2023 New York Laws › TAX - Tax › Article 29 - Taxes Authorized for Cities, Counties and School Districts › Part 1 - Authority to Impose Taxes › Sub Part A - Taxes Administered by Cities, Counties and School Districts › 1202-AA*2 - Occupancy Tax in the City of White Plains.

* §   1202-aa.  Occupancy  tax  in  the  city  of  White  Plains.  (1)
Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, the city of
White Plains, in the county of Westchester,  is  hereby  authorized  and
empowered  to adopt and amend local laws imposing in such city a tax, in
addition to any other  tax  authorized  and  imposed  pursuant  to  this
article,  such  as  the  legislature  has  or  would  have the power and
authority to impose upon persons occupying any  room  for  hire  in  any
hotel.  For  the purposes of this section, the term "hotel" shall mean a
building or portion of it which is regularly used and kept open as  such
for the lodging of guests. The term "hotel" includes an apartment hotel,
a  motel  or a boarding house, whether or not meals are served. The rate
of such tax shall not exceed three percent of the per diem  rental  rate
for each room whether such room is rented on a daily or longer basis.
(2)  Such  tax  may  be collected and administered by the chief fiscal
officer of the city of White Plains by such means and in such manner  as
other  taxes which are now collected and administered by such officer or
as otherwise may be provided by such local laws.
(3) Such local laws may provide that any tax imposed shall be paid  by
the  person  liable  therefor  to  the owner of the room for hire in the
hotel or to the person entitled to be paid the rent or  charge  for  the
room  for  hire  in the hotel occupied for and on account of the city of
White Plains imposing the tax and that such owner or person entitled  to
be  paid  the  rent  or  charge  shall  be liable for the collection and
payment of the tax; and that such owner or person entitled  to  be  paid
the  rent  or  charge shall have the same right in respect to collecting
the tax from the person occupying the room for hire in the hotel, or  in
respect  to  nonpayment  of the tax by the person occupying the room for
hire in the hotel, as if the tax were a part of the rent or  charge  and
payable  at the same time as the rent or charge; provided, however, that
the chief fiscal officer of the city of White Plains, specified in  such
local  laws,  shall  be  joined  as  a party in any action or proceeding
brought to collect the tax by the owner or by the person entitled to  be
paid the rent or charge.
(4)  Such  local  laws  may  provide for the filing of returns and the
payment of the tax on a monthly basis or on the basis of any  longer  or
shorter period of time.
(5)  This  section shall not authorize the imposition of such tax upon
any of the following:
a. The state of New York,  or  any  public  corporation  (including  a
public corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another
state or Canada), improvement district or other political subdivision of
the state;
b.  The  United  States  of  America,  insofar  as  it  is immune from
taxation;
c. Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest,  fund
or   foundation   organized  and  operated  exclusively  for  religious,
charitable or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty  to
children  or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to
the benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no  substantial
part  of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise
attempting to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing  in
this  paragraph  shall  include an organization operated for the primary
purpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit,  whether  or  not
all of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in
this paragraph; or
d.  A permanent resident of a hotel. For the purposes of this section,
the term "permanent resident" shall mean a natural person occupying  any
room or rooms in a hotel for at least thirty consecutive days.
(6) Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder
shall  be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or any
other reason whatsoever by a proceeding under article  seventy-eight  of
the  civil practice law and rules if application therefor is made to the
supreme  court  within  thirty  days  after the giving of notice of such
final determination, provided, however, that any such  proceeding  under
such article seventy-eight shall not be instituted unless:
a. The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest and
penalties  thereon  as  may be provided for by local laws or regulations
shall be first deposited and there shall be filed an undertaking, issued
by a surety company authorized to transact business in  this  state  and
approved by the superintendent of financial services of this state as to
solvency  and responsibility, in such amount as a justice of the supreme
court shall approve to the effect that if such proceeding  be  dismissed
or the tax confirmed the petitioner will pay all costs and charges which
may accrue in the prosecution of such proceeding; or
b.  At  the option of the petitioner, such undertaking may be in a sum
sufficient to cover the taxes, interest and  penalties  stated  in  such
determination  plus the costs and charges which may accrue against it in
the prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the  petitioner  shall
not  be required to pay such taxes, interest or penalties as a condition
precedent to the application.
(7) Where any taxes imposed hereunder  shall  have  been  erroneously,
illegally or unconstitutionally collected and application for the refund
therefor  duly  made  to the proper fiscal officer or officers, and such
officer or officers shall have made a determination denying such refund,
such determination shall be reviewable by  a  proceeding  under  article
seventy-eight  of  the  civil practice law and rules, provided, however,
that such proceeding is instituted within thirty days after  the  giving
of  the notice of such denial, that a final determination of tax due was
not previously made, and that an undertaking is filed  with  the  proper
fiscal  officer  or  officers in such amount and with such sureties as a
justice of the supreme court shall approve to the effect  that  if  such
proceeding  be dismissed or the taxes confirmed, the petitioner will pay
all costs and charges which  may  accrue  in  the  prosecution  of  such
proceeding.
(8)  Except in the case of a willfully false or fraudulent return with
intent to evade the tax, no assessment of additional tax shall  be  made
after  the  expiration  of  more  than  three years from the date of the
filing of a return, provided, however, that where  no  return  has  been
filed as provided by law the tax may be assessed at any time.
(9)  All  revenues  resulting from the imposition of the tax under the
local laws shall be paid into the treasury of the city of  White  Plains
and  shall be credited to and deposited in the general fund of the city.
Such revenues may be used for any lawful purpose.
(10) Each enactment of such a local law may provide for the imposition
of a hotel tax for a period to  expire  on  December  thirty-first,  two
thousand  twenty-four.  Nothing  in  this  section  shall  prohibit  the
adoption and enactment of local laws, pursuant to the provisions of this
section, upon the expiration of any other local law adopted pursuant  to
this section.
(11)  If  any  provision of this section or the application thereof to
any person or circumstance shall be held invalid, the remainder of  this
section  and  the  application  of  such  provision  to other persons or
circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
* NB There are 7 § 1202-aa's