(A) There shall be a personal property tax at a rate established each year by the Board of Supervisors on motor vehicles and trailers, (hereafter referred to in this section as "taxable property") which have a situs within the county on January 1 of each year ("the tax day") and which acquire a situs within the county on or after January 2 of each year. Such tax shall be prorated on a monthly basis. For purposes of proration, a period of more than one-half of a month shall be counted as a full month and a period less than one-half of a month shall not be counted. All taxable property shall be assessed as of January 1 of each year if it has a situs within the county as of that date or as of the date it acquires a situs in the county. The situs date shall be determined in accordance with the records of the Department of Motor Vehicles.
(B) When any person sells or otherwise transfers title to a motor vehicle or trailer with a situs in the county after the tax day or date upon which it acquires a situs, the tax shall be relieved, prorated on a monthly basis, and the appropriate amount of tax already paid shall be (i) refunded or (ii) credited against the tax due on any motor vehicle or trailer owned by the taxpayer during the same tax year by the County Treasurer. Such refund shall be made within 30 days of the date such tax is relieved. No refund of less than $5 shall be issued to a taxpayer, unless specifically requested by the taxpayer. No refund shall be made if the motor vehicle or trailer acquires a situs within the Commonwealth in a nonprorating locality.
(C) When any person, after the tax day, acquires a motor vehicle or trailer with a situs in the county, the tax shall be assessed on the motor vehicle or trailer for the portion of the tax year during which the new owner owns the motor vehicle or trailer and it has a situs within the county.
(D) (1) Any person who moves from a nonprorating locality to a prorating locality in a single tax year shall be entitled to a property tax credit in the prorating jurisdiction if:
(a) The person was liable for personal property taxes on a motor vehicle and has paid those taxes to a nonprorating locality; and
(b) The owner replaces for any reason the original vehicle upon which taxes are due to the nonprorating locality for the same tax year.
(2) The prorating locality shall provide a credit against the total tax due on the replacement vehicle in an amount equal to the tax paid to the nonprorating locality for the period of time commencing with the disposition of the original vehicle and continuing through the close of the tax year in which the owner incurred tax liability to the nonprorating locality for the original vehicle.
(F) The Treasurer of Northampton County may, on or after December 15 of each year, bill all personal property taxes assessed for a portion of the tax year less than the full year which have not been otherwise billed. Taxes so billed shall be due no later than 30 days after the date of the tax bill.
(Ord. passed 4-14-1997; Am. Ord. passed 10-13-1998; Am. Ord. passed 1-25-1999; Am. Ord. passed 5-14-2013)