(a) Upon every person exercising the privilege of engaging or continuing within the Municipality in the business of severing, extracting, reducing to possession and producing for sale, profit or commercial use any natural resource products, the amount of such tax shall be equal to the value of the articles produced as shown by the gross proceeds derived from the sale thereof by the producer, except as otherwise provided, multiplied by the respective rates as follows: coal, one percent (1%); limestone or sandstone, quarried or mined, eight tenths of one percent (0.8%); oil, one percent (1%); natural gas, in excess of the value of five thousand dollars ($5,000), one percent (1%); sand, gravel or other mineral product not quarried or mined, one percent (1%); timber, one percent (1%); other natural resource products, one percent (1%). The measure of this tax is the value of the entire production in the Municipality regardless of the place of sale or the fact that the delivery may be made at points outside the State. Provided that, on and after July 1, 2020, the respective tax rates of this section are reduced and shall be equal to as follows: coal, zero percent (0%); limestone or sandstone, quarried or mined, zero percent (0%); oil, zero percent (0%); natural gas, in excess of the value of five thousand dollars ($5,000), zero percent (0%); sand, gravel or other mineral product not quarried or mined, zero percent (0%); timber, zero percent (0%); other natural resource products, zero percent (0%).
(b) Provided, however, that for the purposes of the production of oil classification, and
the production of natural gas classification, as set forth in this section, multiple co-owners of oil or natural gas, in place, lessees thereof, or others being vested with title and ownership to part or all of the oil and gas, as personal property, immediately after severance, extraction, reduction to possession and production, except royalty recipients, in kind, shall be deemed to be a "group or combination acting as a unit" and one "person", as defined in Section 733.01, if not otherwise defined therein, whenever engaged in the business of producing oil or natural gas through common use, by joint or separately executed contracts, of the same independent contractor, driller or operator's services, and notwithstanding provisions of private contracts for separate deposit of gross receipts in separate members' accounts or for members of such group or combination to take in kind any proportionate part of such natural resources.
(c) Lessees, sublessees or other denominated lessees are considered to be producers of all of the oil or natural gas produced, regardless of any payment, in kind, to lessors, sublessors or other denominated lessors of a part of such natural resources as rents or royalties. Recipients of royalties or rents, in kind, in cash or otherwise are taxable on their gross income pursuant to the provisions of Section 733.10 of this article for the privilege of engaging in the business of furnishing property for hire within this Municipality.
(d) Persons who produce natural resource products outside of the Municipality and who make sale of the same within the Municipality shall not pay the tax imposed under this section but shall pay the tax imposed by Section 733.05 for the privilege of selling such products within the Municipality. (Ord. 2019-07. Passed 12-2-19.)