N.Y. Tax Law § 1202-O — Hotel and motel taxes in Suffolk county

* § 1202-o. Hotel and motel taxes in Suffolk county. (1)\nNotwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, the county\nof Suffolk is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt and amend local\nlaws imposing in such county a tax, in addition to any other tax\nauthorized and imposed pursuant to this article, such as the legislature\nhas or would have the power and authority to impose upon persons\noccupying hotel or motel rooms in such county. For the purposes of this\nsection, (i) "hotel" or "motel" shall mean and include any facility\nproviding lodging on an overnight basis and shall include those\nfacilities designated and commonly known as "bed and breakfast", inns,\ncabins, cottages, campgrounds, tourist homes and convention centers, and\n(ii) "cultural programs and activities" shall mean events, forums, or\nactions of benefit to the general public that are thematically related\nto art, music, performing arts or music, or historic or environmental\npreservation or education.\n The rates of such tax shall not exceed five and one-half percent of\nthe per diem rental rate for each room, provided, however, that such tax\nshall not be applicable to a permanent resident of such hotel or motel.\nFor the purposes of this section the term "permanent resident" shall\nmean a person occupying any room or rooms in a hotel or motel for at\nleast thirty consecutive days.\n (2) Such tax may be collected and administered by the county treasurer\nor other fiscal officers of Suffolk county by such means and in such\nmanner as other taxes which are now collected and administered by such\nofficers or as otherwise may be provided by such local law.\n (3) Such local laws may provide that any tax imposed shall be paid by\nthe person liable therefor to the owner of the hotel or motel room\noccupied or to the person entitled to be paid the rent or charge for the\nhotel or motel room occupied for and on account of the county of Suffolk\nimposing the tax and that such owner or person entitled to be paid the\nrent or charge shall be liable for the collection and payment of the\ntax; and that such owner or person entitled to be paid the rent or\ncharge shall have the same right in respect to collecting the tax from\nthe person occupying the hotel or motel room, or in respect to\nnonpayment of the tax by the person occupying the hotel or motel room,\nas if the tax were a part of the rent or charge and payable at the same\ntime as the rent or charge; provided, however, that the county treasurer\nor other fiscal officers of the county, specified in such local law,\nshall be joined as a party in any action or proceeding brought to\ncollect the tax by the owner or by the person entitled to be paid the\nrent or charge.\n (4) Such local law may provide for the filing of returns and the\npayment of the tax on a monthly basis or on the basis of any longer\nperiod of time.\n (5) Such local law shall provide for the county of Suffolk to enter\ninto a contract with a tourism promotion agency to administer programs\ndesigned to develop, encourage, solicit and promote convention business\nand tourism within the county. The promotion of convention business and\ntourism shall include any service, function or activity, whether or not\nperformed, sponsored or advertised by the tourism promotion agency with\nthe intent to attract transient guests to the county.\n (6) Such local law shall provide that all revenues resulting from the\nimposition of the tax payable hereunder shall be paid into the treasury\nof the county of Suffolk and shall be distributed within thirty days of\nreceipt by the county proportional to the annual amount due under the\nfollowing formula: (a) six million dollars per fiscal year, shall be\ndelivered to a not-for-profit tourism promotion agency that has\nexperience with tourism promotion in the Long Island Region which the\ncounty of Suffolk contracts with pursuant to the provisions of\nsubdivision five of this section; (b) two million two hundred fifty\nthousand dollars per fiscal year shall be utilized by the county of\nSuffolk in support of cultural programs and activities relevant to the\ncontinuation and enhancement of the tourism industry, provided that one\nmillion dollars per fiscal year shall be utilized in support of cultural\nprograms and activities in the towns of Babylon, Brookhaven, Huntington,\nIslip and Smithtown; one million dollars per fiscal year shall be\nutilized in support of cultural programs and activities in the towns of\nRiverhead, Southold, Shelter Island, Southampton and East Hampton and\ntwo hundred fifty thousand dollars per fiscal year shall fund cultural\ngrant programs administered by the county department of economic\ndevelopment