Los Alamitos Municipal Code Art. III Requirements and Procedures

A. No business license shall be issued for the conducting of any of the following businesses until approval shall have first been obtained from the city council granting the applicant the right to do business:

1. Recreation or amusement center;

2. Outside art show, exhibitions;

3. Circuses, carnivals, menageries, side shows, parades;

4. Boxing, wrestling, sparring exhibitions;

5. Dance halls, public dances;

6. Skating rinks;

7. Outdoor musical or special events;

B. The city council may, by minute action, authorize one or more city officials to investigate and approve issuance of a license for any of the foregoing businesses, in which case council approval shall not be required.

C. Whenever any person desires to open or keep any business specified in this section, he shall petition the city council for specific authorization. The petition shall set forth: (1) the name of the applicant, (2) the character of the business, (3) the location where the business is to be conducted, and (4) any other pertinent information required by the license collector. Upon hearing such a petition the city council may grant approval in whole or in part and may impose whatever conditions are deemed reasonable by the city council in order to assure that the business is conducted in accordance with all state and local laws and that the operation of the subject business will not be to the detriment of the public. Should any business specified in this section be found by the city council to be dangerous to or to have an adverse effect on the public health, safety or welfare, or to be dangerous to surrounding property, the city council may deny approval of the petition and of the requested business license.

D. Notice of and conduct of the hearing shall be as set forth in Section 5.04.360. If the city council denies the application, written findings and conclusions shall be made, setting forth the reasons for such denial.

E. The city manager may also recommend to the city council that an individual business establishment shall be subject to council approval when, in his judgment, any such business establishment not specifically included in this section, has a detrimental effect upon the public health, safety or welfare.

F. Any applicant for a license to carry on any business specified hereinabove, or any other business which is similar thereto in the opinion of the city council or the city manager may be required to be fingerprinted by the police department of the city and the applicant may also be asked to answer such reasonable questions as may be put to him concerning his past history and method of business whether it be the same or a different business than the one applied for. Such application may also be referred to other departments of the city or any public agency for investigation and report. Employees of the applicant may also be required to be fingerprinted by the city police department and may be required to answer reasonable questions concerning the employee's past record of employment.

G. The city council may, in addition to the payment of the required license tax, require from such businesses or activities as previously enumerated (or businesses of a similar nature) reasonable investigation fees based on standards set by the city manager and payable to the city prior to the police or departmental investigation. Such fees are not refundable. The city council may also require and levy a reasonable charge for special police protection. The city council may also require such business or activities to provide public liability and property damage insurance in an amount to be determined by the city council.

(Ord. 354 § 18, 1977; Ord. 374 § 1, 1978; Ord. 511 § 3, 1988)

A. Application for License. Before any license is issued to any person, such person shall complete and file a written application with the license collector which shall contain the following:

1. The exact nature or kind of business for which a license is requested and the number of persons employed by the business;

2. The place where such business is to be carried on, and if the same is not to be carried on at any permanent place of business, the place of residence of the owners of same;

3. In the event that application is made for the issuance of a license to a person doing business under a fictitious name, the application shall set forth the names and places of residence of those owning those business;

4. In the event that the application is made for the issuance of a license to a corporation or a partnership, the application shall set forth the names and places of residence of the officers or partners thereof;

5. Such other information as may be deemed necessary which may include a brief personal record of the applicant.

B. Processing of Applications. Upon application being made as above provided and when the applicant has tendered the license fee required, the license collector shall process the application. If it is an application for a license for a new business or if he deems it necessary, he shall submit it to other departments so as to determine whether the business and premises to be occupied meet the requirements of state law and city ordinances. If it is a license requiring city council approval, it shall be transmitted to the city council only after it has been approved by such other departments, and at the time of application the applicant shall be advised to petition the city council for issuance of such license in the form and manner as hereafter provided in this chapter.

C. Issuance of License. Upon receiving the approval of departments to which the application may have been referred and, where necessary, the approval of the city council, the license collector shall prepare and issue the license showing upon the face of each license the following: (1) the person to whom the license is issued; (2) the kind of business licensed by either code number or other identification; (3) names and locations of such business; (4) the date of issuance of the license; and (5) the date of expiration of such license.

D. Effect of Mistake. In no case shall any mistake by any officer or employee of the city in stating the amount of a license prevent or prejudice the collection by the city of what should be actually due from any person carrying on a business subject to a license under the provisions of this chapter.

