Los Altos Municipal Code Ch. 4.04 Business Licenses Generally

This chapter is enacted solely to raise revenue for municipal purposes and is not intended for regulation.

(Prior code § 6-1.01)

For the purposes of this chapter, certain terms used herein are defined as follows:

A.

"Person" includes all domestic and foreign corporations, associations, syndicates, joint stock corporations, partnerships of every kind, clubs, Massachusetts business, or common law trusts, societies, and individuals transacting and carrying on any business in the city other than as an employee.

B.

"Business" includes professions, trades, and occupations and each and every kind of calling, whether or not carried on for profit.

(Prior code § 6-1.02)

Persons required to pay a license tax for transacting and carrying on any business under this chapter shall not be relieved from the payment of any license tax for the privilege of doing such business required under any other provision of this code and shall remain subject to the regulatory provisions of this code.

(Prior code § 6-1.03)

Neither the adoption of this chapter nor its superseding of any portion of any ordinance of the city shall in any manner be construed to affect prosecutions for violations of any ordinance committed prior to January 1, 1966, nor be construed as a waiver of any license or any penal provision applicable to any such violation, nor be construed to affect the validity of any bond or cash deposit required by any ordinance to be posted, filed, or deposited, and all rights and obligations thereunto appertaining shall continue in full force and effect.

(Prior code § 6-1.04)

A.

There are hereby imposed license taxes in the amounts hereinafter prescribed upon the businesses, trades, professions, callings, and occupations specified in this chapter. It shall be unlawful for any person to transact and carry on any business, trade, profession, calling, or occupation in the city without first having procured a license from the city so to do or without complying with any and all applicable provisions of this chapter.

B.

This section shall not be construed to require any person to obtain a license prior to doing business within the city if such requirement conflicts with applicable statutes of the United States or of the state.

C.

Persons not required to obtain a license prior to doing business within the city because of conflicts with applicable statutes of the United States or of the state shall be liable for payment of the tax imposed by this chapter.

(Prior code § 6-1.05)

A separate license shall be obtained 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.

(Prior code § 6-1.06)

Every person required to have a license under the provisions of this chapter shall make application for the same to the finance director. Upon the payment of the prescribed license tax, and after issuance of any other license or permit required by law, the finance director shall issue a license to the applicant.

(Prior code § 6-1.07)

Any person aggrieved by any decision of the finance director with respect to the issuance or refusal to issue a license may appeal to the council by filing a notice of appeal with the clerk of the council. The council shall thereupon fix a time and place for hearing such appeal. The clerk of the council shall give notice to such person of the time and place of the hearing by serving the notice personally or by depositing it in the United States Post Office in the city, postage prepaid, addressed to such person at his last known address. The council shall have the authority to determine all questions raised on such appeal. No determination shall conflict with any substantive provision of this chapter.

(Prior code § 6-1.08)

In addition to all other powers conferred upon him, the finance director shall have the power, for good cause shown, to extend the time for filing any required sworn statement for a period not to exceed thirty (30) days and in such case to waive any penalty which would otherwise have accrued. He shall have the further power, with the consent of the council, to compromise any claim as to the amount of license tax due.

(Prior code § 6-1.09)

Licenses issued pursuant to this chapter shall not be transferable; provided, however, where a license is issued authorizing a person to transact and carry on a business at a particular place, such licensee may

have the license amended to authorize the transacting and carrying on of such business under such license at some other location upon an application therefor and the payment of a fee in an amount set by the annual fee schedule. Any person who ceases doing business in the city shall remain liable for the tax until such person notifies the finance director of such fact in writing.

(Prior code § 6-1.10)

A duplicate license may be issued by the finance director to replace any license previously issued pursuant to this chapter which license has been lost or destroyed upon the filing by the licensee of a statement of such fact and the payment to the finance director of a duplicate license fee in an amount set by the annual fee schedule.

(Prior code § 6-1.11)

Unless otherwise specifically provided, all licenses shall be issued for a period of twelve (12) months and shall be renewed annually on the anniversary date of the first issue. Failure to receive a renewal notice from the city shall not excuse nonpayment or the imposition of late charges where applicable.

(Prior code § 6-1.12)

A.

For failure to pay a license tax within sixty (60) days after commencing business in the city, the finance director shall impose a penalty fee in an amount set by the annual fee schedule.

B.

