become known except to the person charged by law with the administration of this chapter, and except when it is necessary to divulge such information for the purposes of enforcing the provisions of this chapter. No license issued shall in any manner indicate thereon the amount of the license tax paid, when the amount thereof is established by the amount of gross monthly receipts.

(Ord. No. 646, § 12)

§ 13.14. through § 13.15. (Reserved)

Editor’s note: Ord. No. 91-4, § 7, adopted March 4, 1991, repealed § 13.14 and § 13.15 in their entirety. Former § 13.14 was concerned with the necessity of obtaining a license and paying license tax, and derived from § 13 of Ord. No. 646. Former § 13.15 was concerned with the signature of mayor and countersignature, and derived from § 14 of Ord. No. 646; and Ord. No. 85-7, § 6, adopted February 19, 1985.

The license collector shall keep in his office a license record in which shall be entered the names of all persons to whom a license is issued under the provisions of this chapter, the date of issuance of such license, the nature of the business, show, exhibition or game, thereby licensed, the time for which the license is issued, the amount of license tax paid therefor, the location or place of business where the same is to be carried on, and the name of such business.

(Ord. No. 646, § 15; Ord. No. 85-7, § 7, 2-19-1985)

The license collector shall make diligent effort to discover all persons engaged in conducting or carrying on any business or game or exhibition or exhibiting any show, in the city, for which a license is required by the provisions of this chapter, and shall enforce collection of all unpaid license fees.

(Ord. No. 646, § 16; Ord. No. 85-7, § 8, 2-19-1985)

In addition to the other duties imposed upon them by law, all police officers and building inspectors of the city shall be ex officio license inspectors and shall exercise due diligence to cause the provisions of this chapter to be carried into effect, and shall, upon the request of the city attorney, procure such evidence as may be required for the prosecution of any civil or criminal action brought under the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 646, § 17; Ord. No. 85-7, § 9, 2-19-1985)

Every police officer shall examine and ascertain whether every business, show, exhibition and game requiring a license, which may come to his knowledge, is duly licensed; and shall forthwith report in writing to the license collector the name of any person whom he may discover engaged in, conducting or carrying on any such business or game or exhibiting any such show or exhibition without having the license therefor required by law.

(Ord. No. 646, § 17; Ord. No. 85-7, § 10, 2-19-1985)

The city administrator may at any time bring suit in the name of the city for the recovery of license tax. In such actions a penalty of fifty (50) percent and costs shall be added to the amount of any judgment recovered by the city in addition to any other penalty or penalties then due or owing.

(Ord. No. 646, § 18; Ord. No. 85-7, § 11, 2-19-1985; Ord. No. 91-4, § 8, 3-4-1991)

In all suits instituted by the city as provided in the preceding section for the collection or the recovery of any license tax hereby imposed, the license collector, or the city attorney may make the necessary affidavit for a writ of attachment against the property of the defendant therein, and such writ shall thereupon be issued without any undertaking or other security being given by or on behalf of the city.

(Ord. No. 646, § 19)