DENALI BOROUGH, ALASKA
ORDINANCE NO. 91-07
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 91-05 AND ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES FOR THE PAYMENT OF TAXES DUE ON THE RENTAL OF OVERNIGHT ACCOMODATIONS UNDER CONTRACTS WHICH EXISTED PRIOR TO THE FORMATION OF THE BOROUGH
BE IT ENACTED by the Assembly of the Denali Borough,
Alaska, that:
Section 1.
This ordinance is of a general and permanent nature.
Section 2.
Section 2 of Ordinance No. 91-05 is amended by amending subsection F as
follows, by adding a new subsection G as follows, and by renumbering existing
subsection G as subsection H.
Section 2. Definitions.
F. “Rental” means the act of purchasing the right to
occupy an overnight accommodation. A
rental is complete and tax is due thereon when:
1. A guest has registered or “checked in” with a
merchant and paid rent in cash, by credit card, or otherwise, regardless of
whether the rent is paid in advance, [or] at the time of registration,
or at a later date; or
2. A guest who has paid rent in advance fails to register
or “check in” with a merchant at the appointed time, and the merchant retains
all or any part of the prepaid rent. Tax is due on the amount of prepaid rent
retained by the merchant; or
3. A tour operator pays rent on behalf of a guest
whether or not the guest has registered or “checked in”, and regardless or
whether the rent is paid in advance, at the time of registration, or at a later
date. Rent paid by a tour operator on behalf of a guest shall be deemed paid by
the guest; or
4. A tour operator who has purchased the right to occupy
an overnight accommodation for use by a guest who is a member of a tour
operated by the tour operator, pays rent even though the overnight
accommodation is not in fact occupied by such a guest. Rent paid by a tour
operator in such circumstances shall be deemed paid by a guest.
Tax may be due under [both] 1, [and] 2, 3,
and/or 4 for rental of the same overnight accommodation to more than one
[two different] guest[s] for the same period of time. The act of making a
reservation to occupy an overnight accommodation in the future is not a
completed rental for which tax is due.
G. “Tour Operator” means an individual, corporation,
partnership, association, or other entity which purchases the right to occupy
one or more overnight accommodations for the purpose of re-selling the right to
occupy the overnight accommodations to one or more guests who will participate
in a vacation travel package or other similar tour operated by the tour
operator. When paying rent as provided under subparagraphs F 3 or 4 above, a
tour operator is a guest.
[G] H.
. . .
Section
3. Subsection
C of Section 4 of Ordinance 91-05 is amended as follows:
Section
4. Collection of Overnight
Accommodations Tax.
…
C. A merchant shall not advertise or hold out or state
to the public or to any quest, directly or indirectly, that the tax or any part
thereof imposed by this ordinance will be assumed or absorbed by the merchant
or that it will not be added to the rent, or that it will be refunded. A
merchant shall not assume, absorb or fail to add the tax or any part thereof to
the rent, or refund the tax or fail to separately state the tax to the guest.
[Provided however, that this subsection C shall not apply to rentals for which
a merchant received a reservation prior to May 1, 1991.]
Section
4. New
Section 20, Special Provisions for Pre-existing Contracts, is enacted as
follows:
Section
20. Special Provisions for
Pre-existing Contracts.
A. This section applies only to taxes levied on rentals
occurring during calendar year 1991 under a contract between a merchant and a
tour operator, which was fully executed on or before December 7, 1990. If such
a contract covers more than one year, this section applies only to rentals
occurring under said contract during 1991, and not to rentals occurring in
subsequent years. This section only applies if a merchant has registered in the
manner prescribed in this section. All other rentals are governed by the other
provisions of this ordinance and not by this section.
B. Upon the request of a merchant, the mayor may but is
not required to permit the merchant to register to transmit to the Borough, in
the manner prescribed in this section, taxes levied on rentals occurring under
pre-existing contracts to which this section applies. Such registration shall
be separate and in addition to the registration otherwise required by Section 5
of this ordinance. The merchant shall apply for registration under this section
on a form prescribed by the clerk. The application shall contain the following
information and shall be accompanied by a one hundred dollar ($100)
non-refundable application fee.
