(a) Any transient who pays rent to a rental agent instead of to an operator shall, at the time the rent is paid, pay the tax to the rental agent in the manner required by section 2.33.020. If for any reason the tax is not paid to the rental agent, it shall be paid to the operator before the transient has ceased occupancy in the hotel or paid directly to the supervisor of revenue collections pursuant to section 2.33.020. Any transient seeking a refund under section 2.33.110 of taxes paid to a rental agent must establish that the transient has been unable to obtain a refund from the rental agent who collected the tax.
(b) Any rental agent who collects rent shall comply with all obligations of the operator set forth in sections 2.33.040 and 2.33.100 of this chapter. The rental agent shall remit all collected taxes to the operator before the deadline for the operator to remit the taxes to the supervisor of revenue collections under section 2.33.060, and the rental agent shall provide the operator with copies of all records required to be maintained by the operator pursuant to section 2.33.100 of this chapter, including records necessary for the operator to comply with its obligations under this chapter.
(c) If the supervisor of revenue collection determines that a rental agent has failed to collect, remit, or report any tax, the supervisor may take any action against the rental agent that he or she may take against an operator under sections 2.33.070 and 2.33.080 of this chapter subject to the requirements of those sections. If the supervisor assesses unremitted taxes and penalties against the rental agent, the rental agent shall be subject to the provisions of sections 2.33.080, 2.33.090, 2.33.110, and 2.33.120 of this chapter as if it were an operator. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the supervisor from assessing the full amount of any unremitted taxes and penalties solely against the operator in lieu of assessing some or all of those taxes and penalties against the rental agent.
(Ord. 5290 § 1 (part), 2014)