A. Written Protest Required: In the event that a locally imposed and administered tax is declared to have been invalidly enacted or is declared to be unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, the Village shall not refund or credit any taxes voluntarily paid unless a written protest is made at the time of payment. However, a taxpayer shall not be deemed to have paid the tax voluntarily if the taxpayer lacked knowledge of the facts upon which to protest payment of a tax at the time of payment or if the taxpayer paid the tax under duress.
B. Statute Of Limitations; Limitation On Issuance Of Credit Or Refund: Any claim made by a taxpayer for a credit or refund arising from the payment to the Village of a tax, other than the taxes which the Village imposes on the privilege of renting a hotel room, or purchasing gasoline imposed by the Village, must be received by the Village not more than four (4) years after the end of the calendar year in which payment in error was made. Any claim made by a taxpayer for a credit or refund arising from the payment of the taxes which the Village imposes on the privilege of renting a hotel room, purchasing gasoline imposed by the Village, must be received by the Village not more than one year after the date the payment in error was made. The Village shall not grant a creditor refund of locally imposed and administered taxes, interest, or penalties to a person who has acted only as a collector of the tax, unless there is in place a procedure that provides reasonable assurance that the amount of the credit or refund shall be paid over to the person or persons who actually paid the tax. The Village shall not grant a credit or refund of a tax to a person who has not paid or remitted the amounts directly to the Village.
C. Procedure: The procedure for claiming a credit or refund of locally imposed and administered taxes, interest or penalties paid in error shall be as follows:
1. The taxpayer shall submit to the Local Tax Administrator in writing a claim for credit or refund, together with a statement specifying:
a. The name of the locally imposed and administered tax subject to the claim;
b. The tax period for the locally imposed and administered tax subject to the claim;
c. The date of the tax payment subject to the claim and a canceled check or receipt for the payment or other proof of payment;
d. If applicable, the taxpayer’s recalculation, accompanied by an amended or revised tax return, in connection with the claim; and
e. A request for either a refund or a credit in connection with the claim to be applied to the amount of tax, interest and penalties overpaid and, as applicable, related interest on the amount overpaid; provided, however, that there shall be no refund and only a credit given in the event the taxpayer owes any monies to the Village.
2. Within twenty one (21) days of the receipt by the Local Tax Administrator of any claim for a refund or credit, the Local Tax Administrator shall either:
a. Grant the claim; or
b. Deny the claim, in whole or in part, together with a statement as to the reason for the denial or the partial grant and denial.
3. In the event the Local Tax Administrator grants, in whole or in part, a claim for refund or credit, the amount of the grant for refund or credit shall bear interest at the rate of six percent (6%) per annum, based on a year of three hundred sixty five (365) days and the number of days elapsed, from the date of the overpayment to the date of mailing of a refund check or the grant of a credit.
(Ord. 2000-12-6D, 12-6-2000)