For failure to renew a license tax on or before the due date, the finance director shall add a penalty of twenty-five (25) percent of such license tax for each month, or fraction thereof, after the due date thereof; provided, however, the amount of such penalty to be added in no event shall exceed fifty percent of the amount of the license tax due.

(Prior code § 6-1.13)

In determining the number of employees for the purpose of fixing the license tax due pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the employer shall take the number of employees earning wages during pay periods ending the nearest fifteenth (15th) day of each month as shown by form DE3 of the State Department of Employment or other form which may hereafter be adopted for reporting the payment due under the Unemployment Insurance Act for each month on the previous calendar year, adding the same, and dividing by twelve (12). If the employer has not previously engaged in business, he may estimate the average number of employees who will be employed by him for the following twelve (12) months.

(Prior code § 6-1.14)

A.

Retail Sales. Persons carrying on any business consisting of selling at retail any goods, wares, and merchandise or commodities not otherwise specifically licensed by this chapter shall pay an annual license tax based upon the average number of employees at the following rates:

Minimum (includes the owner or manager and five employees) — $75.00 annually; and

Additional employees, each — $10.00 annually.

B.

Services. Persons carrying on any business consisting of carrying on any trade, occupation, calling, or business not otherwise specifically licensed by this chapter shall pay an annual license tax based upon the average number of employees at the following rates:

Minimum (includes the owner or manager and five employees) — $75.00 annually; and

Additional employees, each — $10.00 annually.

C.

Utility Companies. Every cable television company, as defined in Section 215.5 of the Public Utilities Code of the state, and every public utility shall pay an annual license tax of seventy-five dollars ($75.00).

D.

Low Revenue Home Occupations. Persons carrying on home occupations normally classified as retail or wholesale sales or services with a gross annual revenue or income not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) shall pay an annual license tax of fifty dollars ($50.00). Verification of the revenue or income level shall be to the satisfaction of the finance director.

E.

Short-Term Arts, Crafts, Antique, and Similar Events. Persons sponsoring or carrying on an arts, crafts, or antique fair or similar event, not exceeding two days in duration, shall transmit to the city, no later than five days following such event, the sum of two dollars per vendor per day in such event, excluding such tax for vendors holding a current city business license and nonprofit organizations acting as vendors.

F.

In the case of secondhand or flea markets, vendors who sell merchandise originally purchased for their personal use and who have already paid the sales tax for such merchandise shall be exempt.

G.

Each sponsor shall submit a list of the names and addresses of each vendor participating in the event, and such list shall accompany the payment of the tax. Those sponsors who maintain a central cashier system which collects sales taxes and reports such taxes to the State Board of Equalization shall be exempt from this provision.

(Prior code § 6-1.15)

Persons carrying on any business consisting of manufacturing, packing, processing, or selling at wholesale, including utility companies, any goods, wares, merchandise, services, or commodities at a fixed place of business within the city shall pay an annual license tax based upon the average number of employees at the following rates:

A.

Minimum (includes the owner or manager and five employees) — $75.00 annually; and

B.

Additional employees, each — $10.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.16)

A.

For persons conducting, managing, carrying on, or engaging in any business, profession, or occupation set forth in this section, the annual license tax shall be based upon the average number of professional members and the average number of employees, computed as follows:

B.

For the first person practicing a profession and up to five nonprofessional salaried employees — $180.00 annually;

C.

For each additional person practicing a profession:

Commencing July 1, 1986, each — $25.00 annually;

Commencing July 1, 1987, each — $50.00 annually;

Commencing July 1, 1988, each — $75.00 annually;

D.

Additional salaried employees, each — $10.00 annually.

Accountants;

Abstract and title;

Advertising agents;

Appraisers;

Architects;

Assayers;

Attorneys at law;

Auditors;

Bacteriologists;

Chemists;

Certified public accountants;

Chiropodists;

Chiropractors;

Computer programmers (not including computer consulting sales and/or consulting);

Dental hygienists;

Dentists;

Dermatologists;

Detective agencies and/or investigators or private patrols;

Draftsmen;

Electrologists;

Engineers (civil, electrical, mining, chemical, structural, consulting, and hydraulic);

Entomologists;

Geologists;

Insurance and claims adjusters;

Landscape designers and architects;

Licensed marriage and/or family counselors;

Morticians and/or embalmers;

Naturopaths;

Opticians;

Optometrists;

Osteopaths;

Paralegals;

Physicians;

Physiotherapists;

Public stenographers;

Registered nurses;

Roentgenologists;

Surveyors;

Surgeons;

Taxidermists;

Termite inspectors;

Veterinarians; and

All other related businesses or professions with medical, dental, or legal training and/or education.