and planning; (c) one million two hundred fifty thousand\ndollars per fiscal year shall be utilized by the county of Suffolk for\nthe support of any museum accredited by the American Association of\nMuseums, which is located in such county's first dedicated park and is\nalso listed on the National Register of Historic Places; (d) one million\ndollars per fiscal year shall be utilized by the county of Suffolk for\nthe support of other museums, and historical societies, historic\nresidences and historic birthplaces; (d-1) two hundred fifty thousand\ndollars per fiscal year shall be utilized by the county of Suffolk for\nprogram support of a not-for-profit museum organization that manages a\nNational Register of Historic Places site in Suffolk county that has\nbeen named a National Treasure, is part of a National Recreational Trail\nand is a New York state historic site; (e) two million five hundred\nthousand dollars per fiscal year shall be utilized by the county of\nSuffolk for the care, maintenance, and interpretation for the general\npublic of the historic structures, sites and unique natural areas that\nare managed by the Suffolk county department of parks and recreation for\nsites and activities that are open to tourists on a regular and\npredictable basis; (f) two hundred fifty thousand dollars per fiscal\nyear shall be utilized by the county of Suffolk for the promotion of the\ncounty of Suffolk as a film friendly location through the county\ndepartment of economic development and planning; (f-1) three million two\nhundred fifty thousand dollars per fiscal year shall be deposited into\nthe general fund of the county of Suffolk to be utilized for general\npark purposes; (g) five hundred thousand dollars per fiscal year shall\nbe utilized by the county of Suffolk for regional marketing and\npromotion provided that two hundred fifty thousand dollars is delivered\nto a Long Island regional commercial airport, designated as an official\nmetro airport that does not operate in the same airspace as airports\nlocated in New York city and two hundred fifty thousand dollars to an\neast end tourism agency which the county of Suffolk contracts with to\nadminister programs designed to develop, encourage, solicit and enhance\nbusiness and tourism on the east end of the county of Suffolk; (h) all\nremaining revenue collected by the county of Suffolk shall be deposited\ninto a special fund to be designated as the "Suffolk County\nInfrastructure Fund," to be created by said county therefore separate\nand apart from any other funds and accounts of the county. Moneys in\nsuch fund shall be deposited and secured in the manner provided by\nsection ten of the general municipal law, and, pending expenditure, may\nbe invested in the manner provided by section ten of the general\nmunicipal law. Any interest earned or capital gain realized on monies\ndeposited shall accrue to and become part of the fund. In no event shall\nmonies deposited in the fund be transferred to any other fund except as\nset forth in this subdivision. Monies in said fund may be appropriated\nfrom and transferred or expended in any fiscal year for the planning,\ndesign, and construction of a convention center and surrounding\ninfrastructure, including but not limited to, utilities, underground\ninfrastructure, wastewater improvements, parking facilities, traffic\nimprovements, pedestrian access and multi-modal projects, community\nimpact projects, transportation facilities and related improvements and\nto repay any indebtedness or obligations incurred, pursuant to local\nfinance law, for these purposes; and (i) the funding amounts identified\nin paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subdivision shall be increased by\none percent over the prior fiscal years' funding each fiscal year.\n In the event that revenues resulting from the imposition of the tax\npayable hereunder are insufficient to fund according to the amounts\nidentified in paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subdivision, the county\nof Suffolk shall utilize funds from the Suffolk County Infrastructure\nFund to fund according to the amounts identified in paragraphs (a)\nthrough (g) of this subdivision, however, if the funds from the Suffolk\nCounty Infrastructure Fund are still insufficient to provide funding\naccording to paragraphs (a) through (g), distributions set forth in\nparagraphs (a) through (g) of this subdivision shall be reduced on a\nproportional basis.\n Schedules of availability of all historic and cultural activities and\nevents funded from any part of these revenues shall be provided to the\naforementioned tourism promotion agency which is contracted with by the\ncounty of Suffolk so as to enhance tourism promotion and tourist\nvisitation.