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[Adopted 2-7-2005 by Ord. No. 251
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Local Services
Tax."
The following words and phrases, when used in this article,
shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where
the context or language clearly indicates or requires a different
meaning:
- BOROUGH OF STOCKERTOWN
- The area within the corporate limits of the Borough of Stockertown.
- COLLECTOR
- The person, public employee or private agency designated
by the Borough of Stockertown to collect and administer the tax herein
imposed.
- EMPLOYER
- An individual, partnership, association, corporation, governmental
body, agency or other entity employing one or more persons on a salary,
wage, commission or other compensation basis, including a self-employed
person.
- HE, HIS or HIM
- Indicate the singular and plural number, as well as male,
female and neuter gender.
- INDIVIDUAL
- Any person, male or female, engaged in any occupation, trade
or profession within the corporate limits of the Borough of Stockertown.
- OCCUPATION
- Any trade, profession, business or undertaking of any type,
kind or character, including services, domestic or other, carried
on or performed within the corporate limits of the Borough of Stockertown
for which compensation is charged or received, whether by means of
salary, wages, commission or fees for services rendered.
- TAX
- The local services tax in the amount of $52 levied by this
article.
A tax is hereby levied and assessed for the purposes of police,
fire and/or emergency services, road construction and/or maintenance,
or reduction of property taxes upon the privilege of engaging in an
occupation within the corporate limits of the Borough of Stockertown
during the fiscal year. Each natural personal who exercises such privilege
for any length of time during the year shall pay a tax in the amount
of $52 in accordance with the provisions of this article. This tax
is in addition to all other taxes of any kind or nature heretofore
levied by the Borough of Stockertown.
A. Each employer within the Borough of Stockertown, as well as those
employers situate outside the Borough of Stockertown but who engage
in business within the Borough of Stockertown, is hereby charged with
the duty of collecting from each of his employees engaged by him and
performing for him within the Borough of Stockertown the said tax
of $52 per annum and making a return payment thereof to the Collector.
Further, each employer is hereby authorized to deduct this tax from
each employee in his employ, whether said employee is paid by salary,
wages or commission, and whether or not part or all such services
are performed within the Borough of Stockertown.
B. Each employer within the Borough of Stockertown, as well as those
employers situate outside the Borough of Stockertown but who engage
in business within the Borough of Stockertown, is hereby charged with
the duty of collecting from each of his employees the aforesaid tax
on a pro rata basis determined by the number of payroll periods established
by the employer for a calendar year. When calculating the pro rata
share, the employer shall round down to the nearest one-hundredth
of a dollar. [Added 10-1-2007 by Ord. No. 259]
Each employer shall prepare and file a return showing a computation
of the tax on forms to be supplied by the Collector. It is further
provided that if the employer fails to file said tax, whether or not
he makes collection thereof from the salary, wages or commissions
paid by him to said employee, the employer shall be responsible for
payment of the tax, in full, without deducting a commission and as
though tax had originally been levied against him.
A. The place of employment shall be determined as of the day the taxpayer
first becomes subject to the tax during the calendar year. It is the
intent of this provision that no person shall pay more than $52 in
any calendar year as a local services tax, irrespective of the number
of the political subdivisions within which such person may be employed
within any given calendar year. In case of dispute, a tax receipt
of the taxing authority for the calendar year declaring that the taxpayer
has made prior payment shall constitute prima facie certification
of payment to all other political subdivisions.
B. Each employer shall use his employment records from the first day
of January to the 31st day of March of each and every year for determining
the number of employees from whom said tax shall be deducted and paid
over to the Collector on or before April 30 of each and every year.
Supplemental reports and payment of tax due thereon shall be made
by each employer on July 31, October 31 and January 31 of each and
every year of new employees as reflected on his employment records
from April 1 to June 30; July 1 to September 30; and October 1 to
December 31 of each and every year. Payment of the tax due on these
supplemental reports shall be made on July 31, October 31, and January
31, respectively, of each and every year.
Each self-employed individual who performs services of any type
or kind, engaged in any occupation or profession within the Borough
of Stockertown, shall be required to comply with this article and
pay the tax to the Collector on April 30 of each and every year, or
as soon thereafter as he engages in an occupation.
A. Each individual who shall have more than one occupation within the
Borough of Stockertown shall be subject to the payment of this tax
on his principal occupation, and his principal employer shall deduct
this tax and deliver to him evidence of deductions on a form to be
furnished to the employer by the Collector, which form shall be evidence
of deduction having been made, and when presented to any other employer
shall be authority for such employer to not deduct this tax from the
employee's wages, but to include such employee on his return
by setting forth his name, address and the name and account number
of the employer who deducted this tax.
B. In the event a person is engaged in more than one occupation, or
an occupation which requires his working in more than one political
subdivision during the calendar year, the priority of claim to collect
such local services tax shall be in the following order: first, the
political subdivision in which a person maintains his principal office
or is principally employed; second, the political subdivision in which
the person resides and works, if such a tax is levied by that political
subdivision; third, the political subdivision in which a person is
employed and which imposes the tax nearest in miles to the person's
home. The place of employment shall be determined as of the day the
taxpayer first becomes subject to the tax during the calendar year.
