[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Homestead 5-8-2003 by Ord. No. 1144. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Licensing — See Ch. 169.
This chapter may be known and cited as the "Business
Privilege License Ordinance of 2003."
Definitions. The following words and phrases,
when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them
in this section unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
- ADDRESS
- All of the street address, post office box and e-mail address or similar electronic address of the person whose address is requested.
- BOROUGH
- Borough of Homestead.
- BUSINESS
- Any business, enterprise, activity, occupation, profession, service or trade of any kind or nature whatsoever, excepting only any officers, employees, departments or agencies of the government of the United States or of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; any nonprofit corporations or associations which are exempt from federal income tax under Section 503(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and organized solely and exclusively for religious, educational or charitable purposes and not conducting any regular or established business competing commercially with any other person subject to the fee herein imposed; any person disposing of articles of his, her or its own production or manufacture; and any person which is a utility service or regulated by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
- COLLECTOR
- The person designated by the Council of the Borough of Homestead
by resolution to collect the fee imposed by and administer the provision
of this chapter.[Amended 9-8-2005 by Ord. No. 1172]
- LICENSE
- The business privilege license and the annual certificate of renewal thereof.
- LICENSE YEAR
- January 1 through December 31, inclusive.
- PERSON
- Any natural individual, partnership, joint venture, limited partnership, company, limited liability company, association, corporation, professional corporation or limited liability corporation.
- PLACE OF BUSINESS
- Any building, structure, lot, location or place of any kind or nature whatsoever, or part thereof, at, in, on, from or through which any activity which is intended to further the purpose of the business occurs, takes place, transpires, begins, originates, passes or terminates, whether or not all activities related to the business occur in such building, structure, lot, location, place or part thereof, and whether or not all such activities occur within the Borough.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to open, operate
or maintain a place of business within the Borough, advertise a business
address, business telephone number or business fax number located
within the Borough or otherwise carry on, conduct or engage in a business
within the Borough, personally or through an agent or employee, directly
or indirectly, permanently or temporarily, without having first applied
for, paid for and obtained a license as required in this chapter.
B.
When a person so opens, operates or maintains more than one place of business, advertises more than one address, telephone number or fax number, or otherwise carries on, conducts or engages in more than one business within the Borough as set forth in Subsection A, whether or not at the same building, structure, location, lot or place, or part thereof, the person shall file an application for, pay the fee for and obtain a business privilege license for each such business.
A.
Every person who opens, operates or maintains a place
of business within the Borough, advertises a business address, business
telephone number or business fax number located in the Borough or
otherwise carries on, conducts or engages in a business within the
Borough, personally or through an agent or employee, directly or indirectly,
permanently or temporarily, or who desires to continue to do so, or
who hereinafter begins to do so, shall, on or before the commencement
of the license year or prior to commencing business in such license
year, make application for registration with the Collector for each
such business for which the person opens, operates or maintains a
place of business, each such business address, business telephone
number or business fax number the person so advertises and each such
business the person otherwise carries on, conducts or engages in unless
the person has previously registered the business.
B.
Each application shall contain at least the following
information, in the following suggested format:
(1)
The name, address, telephone number and fax number
of the applicant.
(2)
If different from the applicant's, the name, address,
telephone number and fax number of the business.
(3)
A description of the business.
(4)
Whether the applicant has had a license, permit or
approval to conduct the business denied or revoked by the Borough
or any other jurisdiction.
(5)
Details of any conviction of the applicant for a misdemeanor
or felony relating to the business, including the crime or offense
for which convicted, the date of conviction and the jurisdiction in
which the conviction occurred. If the applicant is a corporation,
the information required herein shall also be about the officers,
and if a partnership, also about all partners.
(6)
Each application for registration shall be signed:
in the case of a natural individual, by the natural individual; in
the case of a partnership, limited partnership or joint venture, by
the managing member thereof; and in the case of an association, company,
limited liability company, corporation, professional corporation or
limited liability corporation, by an officer thereof.
(7)
Such application need be made only once unless the information about the business or the applicant required by the application changes or the person to whom the license is issued desires to transfer the license in accordance with § 119-8. Each applicant who pays the fee and who is otherwise eligible shall receive a license from the Collector. In the case of loss, defacement or destruction of any license, the person to whom the license was issued shall apply to the Collector for a new certificate, for which a fee of $2 shall be charged.
A.
The fee for the business privilege license shall be
$75 for each license year.
B.
Except as provided in Subsection C, below, the business privilege license fee for the 2003 license year shall be due at the office of the Collector on June 16, 2003, and the business privilege license fee for each license year thereafter shall be due at the office of the Collector on March 31 of the license year. If, in any license year, the date on which the business privilege license fee is otherwise due is a Saturday, Sunday or Borough holiday, the business privilege fee for that fee year shall be due on the next Borough business day.
C.
The fee for an initial license shall be paid at the
time of application.