\n Annually, the department of economic development and planning of the\ncounty of Suffolk shall submit, to the county executive and the county\nlegislature of such county, a report on such department's progress on\nthe promotion of the county of Suffolk as a film friendly location, and\nannual statistics of the revenue generated pursuant to paragraph (f) of\nthis subdivision.\n (7) Such local law shall provide for the imposition of a hotel or\nmotel tax in perpetuity.\n (8) This section shall not authorize the imposition of such tax upon\nany transaction, by or with any of the following in accordance with\nsection twelve hundred thirty of this chapter:\n (a) The state of New York, or any public corporation (including a\npublic corporation created pursuant to agreement or compact with another\nstate or the dominion of Canada), improvement district or other\npolitical subdivision of the state;\n (b) The United States of America, insofar as it is immune from\ntaxation;\n (c) Any corporation or association, or trust, or community chest, fund\nor foundation organized and operated exclusively for religious,\ncharitable or educational purposes, or for the prevention of cruelty to\nchildren or animals, and no part of the net earnings of which inures to\nthe benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no substantial\npart of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise\nattempting to influence legislation; provided, however, that nothing in\nthis paragraph shall include an organization operated for the primary\npurpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit, whether or not\nall of its profits are payable to one or more organizations described in\nthis paragraph.\n (9) Any final determination of the amount of any tax payable hereunder\nshall be reviewable for error, illegality or unconstitutionality or any\nother reason whatsoever by a proceeding under article seventy-eight of\nthe civil practice law and rules if application therefor is made to the\nsupreme court within thirty days after the giving of the notice of such\nfinal determination, provided, however, that any such proceeding under\narticle seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules shall not be\ninstituted unless:\n (a) The amount of any tax sought to be reviewed, with such interest\nand penalties thereon as may be provided for by local law shall be first\ndeposited and there is filed an undertaking, issued by a surety company\nauthorized to transact business in this state and approved by the\nsuperintendent of financial services of this state as to solvency and\nresponsibility, in such amount as a justice of the supreme court shall\napprove to the effect that if such proceeding be dismissed or the tax\nconfirmed the petitioner will pay all costs and charges which may accrue\nin the prosecution of such proceeding; or\n (b) At the option of the petitioner such undertaking may be in a sum\nsufficient to cover the taxes, interest and penalties stated in such\ndetermination plus the costs and charges which may accrue against it in\nthe prosecution of the proceeding, in which event the petitioner shall\nnot be required to pay such taxes, interest or penalties as a condition\nprecedent to the application.\n (10) Where any tax imposed hereunder shall have been erroneously,\nillegally or unconstitutionally collected and application for the refund\nthereof duly made to the proper fiscal officer or officers, and such\nofficer or officers shall have made a determination denying such refund,\nsuch determination shall be reviewable by a proceeding under article\nseventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules, provided, however,\nthat such proceeding is instituted within thirty days after the giving\nof the notice of such denial, that a final determination of tax due was\nnot previously made, and that an undertaking is filed with the proper\nfiscal officer or officers in such amount and with such sureties as a\njustice of the supreme court shall approve to the effect that if such\nproceeding be dismissed or the tax confirmed, the petitioner will pay\nall costs and charges which may accrue in the prosecution of such\nproceeding.\n (11) Except in the case of wilfully false or fraudulent return with\nintent to evade the tax, no assessment of additional tax shall be made\nafter the expiration of more than three years from the date of the\nfiling of a return, provided, however, that where no return has been\nfiled as provided by law the tax may be assessed at any time.\n (12) If any provision of this section or the application thereof to\nany person or circumstance shall be held invalid, the remainder of this\nsection and the application of such provision to other persons or\ncircumstances shall not be affected thereby.\n * NB There are 3 §1202-o's\n