(Prior code § 6-1.17)

A.

Every person transacting and carrying on the business of contracting shall pay an annual license fee for the particular type thereof as follows:

General contractors — $150.00 annually; and

Subcontractors — $75.00 annually.

B.

Contractors or subcontractors not having a fixed place of business within the city who are engaging in short-term work, not exceeding six consecutive months, may apply for and obtain a business license at one-half of the annual rate for contractors or subcontractors, whichever is applicable, upon an adequate showing of qualification therefor pursuant to this section.

(Prior code § 6-1.18)

Every person not having a fixed place of business within the city who delivers goods, wares, or merchandise of any kind at wholesale or retail, or who provides any service by the use of vehicles in the

city, shall pay an annual license tax measured by the number of vehicles regularly used in the city in such business as follows:

A.

First vehicle — $75.00 annually; and

B.

Additional vehicles, each — $25.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.19)

Persons carrying on the business of brokering, selling, or buying real estate shall pay an annual license tax based upon the average number of brokers, salespersons, and employees at the following rates:

A.

First broker and up to five salaried employees — $180.00 annually;

B.

For each additional broker or salesperson:

Commencing July 1, 1986, each — $25.00 annually;

Commencing July 1, 1987, each — $50.00 annually; and

Commencing July 1, 1988, each — $75.00 annually; and

C.

Additional salaried employees, each — $10.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.20)

The license tax for barber shops, beauty salons, and nail salons shall be as follows:

A.

For the business, including the first chair — $75.00 annually; and

B.

For additional chairs being used, each — $25.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.21)

For operating any taxicab for carrying passengers for hire, the annual business license tax shall be as follows:

A.

For the first vehicle — $75.00 annually; and

B.

For additional vehicles, each — $25.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.22)

A.

Persons not within the provisions or prohibitions of this chapter or other laws of the city who sell and deliver articles to private residences or public places of business not owned by such vendors shall pay seventy-five dollars ($75.00) per quarter.

B.

Any scheme of club, prize, or membership which is substantially a sales technique or device and not carried on from an established business location shall pay two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225.00) per event.

(Prior code § 6-1.23)

The license tax for trucking shall be as follows:

A.

Less than two ton capacity (per unit) — $75.00 annually; and

Additional units, each — $25.00 annually; and

B.

Over two ton capacity (per unit) — $150.00 annually; and

Additional units, each — $50.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.24)

The license tax for publishers of newspapers or periodicals shall be one hundred eighty dollars ($180.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.25)

The license tax for junk and wrecking yards shall be two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.26)

The license tax for circuses, tent shows, and sideshows shall be five hundred fifty dollars ($550.00) per twenty-four (24) hours.

(Prior code § 6-1.27)

The license tax for apartment houses, hotels, motels, other authorized housing facilities, and rental units shall be as follows:

A.

Less than five dwelling units — $75.00 annually; and

B.

Each additional unit — $5.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.28)

Where an admission fee is charged or for other profit purposes, except those under the auspices and for the benefit solely of a social, civic, veteran, religious, or fraternal organization, the license tax shall be seventy-five dollars ($75.00) per twenty-four (24) hours and shall be payable before 5:00 p.m. of the preceding day.

(Prior code § 6-1.29)

The license tax for auctioneers shall be one hundred eighty dollars ($180.00) for the first day and seventy- five dollars ($75.00) for each additional day.

(Prior code § 6-1.30)

If occult and related sciences and practices are provided for a fee, remuneration, or any profit, except to any civic, veteran, religious, or fraternal organization, the license tax shall be one hundred eighty dollars ($180.00) per twenty-four (24) hours.

(Prior code § 6-1.31)

The license tax for amusement and recreation parlors and rinks shall be two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.32)

The license tax for billiard rooms, poolrooms, and bowling lanes shall be as follows:

A.

Per card table — $75.00 annually;

B.

Per pool table — $25.00 annually; and

C.

