Upon every person engaging or continuing within this City in the business of contracting, the tax shall be equal to one and one-fifth percent (1.20%) of the gross income of the business. (3-2-04)
727.14. 1 Form of Contract.
Persons engaged in the contracting business shall report the entire gross income under the contracting classification, regardless of whether the contract is a turnkey contract, lump sum contract, per unit contract, cost plus fixed fee contract, or other contract having a similar basis. Gross income received from contracting activity must be reported under the contracting classification and the manner of performance, basis of determining cost, fee or income or form of contract shall not alter the definition of contractor or of contracting and shall not change the taxability of such income from the contracting classification to another classification. A contracting activity remains a contracting activity regardless of what the parties may name it and regardless of the manner in which the parties may make payment and perform work.
727.14.2 Costs.
The measure of the tax under the contracting classification is gross income and includes all items of cost where the contractor has incurred liability. The cost of materials and labor can only be exempted from the measure of the tax in those cases where the contractor is not liable to vendors or workmen for payment. In those cases where the contractor contends that he/she has not incurred a municipal business and occupation tax liability because he/she acted solely as an agent for the owner, the burden of proving alleged principal-agency relationship shall be upon the contractor.
727.14.3 Separate contracts for labor and materials.
In cases where the contractor enters into a separate contract for the furnishing of materials by the contractor and a separate contract for erection of such materials by the contractor, the gross income from both contracts is taxable under the contracting classification, unless it can be proved by the contractor that passage of title of the materials was not dependent upon the erection of the materials by the contractor and that the sale of such materials is, in fact, a separate and distinct transaction, taxable under the municipal business and occupation tax law, as a retail or wholesale sale, as the case may be. The contract to furnish materials shall not be considered a separate and distinct transaction from the contract to erect the same, unless it is established by the contractor to be a complete arm's length transaction with no dependency existing between the contract for materials and the contract for erection. The burden of proving any alleged arm's length transaction shall be upon the contractor.
727.14.4 Separate Purchase Orders.
A separate purchase order for the furnishing of work or labor and a separate purchase order for the furnishing of materials which constitutes the contract(s) between the parties shall be treated in the same manner as set forth in the paragraph above.
727.14.5 Prime and Subcontractors.
A prime contractor, one who furnishes work or both materials and work under a written or oral contract, for the construction, alteration, repair, decoration or improvement of a new or existing building or structure or any part thereof, or for the alteration, improvement or development of realty, must report his/her gross income under the contracting classification without any deduction on account of any expenses incurred. If the prime contractor executes a contract with another for a portion of the job or project the prime contractor receives no deduction from gross income on account of any payment made to the subcontractor. The subcontractor will also be taxed on his/her gross income under the contracting classification.
727.14.6 Contract entered into with Government.
Gross income received by a person for contracting activities performed for the State of West Virginia, the federal government or any of their instrumentalities, agencies, boards, commissions or political subdivisions, etc., or performed for nonprofit organizations is taxable and shall be reported under the contracting classification. The fact that the owner is a governmental unit or a nonprofit organization does not relieve the contractor, subcontractor, supplier or any other person from liability for municipal business and occupation tax on the full amount of gross income.