E. Void License. The city shall not be bound by the mistake of any officer or employee of the city in issuing a license contrary to the terms of this chapter, or to the terms of any zoning or other ordinances of the city. Such license shall be null and void.

(Ord. 354 § 12, 1977; Ord. 511 § 3, 1988)

No application, statement or business record shall be conclusive as to the matters set forth herein, nor shall the filing of the same preclude the city from collecting by appropriate action such sum as is actually due and payable hereunder. Such record and each of the several items therein contained, shall be subject to audit and verification by the license collector, his deputies or authorized employees of the city, who are authorized to examine, audit and inspect such books and records of any license or applicant for license, as may be necessary in their judgment to verify or ascertain the amount of license tax due. Such records shall be maintained for a period of at least three years.

(Ord. 354 § 23, 1977; Ord. 511 § 4, 1988)

It is unlawful for the license collector or any person having an administrative duty under the provisions of this chapter to make known in any manner whatever the business affairs, operations or information obtained by an investigation of records and equipment of any person required to obtain a license, or pay a license tax, or any other person visited or examined in the discharge of official duty, or the amount or source of income, profits, losses, expenditures or any particular thereof, set forth in any statement or application, or to permit any statement or application, or copy of either, or any book containing any abstract or particulars thereof to be seen or examined by any person; provided, that nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent:

A. The disclosure to, or the examination of records and equipment by, another city official, employee or agent for collection of taxes for the sole purpose of administering or enforcing any provisions of this chapter or collecting taxes imposed hereunder;

B. The disclosure of information to, or the examination of records by, federal or state officials, or the tax officials of another city or county, or city and county, if a reciprocal arrangement exists, or to a grant jury or court of law, upon subpoena;

C. The disclosure of information and results of examination of records of particular taxpayers, or relating to particular taxpayers, to a court of law in a proceeding brought to determine the existence or amount of any license tax liability of the particular taxpayers to the city;

D. The disclosure after the filing of a written request to that effect, to the taxpayer him or herself, or to his successors, receivers, trustees, executors, administrators, assignees and guarantors, if directly interested, of information as to the items included in the measure of any paid tax, any unpaid tax or amounts of tax required to be collected, interest and penalties; further provided, however, that the city attorney approves each such disclosure and that the license collector may refuse to make any disclosure referred to in this subsection when in his opinion the public interest would suffer thereby;

E. The disclosure of the names and addresses of persons to whom licenses have been issued, and the general type or nature of their business, unless the city council has adopted a position of policy that such disclosure shall not be made;

F. The disclosure by way of public meeting or otherwise of such information as may be necessary to the city council in order to permit it to be fully advised as to the facts when a taxpayer files a claim for refund of license taxes, or submits an offer of compromise with regard to a claim asserted against him by the city for license taxes, or when acting upon any other matter;

G. The disclosure of general statistics regarding taxes collected or business done in the city.

(Ord. 354 § 22, 1977)

A. Time, Place and Medium of Payment. All business license taxes required by this chapter shall be payable in advance in lawful money of the United States.

B. Term of License. All annual licenses shall be for the period of one year beginning August 1st and ending July 31st.

C. Terms of New License. All new, annual licenses shall be for the period of time remaining in the current calendar year and shall expire on July 31st.

D. Grace Period for Renewals. All business license renewal taxes shall be due and payable on the first day of August each year, and shall become delinquent on the first day of September each year. Remittances sent by mail bearing a postmark date no later than August 31st will be considered nondelinquent and mail postmarked later than August 31st will be considered delinquent.

All other business license taxes shall be due and payable on the first day the business is commenced or on the first day of the license term for which the license is required and no grace period shall be allowed.

E. License Tax for New Business. All new businesses for which flat rate fees are made the basis for fixing the amount of the license tax shall pay an amount equal to one-fourth of the annual tax therefor for each quarter and fraction of a quarter remaining in the license period, but in no case shall the amount be less than $10.

F. Refunds of Overpayments. No refund of an overpayment shall be allowed, in whole or in part, unless a claim for refund is filed with the license collector within a period of two years from the date of the claimed overpayment, and all such claims for refund of the amount of overpayment must be filed with the license collector on forms furnished by him and in the manner prescribed by him. Upon the filing of such claim and when it has been determined that an overpayment has been made, the license collector may authorize refund of the amount overpaid.

G. No Refund Upon Termination of Business. The business license taxes under the terms of this chapter are not refundable upon termination of business or for any unused portion or term of a license period.