D.
The business privilege license fee shall be deemed
to be delinquent if not paid at the office of the Collector within
30 days from the date it shall become due.
E.
The Collector shall not issue a license to any person
who fails to pay the business privilege license fee when required.
A.
The Collector shall have the authority to conduct
the necessary inquiry, inspection or investigation to determine the
applicant's compliance with the requirements for the license and to
issue the license. The Collector shall make a determination thereon,
favorable or otherwise, within 15 days after receiving the application.
B.
The Collector may deny or revoke a license, in writing,
for any of the following causes:
(1)
Fraud, misrepresentation or false statement contained
in the application.
(2)
Fraud, misrepresentation of false statement by the
licensee or its agents or employees in the course of conducting the
business.
(3)
Any violation of any other ordinance of the Borough,
law, rule or regulation.
(4)
Conviction of the licensee or its officers or members
of any crime involving moral turpitude.
(5)
Conducting the business in an unlawful manner or in
such a manner as to constitute a breach of the peace or a menace to
the health, safety or general welfare of the public.
(6)
Failure to pay the business privilege license fee.
(7)
Any reason established by any other law, ordinance,
rule or regulation.
C.
It shall be the duty of the Collector to collect and
receive the business privilege license fee, penalties, interest and
fines imposed by this chapter; to keep a record showing the amount
received by the Collector from each person paying the business privilege
fee, penalty, interest or fine and the date of such receipt; to administer
the provisions of this chapter; and to enforce the provisions of this
chapter.
D.
The Collector shall put all business privilege license
fees, penalties, interest and fines collected or received under the
provisions of this chapter into the treasury of the Borough for the
use and benefit of the Borough.
E.
The Collector is hereby authorized and directed to
make and to keep such records; to prepare such forms; to prescribe,
adopt and enforce such rules and regulations relating to and matter
pertaining to the administration and enforcement of this chapter,
including rules or regulations for the reexamination and correction
of notices and payments alleged and found to be incorrect; to make
reasonable investigation to verify the accuracy of any payment made
or the reason for nonpayment; and to take such other measures as may
be necessary or convenient to carry this chapter into effect.
A.
All delinquent business privilege license fees, penalties
and interest under this chapter shall be collected by the Collector
as other delinquent fees, penalties and interest are now collected,
with the assistance of the Borough Solicitor, when requested.
B.
An additional 10% of the amount of the business privilege
license fee shall be added to any business privilege fee that is delinquent
and shall be collected by the Collector.
C.
Delinquent business privilege license fees due under
this chapter shall bear interest at the rate of 0.5% per month or
fractional part of month from the day they are due and payable until
paid.
D.
In addition to any other remedy available to the Borough
or Collector under this chapter, all business privilege license fees,
penalties, interest and fines imposed by this chapter shall be recoverable
by the Borough as other debts are recoverable.
The business privilege license shall not be
transferred to a person different from the person to whom it is initially
issued. The business privilege license may be transferred to a different
building, structure, lot, location or place to which the person to
whom it is initially issued is relocating if the person files an application
to do so.
The licenses shall be posted at the place of
business shown on the application for registration, in a conspicuous
place, and shall remain posted for the duration of the license year
for which it is issued and so long as the business is being conducted.
In the case of a business that is not conducted in a fixed location,
the license shall be carried or near the person conducting, engaging
in or carrying on the business.
Any person required to pay a fee for a business
privilege license who leaves the Borough prior to making payment shall
notify the Collector, in writing, of the address and telephone number
at which the Collector may contact the person for purposes of collecting
the fee.
An applicant or licensee who is denied a license
by the Collector and a licensee whose license is revoked by the Collector
shall have the right to appeal to the Borough Council or its designee.
Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Borough Council or its
designee, within 10 days after notice of the action complained of
has been mailed to such person's last known address, a written statement
setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The Borough Council
or its designee shall set a time and place for hearing on such appeal,
and notice of such hearing shall be given to the applicant. The decision
of the Borough Council or its designee on such appeal shall be final
and conclusive.
The fees for the business privilege license
are used primarily to cover the costs of necessary inquiries, inspections
and investigations; regulation of the businesses; and administration
and enforcement of the ordinance and laws. These fees bear a reasonable
relationship to the costs of regulation and administration.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed
to empower the Borough to impose and collect the business privilege
fee on any person not within the police power of the Borough under
the laws or Constitution of the United States and/or, in the alternative,
the Constitution and the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Any person required to apply, pay a fee for
or obtain a business privilege license who is convicted by a District
Justice of violating any provisions of this chapter shall be sentenced
to pay to the Borough an amount not exceeding $1,000 or $50 per day
from the first date of violation until the date of compliance, whichever
is greater, along with cost of prosecution, including attorney's fees,
and, in default of payment of such fine, costs and fees, to be imprisoned
for a period not to exceed 30 days.