It is the intent of this provision that no person shall pay more than
$52 in any calendar year as a local services tax, irrespective of
the number of the political subdivisions within which such person
may be employed within any given calendar year. In case of dispute,
a tax receipt of the taxing authority for that calendar year declaring
that the taxpayer has made prior payment shall constitute prima facie
certification of payment to all other political subdivisions.
All employers and self-employed individuals residing or having
their place of business outside of the Borough of Stockertown but
who perform services of any type or kind or engage in any occupation
or profession within the Borough of Stockertown do, by virtue thereof,
agree to be bound by the subject themselves to the provisions, penalties
and regulations promulgated under this article with the same force
and effect as though they were residents of the Borough of Stockertown.
Further, any individual engaged in an occupation within the Borough
of Stockertown, and an employee of a nonresident employer, may, for
the purpose of this article, be considered a self-employed person,
and, in the event this tax is not paid, the Borough shall have the
option of proceeding against either the employer or employee for the
collection of this tax as hereinafter provided.
[Amended 10-1-2007 by Ord. No. 259]
A. Any individual whose total earned income and net profits from all
sources within Stockertown Borough is less than $12,000 during the
calendar year is exempt from the local services tax. In order to receive
an up-front exemption, an individual must file an annual up-front
exemption form with Stockertown Borough and the individual's
employer. Said exemption certificate shall verify that the individual
reasonably expects to receive earned income and net profits of less
than $12,000 from all sources within Stockertown Borough for the calendar
year for which the exemption certificate is filed. A copy of the individual's
last pay stubs or W-2 Forms from employment within the political subdivision
for the year prior to the calendar year for which the individual is
requesting an exemption must be attached to the exemption certificate.
Employers shall be obligated to commence withholding the local services
tax from an employee who files an exemption certificate in the event:
1) if instructed to do so by Stockertown Borough; 2) if notified by
the individual that he is no longer eligible for the exemption; 3)
if the employer pays the individual more than $12,000 for the calendar
year. In the event any of the aforesaid events occur, an employer
shall withhold a catch up lump sum tax equal to the amount of tax
that was not withheld from the individual as a result of the exemption
and commence withholding an amount equal to the tax on a payroll period
as set forth in this article.
B. Members of military reserve component of the Armed Forces of the
United States called to duty and honorably discharged veterans who
served in any war or armed conflict who are blind, paraplegic, or
a double or quadruple amputee as a result of military service or who
are one-hundred-percent disabled from a service-connected disability
shall be exempt from payment or withholding of the local services
tax. A certificate of exemption with proof thereof shall be filed
with the Collector.
A. It shall be the duty of the Collector to accept and receive payments
of this tax and to keep a record thereof showing the amount received
by him from each employer or self-employed person, together with the
date the tax was received.
B. The Collector is hereby charged with the administration and enforcement
of this article, and is hereby charged and empowered to prescribe,
adopt and promulgate rules and regulations relating to any matter
pertaining to the administration and enforcement of this article,
including provisions for the examination of the payroll records of
any employer subject to this article; the examination and correction
of any return made in compliance with this article; and any payment
alleged or found to be incorrect or as to which overpayment is claimed
or found to have occurred; or any payment made by a taxpayer who is
engaged in a business or occupation or businesses or occupations from
which he derives less than $1,000 per year. Any person aggrieved by
any decision of the Collector shall have the right to appeal to the
Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County as in other cases provided.
C. The Collector is hereby authorized to examine the books and payroll
records of any employer in order to verify the accuracy of any return
made by an employer or, if no return was made, to ascertain the tax
due. Each employer is hereby directed and required to give the Collector
the means, facilities and opportunity for such examination.
A. In the event that any tax under this article remains due or unpaid
30 days after the due dates above set forth, the Collector may sue
for the recovery of any such tax due or unpaid under this article,
together with interest and penalty.
B. If for any reason the tax is not paid when due, interest at the rate
of 6% of the amount of said tax shall be calculated, beginning with
the due date of said tax, and a penalty of 5% shall be added to the
flat rate of said tax for nonpayment thereof. Where suit is brought
for the recovery of this tax, the individual liable therefor shall,
in addition, be responsible and liable for the costs of collection.
Whosoever makes any false or untrue statement on any return
required by this article, or who refuses inspection of his books,
records or accounts in his custody and control setting forth the number
of employees subject to this tax who are in his employment, or whoever
fails or refuses to file any return required by this section, shall,
upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding
commenced by the Borough before a Magisterial District Judge, pay
a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $600, plus all court costs,
including reasonable attorneys' fees, incurred by the Borough in the
enforcement of this article. No judgment shall be imposed until the
date of the determination of the violation by the Magisterial District
Judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment,
the Borough may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules
of Civil Procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a
separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of the
Borough are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including
injunction, to enforce compliance herewith. It is further provided
that the action to enforce the fine and penalty herein provided may
be instituted against any person in charge of the business of any
employer who has failed or refuses to file a return required by this
article.
A. Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to empower the
Borough of Stockertown to levy and collect the tax hereby imposed
on any occupation not within the taxing power of the Borough under
the Constitution of the United States and the laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
B. If the tax hereby imposed under the provisions of this article shall
be held by any court of competent jurisdiction to be in violation
of the Constitution of the United States or of the laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania as to any individual, the decision of the court shall
not affect or impair the right to impose or collect said tax, or the
validity of the tax so imposed on other persons or individuals as
herein provided.
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