(Ord. 354 § 16, 1977)

A. Every person or company engaged in business as defined by this chapter at a specific location(s) within the city, shall pay the license tax for the period stated in the amounts prescribed in the following sections.

B. This article shall not apply to those activities exempted in Article IV of this chapter.

C. Unless otherwise indicated, the license tax period shall be for one year. The license tax year shall commence on August 1st. An authorized quarterly or six-month license tax period shall commence on the first day of the month in which the tax is first due.

(Ord. 354 § 33, 1977)

A. Unless otherwise specifically provided, all annual license taxes, under the provisions of this chapter, shall be due and payable on the first day of August of each year; except that license taxes covering new operations, commenced after the first day of August, shall be due and payable by the applicant prior to commencing the operation of such business.

B. An annual license tax covering new operations commenced after the first day of August may be prorated for the balance of the license period. The basis for prorating the balance of the license tax period is the unexpired quarter year using the first day of May, August and November as the beginning quarter dates.

C. A six-month license tax is due and payable on the first day of the first month in which the license is effective.

D. A three-month license tax is due and payable on the first day of the first month in which the license is effective.

E. Daily license taxes are due for each day in advance of the event.

(Ord. 354 § 34, 1977)

A. Retail, wholesale, service and manufacturing businesses shall be taxed according to the following schedule unless specifically listed in subsequent sections. The tax rate shall be fixed by determining the number of employees in the business.

B. Professional, Semi-Professional and Related Businesses Within the City. Every person conducting, managing, operating or carrying on a business within the city which is enumerated in this subsection, shall pay an annual license fee of $50 per professional and $4 per each nonprofessional employee:

1. Accounting services (including but not limited to auditor, certified public accountant, accountant as a principal);

2. Advertising council;

3. Agricultural adviser/counselor;

4. Appraiser;

5. Architectural services (including but not limited to architect, designer as a principal, draftsman as a principal, landscape architect);

6. Assayer;

7. Attorney at law;

8. Bail bond broker;

9. Chemist;

10. Claims adjuster;

11. Dealers in stocks, bonds and securities and investment counseling;

12. Dental services (including but not limited to dental laboratory, dentist, oral surgeon, orthodontist);

13. Detectives and detective agencies;

14. Engineering services (including but not limited to chemical, civic, construction, consulting, designer, electrical and/or mechanical engineering);

15. Geologist;

16. Gemologist, lapidary;

17. Insurance adjuster or insurance broker;

18. Interior decorator;

19. Mortician;

20. Medical services (including but not limited to chiropodist, chirothesian, optician, occulist, optometrist, osteopath, physician, surgeon and/or naturopath;

21. Real estate broker; each real estate sales person or agent occupying a desk or station within a real estate brokerage shall pay an annual license fee equal to thirty-three and one-third (331/3) percent of the annual real estate broker fee;

22. Surveyor;

23. Taxidermist;

24. Veterinarian;

25. Beauty, nail and hair salon/shop; each subcontractor or other nonemployee performing beauty, nail or hair treatments or services within a salon or shop shall pay an annual license fee equal to thirty-three and one-third (331/3) percent of the salon/shop fee;

26. Contract instructors/teachers/trainers of the arts, music, craft, dance, physical fitness business or professions, excluding city contractors, shall pay an annual license fee equal to thirty-three and one-third (331/3) percent of the fee established by this subsection.

C. Professional, Semi-Professional and Related Business Outside City. All businesses enumerated in subsection B of this section but located outside the city and doing business inside the city shall be charged $25 for an annual license.

D. Coin-Operated Machines.

1. Vending (dispensing a product)—$10.00/machine;

2. Amusement — $10.00/machine;

3. Self-service (laundry, dry cleaning, etc.) — $25.00 per business location plus $.50/machine.

E. Pick-Up and Delivery. Vehicles operated as an incidental part of a business licensed and taxed under any other provision of this chapter or any other ordinance of the city shall not be separately licensed and taxed.

Every person or company, except as provided for above, conducting a pick-up and/or delivery service, service by means of motor vehicle, wagon or any other conveyance, shall pay a license tax as follows:

1. Place of business inside city: tax rate—$30.00/vehicle.

2. Place of business outside city: tax rate—$20.00/vehicle.

F. Advertising or Publicity.

1. Place of Business Within the City. Advertising business shall be subject to the rates described in subsection A of this section if located within the city.

