(a) Time limitation on suits. All taxes imposed by this chapter shall be collectible, together with any interest and penalties thereon, by suit as other debts of like amount are recoverable. Except in the case of fraud, omission of 25% or more of income subject to this tax, or failure to file a return, an additional assessment shall not be made after three years from the time the return was due or filed, whichever is later. In a case of a return that omits gross income in excess of 25% of that required to be reported, or in the case of filing a false or fraudulent return with intent to evade the tax, or in the case of a failure to file a return all additional assessments shall be made and all prosecutions to recover municipal income taxes and penalties and interest thereon shall be brought within six years after the tax was due or the return was filed, whichever is later. In those cases in which the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and the taxpayer have executed a waiver of the federal statute of limitations the period within which an additional assessment may be made by the Tax Commissioner shall be extended one year from the time of the final determination of the federal tax liability.
(b) Responsibility of officers and employees. Those officers or employees having control or supervision of, or charged with, the responsibility of filing the return and making payments for a corporation or association shall be personally liable for failure to file the return or pay the taxes and penalties and interest due as required. The dissolution, bankruptcy, or reorganization of any employer does not discharge the officers’ or employees’ liability for a prior failure of the business to file a return or pay the taxes due.
(c) Time and amount limitation on refunds. Taxes erroneously paid shall not be refunded unless a claim for refund is made within three years from the date on which the payment was made or the return was due, or within three months after final determination of the federal tax liability, whichever is later. However, the following shall apply regarding refunds of tax withheld from non-qualified deferred compensation plans (NDCP).
(1) A taxpayer may be eligible for a refund if the taxpayer has suffered a loss from a NDCP. The loss will be considered sustained only in the taxable year in which the taxpayer receives the final distribution of money and property pursuant to the NDCP. Full loss is sustained if no distribution of money and property will be made by the NDCP.
(2) A taxpayer who receives income as a result of payments from a NDCP, and that income is less than the amount of income deferred to the NDCP and upon which municipal tax was withheld, then a refund will be issued on the amount representing the difference between the deferred income that was taxed and the income received from the NDCP. If different tax rates applied to the tax years in which deferrals, a weighted average of the different tax rates will be used to compute the refund amount.
(3) Refunds shall be allowed only if the loss is attributable to the bankruptcy of the employer who had established the NDCP, or the employee’s failure or inability to satisfy all of the employer’s terms and conditions necessary to receive the nonqualified compensation.
(d) Income tax that has been deposited with the city, but should have been deposited with another municipality. Income tax that has been deposited with the city, but should have been deposited with another municipality, is allowable by the city as a refund but is subject to the three-year limitation on refunds. Income tax that should have been deposited with the city, but was deposited with another municipality, shall be subject to recovery by the city. The city will allow a non-refundable credit for any amount owed the city that is in excess of the amount to be refunded by the other municipality, as long as the tax rate of the other municipality is the same or higher than the city’s tax rate. If the city’s tax rate is higher, the tax representing the net difference of the rates is also subject to collection by the city.
(e) Taxes or refunds. Taxes or refunds of less than $1 shall not be collected or refunded.
(Ord. 2004-154, passed 12-13-2004)