Per alley — $25.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.33)

The license tax for street vendors and peddlers shall be two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.34)

The license tax for riding academies, clubs, coaching, and/or schools shall be seventy-five dollars ($75.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.35)

A.

The license tax for theaters shall be as follows:

Less than 525 seats — $180.00 annually; and

525 seats or over — $225.00 annually.

B.

The license tax for drive-in theaters shall be as follows:

Less than 100 spaces — $225.00 annually; and

100 spaces or over — $335.00 annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.36)

The license tax for pawnbrokers shall be two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.37)

The license tax for house moving shall be seventy-five dollars ($75.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.38)

The license tax for all other lawful and authorized businesses, other than salaried employees or employees for wages, not included in this chapter shall be one hundred eighty dollars ($180.00) annually.

(Prior code § 6-1.39)

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require any farmer to procure a license for selling within the city the produce of his farm.

(Prior code § 6-1.40)

The operation of a business in a district not zoned for the operation of the business shall not excuse the operator from the payment of a license fee, nor shall the issuance of a license for such a business be deemed to be a consent or permit for the operation of such business in the district.

(Prior code § 6-1.41)

The violation of any federal statute, state statute, or of this code by any person holding a permit or license from the city, or by any of the holders of a permit or license in connection with the operation of a business for which a permit or license is issued, shall be grounds for the revocation of such permit or license after a hearing held before the council at which the licensee may have an opportunity to be heard. If at such hearing the council determines that such a violation has occurred or that the continuance of the holder of the permit or license in the business covered by the permit or license will be contrary to the city, it may declare such permit or license revoked. Written notice of such hearing shall be given five days before the hearing to the licensee or permit holder or any person employed in the place where the business in question is maintained. If service cannot be made in such manner, a copy of such notice may be mailed to such licensee or permittee at least five days prior to the hearing. Upon declaration of the council that the public health or safety requires it, and upon twenty-four (24) hours' written notice left at the place of business of the permit holder or license holder, a license or permit may be suspended by the council pending such hearing above referred to. The notice shall state the grounds of suspension.

(Prior code § 6-1.42)

Licenses for the operation of occult and related sciences; street vendors, riding academies and schools, billiard and/or poolrooms, bowling lanes, shooting galleries, boarding kennels, animal hospitals, veterinary hospitals, amusement and recreation parlors, skating rinks, and for the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages shall only be issued upon the approval of the council. Applications for such licenses shall be made in accordance with the applicable provisions of this code.

(Prior code § 6-1.43)

The license tax required by this chapter shall apply to persons whose business activity in the city consists solely of the receipt of mail or business conducted solely by telephone.

(Prior code § 6-1.44)

A.

It shall be the duty of the finance director to enforce each and all of the provisions of this chapter, and the chief of police shall render such assistance in such enforcement as from time to time may be required by the finance director or the council.

B.

The finance director, in the exercise of the duties imposed upon him or her by this chapter, may examine or cause to be examined all places of business in the city to ascertain whether the provisions of this chapter have been complied with.

(Prior code § 6-1.45)

The amount of any license tax and penalty imposed by the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed a debt to the city. An action may be commenced in the name of the city in any court of competent jurisdiction for the amount of any delinquent license tax and penalties.

(Prior code § 6-1.46)

All remedies prescribed in this chapter shall be cumulative, and the use of one or more remedies by the city shall not bar the use of any other remedy for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this chapter.

(Prior code § 6-1.47)

A.

Except as provided in this section, violation of any provision of this chapter shall be a misdemeanor and upon conviction, the violator shall be punished as provided by law.

B.

It is a misdemeanor for any person to knowingly or intentionally misrepresent, to any officer or employee of the city, any material fact in claiming exemption from this chapter or in applying for or renewing a license hereunder.

C.

It is unlawful and shall constitute an infraction, punishable as provided by law, for any person to fail to obtain or renew a business license when required to do so under this chapter.

D.

Every business license shall be posted in a conspicuous place at a fixed place of business, or affixed to or carried with any vehicle subject to the provisions of this chapter, or shall otherwise be in the possession of

the person in whose name said license is issued. It shall be an infraction to fail to post, affix, display or show a valid business license to any authorized official of the city when requested to do so.

(Prior code § 6-1.48)

No person shall be required to pay a license tax of more than three thousand two hundred dollars ($3,000.00) in any one year on account of any one license held by or issued to such person.

(Prior code § 6-1.50)