1. The name and address of the parties to the
pre-existing contract and the dates on which each party signed the contract.
2. The number of motel rooms, campground spaces, or
other overnight accommodations covered by the contract during 1991.
3. The number of days for which each overnight
accommodation is rented under the terms of the contract during 1991.
4. The dollar amount of the daily rent to be received by
the merchant under the contract during 1991 for each such overnight
accommodation.
5. Proof satisfactory to the mayor that the information
contained in items 1-4 is accurate, i.e. a copy of the contract.
6. Any other information required by the mayor.
In addition the mayor may impose as conditions of
registration, such other requirements as he deems necessary to protect the
legal interests of the borough. The
provisions of Section 9 shall apply to the information required by this subsection.
C. Section 4 C shall not apply to taxes levied on
rentals occurring under pre-existing contracts to which this section applies.
D. Every merchant registered under this section shall
file a monthly tax return in the manner provided on Section 7. The tax return
shall include both taxes levied on rentals occurring under pre-existing
contracts, and all other taxes. In addition to the information required by
Section 7, the tax return shall also contain the following:
1. The amount of all rents received from rentals
completed during the month, which occurred under pre-existing contracts.
2. The amount of tax due on those rentals.
Notwithstanding any other contrary provision of this
ordinance, every merchant registered under this section shall transmit to the
borough the taxes levied on rentals occurring under a pre-existing contract to
which this section applies, not later a pre-existing contract to which this
section applies, not later than March 31, 1992. If taxes are not timely
transmitted to the borough by that date, in the manner required by Section 7,
they are delinquent.
E. The provisions of Section 7 C shall not apply to
taxes levied on rentals occurring under pre-existing contracts to which this
section applies. The amount of said taxes shall not be included when
calculating the credit due to a merchant under Section 7 C.
F. Except as otherwise provided in this section, all
other provisions of Ordinance 91-05, including but not limited to those
sections which impose liability for penalties, interest, and the borough’s
administrative costs of collection, as well as those sections authorizing the
borough to enforce this ordinance, apply to merchants registered under this
section and to the taxes levied on rentals occurring under pre-existing
contracts to which this section applies.
Section 5. New
Section 21, Appeal, is enacted as follows:
Section 21. Appeal.
A. A person aggrieved by the application or
interpretation of any provision of this ordinance shall present his complaint
in writing to the mayor not later than thirty days after the grievant knew, or
should have known of his complaint. The
mayor shall investigate the matter and respond in writing to the grievant
within a reasonable time. The mayor may either deliver or mail his response to
the grievant. If mailed, the response shall be sent to the grievant by
certified mail, return receipt requested, at the address contained in the
grievance.
B. If the grievant is not satisfied with the mayor’s
response, the grievant shall file his complaint in writing with the borough
clerk not later than thirty days after the date on which the mayor mailed or
delivered his response to the grievant.
The assembly shall hold a hearing on the grievance at which the grievant
and the mayor may appear and give evidence, within a reasonable time after the
grievance is filed with the clerk. The assembly shall determine whether this
ordinance has been properly interpreted and applied to the grievant and shall
grant such relief as may be appropriate in the circumstances. The assembly
shall deliver or mail its decision to the grievant and to the mayor, in the
manner provided above for the mayor’s response, within a reasonable time
following termination of the hearing. The assembly’s decision shall be the
final action of the borough on the matter. In its discretion, the assembly may
appoint a hearing officer to take evidence and report to the assembly, or to
hear and decide the matter.
C. A person aggrieved by the final action of the borough
may appeal to the Superior Court in the manner provided in the Alaska Rules of
Appellate Procedure for appeals from administrative agencies.
Section 6. Effective
Date. This ordinance
becomes effective immediately upon adoption.
DATE INTRODUCED: June 9, 1991
FIRST READING:
June 9, 1991
PUBLIC HEARING:
July 14, 1991
PASSED and APPROVED by the DENALI
BOROUGH ASSEMBLY THIS 14TH day of July, 1991.
SIGNATURE ON FILE
MAYOR
ATTEST:
SIGNATURE ON FILE
CLERK