2. Place of Business Outside the City.

G. Contracting and Building.

H. Apartments, Motels, Hotels, Rooming Houses, Mobilehome Park and Residential Buildings Having Rental Spaces.

All rental units, throughout the city, under a single ownership shall be computed on a flat fee of $25 for the first four units and $3 per unit for any additional units. The ownership of separate apartment or rental complexes shall not be administered as branch establishments.

I. Business Not Specified. For carrying on or conducting any business of any kind not otherwise specifically licensed or exempted by other provisions of this chapter, the tax thereon shall be computed in accordance with the provisions of subsection A of this section.

J. The rate of tax set forth in this section (as increased annually pursuant to Ordinance No. 511) shall be automatically increased each year by a percentage which shall be equal to the percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Wage Earners (CPIU) as shall be reflected in the most recent report for the Los Angeles-Anaheim-Riverside Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area using December 1996 as the base year; provided, however, that in no event shall the increase in the rate of tax exceed five percent in any one year. The annual rate increase shall be calculated by dividing the consumer price index for December of each current year by the base year with the resulting figure representing the percentage increase for the tax due the following July.

K. The finance officer shall prepare a schedule setting forth the rates of tax to be charged in accordance with subsection J of this section.

(Ord. 354 § 35, 1977; Ord. 367 § 1, 1977; Ord. 511 §§ 5—8, 1988; Ord. 551 §§ 1—3, 1992; Ord. 601 § 1, 1996)

Computation for Part-Time Employees. For the purposes of computing the license fee under subsection A of Section 5.04.150, part-time employees shall each be counted as one-half an employee and under subsection B of Section 5.04.150, one-half of the stated fee shall be charged for each part-time employee.

(Ord. 354 § 36, 1977)

A. Posting of License. Any licensee engaged in business at a fixed place of business shall keep the license issued posted in a conspicuous place upon the premises where such business is conducted.

B. Carrying of License. Any person engaged in business in the city but not operating from a fixed place of business shall keep the business license issued to him upon his person at all times while engaged in such business.

C. Affixing of License Stickers, Tags, Plates or Decals. Whenever identifying stickers, tags, plates or decals have been issued for each vehicle, device, machine or other piece of equipment included in the measure of a license tax, the person to whom such stickers, tags, plates or decals have been issued shall keep firmly affixed upon each vehicle, device, machine or piece of equipment the identifying sticker, tag, plate or decal which has been issued therefor at such locations as are designated by the license collector. Such sticker, tag, plate or decal shall not be removed from any vehicle, device, machine or piece of equipment kept in use, during the period for which the sticker, tag, plate or decal is issued. No person shall fail to affix as required herein any identifying sticker, tag, plate or decal to the vehicle, device, machine or piece of equipment, for which it has been issued at the location designated by the license collector, or to give away, sell or transfer such identifying sticker, tag, plate or decal to another person, or to permit its use by another person.

D. Showing of License to Authorized Officer. Any licensee having a license under the provisions of this chapter shall produce and exhibit the same whenever requested to do so by any police officer, or by any officer authorized to issue and inspect licenses or to collect license taxes.

(Ord. 354 § 13, 1977)

A duplicate business license may be issued by the license collector to replace any license previously issued which has been lost or destroyed, upon the applicant filing an affidavit attesting to such fact, and at the time of filing such affidavit paying to the license collector a duplicate license fee as established by resolution of the city council.

(Ord. 354 § 14, 1977; Ord. 511 § 7, 1988; Ord. 661 § 1, 2002)

A. Change of Owner. The license collector may, upon receipt of a transfer fee established by resolution of the city council, authorize the transfer or assignment of a business license to any other person by issuing a transfer business license, when it appears to his or her satisfaction that the original applicant for such license has sold or otherwise disposed of his or her interest in the trade, calling, profession, occupation or business for which such license was issued, and that the transferee or assignee thereof has complied with all other provisions of this chapter.

B. Changed Location. Where a license is issued authorizing a person to transact and carry on a business at a particular place, such licensee shall, upon application therefor and paying a fee as established by resolution of the city council, have the license amended to authorize the transacting and carrying on of such business under said license at some other location to which the business is to be moved, subject to approval as necessary by other departments as outlined in Section 5.04.090.

(Ord. 354 § 15, 1977; Ord. 511 § 8, 1988; Ord. 661 § 2, 2002; Ord. 2017-12 § 2, 2017)