(Amended by Ord. No. 178,101, Eff. 1/9/07.)
(a) For every person engaged in the business of conducting a side show, or an after show to the circus, where a separate fee of $0.75 or less, is charged, received or collected, the tax shall be $44.34 per day; where the fee charged, received or collected amounts to more than $0.75, but less than $1.50, the tax shall be $88.69 per day; where the fee charged, received or collected, is $1.50 or more the tax shall be $177.38 per day.
(b) For every person operating or conducting any carnival, the tax shall be $88.69 for each concession for the first day of the carnival and $44.34 for each concession for each additional day.
(c) For the purpose of this section, a “carnival” means any fair, festival or like activity of a temporary nature having a concession or concessions. A “concession” is defined to include any booth or stand or any space, court or area at, or in which, any game or test of skill, science or amusement is offered and at or in which the public is permitted or invited to participate for a fee, charge or donation.
(d) When the carnival is sponsored solely by a religious, charitable, educational, civic, veteran or other non-profit benevolent organization, or by a group of these organizations, the organization or group shall be deemed to be the person operating or conducting the carnival. Provided, however, that in the event any person other than this organization or group receives any proceeds or personal gain or profit by operating or participating in the operation of any concession in, at or adjacent to the carnival on behalf of the person or on behalf of any person other than the sponsoring organization or organizations, that person shall be deemed to be the person operating or conducting the carnival.
(e) In the case of more than one non-sponsoring operator or conductor, each shall be jointly and severally liable and responsible for making application for the business tax registration certificate and for payment of the business tax for the carnival; provided, however, if one non-sponsoring operator or conductor has also rented, leased or otherwise furnished for use in the carnival equipment as concession booths or stands, or games or tests of skill, science or amusement, that person shall be deemed to be the operator or conductor of the carnival; and if more than one non-sponsoring operator or conductor has rented, leased or furnished equipment to the carnival, that person whom the Director of Finance, after full investigation of all the facts, determines to be the one who has leased, rented or furnished the greater amount of equipment shall be deemed to be the operator or conductor of the carnival.
(f) Where the operator or conductor of the carnival is a religious, charitable, educational, civic, veteran or other non-profit benevolent organization, or a group of these organizations, and the net proceeds of the carnival are to be used exclusively for religious, charitable, benevolent, educational or civic purposes, the operator or conductor shall be entitled to a tax exempt registration certificate upon application and qualification for the certificate as provided in this subsection.
The application for this exemption shall be made in the manner provided in Section 21.22 of this article not less than 30 calendar days prior to the starting date of the carnival; provided however, an application for this exemption, which is not filed within the time period prescribed here, may be accepted by the Director of Finance upon a showing that the failure to file a timely application was not a result of an intentional disregard of the prescribed statutory provisions. The Board of Police Commissioners shall investigate as provided in Section 21.22 and shall forward its report to the Director of Finance at least 16 calendar days prior to the starting date of the carnival in all cases where the application has been timely filed; otherwise the report shall be forwarded within 16 calendar days subsequent to the filing of the application for the exemption. If the report certifies that the sponsorship of the carnival and the use to be made of the net proceeds meet the requirements of this subsection for a tax exempt registration certificate, and if all other charges, fees and taxes required to be paid to the Director of Finance by reason of the operation of the carnival or activities conducted in connection with the carnival have been paid, the Director of Finance shall issue a tax exempt registration certificate. Any application not reported upon by the Board of Police Commissioners within the time limits prescribed here shall be deemed to be approved and the Director of Finance may issue the tax exempt certificate in lieu of payment of the tax.
If at any time the carnival or any part of it is conducted in a manner which, had it been disclosed in the application for the exempt certificate approved by the Board of Police Commissioners, would not have entitled the organization or organizations conducting the carnival to a tax exempt registration certificate, or if the net proceeds from the carnival are not used for the purposes stated in this subsection, if any tax exempt registration certificate so issued shall be void and the full amount of the business tax for the carnival shall be immediately due and payable to the City, and no other tax exempt registration certificate for a carnival shall be issued to the sponsoring organization or organizations until the tax has been paid.
(g) No business tax registration certificate and no business tax shall be required for any religious, charitable, educational or other non-profit benevolent institution to operate or conduct a carnival held within and upon buildings or grounds owned or occupied by the institution where none of the rides set forth in Section 21.94 are operated in, at or adjacent to the carnival and the concessions of the carnival are operated exclusively by and for the entertainment or benefit of the members of that institution and the net proceeds derived from the concessions are not used for the purpose of private gain to any individual but are used wholly for the benefit of the organization or for charitable or benevolent purposes; provided, that no advertising for the carnival is placed, exhibited, shown, or otherwise permitted outside the premises of the buildings or grounds and the non-member public is not invited to participate in or attend the carnival.
(h) No tax shall be required for any person conducting or operating a carnival at any fair, festival or like activity of a temporary nature conducting or operated by a California Agricultural District.
(i) For every person engaged in the business of conducting a circus procession or circus parade, and not having a registration certificate for conducting, managing or carrying on a circus within the limits of the City of Los Angeles, the tax shall be $4,434.00 for each procession or parade.