The following words and phrases whenever used in this chapter shall be construed as defined in this section as follows.
BILLING ADDRESS. The mailing address of the service user where the service supplier submits invoices or bills for payment by the customer.
CHARGES FOR MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES. Has the same meaning and usage as set forth in the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act (4 U.S.C. §§ 116 and 124) and the regulations thereunder.
CITY. The City of Tulare.
CITY MANAGER. The City Manager of city, or his or her authorized representative.
COGENERATOR. Any corporation or person employing cogeneration (as defined in the Cal. Public Utilities Code § 218.5) for producing power for the generation of electricity for self use or sale to others from a qualified cogeneration facility (as defined in the Federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 and regulations thereunder).
EXEMPT WHOLESALE GENERATOR. Has the same meaning as set forth in the Federal Power Act (15 U.S.C. 79z-5a) and regulations thereunder.
GAS. Natural or manufactured gas or any alternate hydrocarbon fuel which may be substituted therefore.
MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE. Has the same meaning and usage as set forth in the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act (4 U.S.C. § 124) and the regulations thereunder.
MONTH. A calendar month.
NON-UTILITY SUPPLIER.
(1) A service supplier, other than a supplier of electric distribution services to all or a significant portion of the city, which generates electricity for sale to others, and shall include, but is not limited to, any publicly-owned electric utility, investor-owned utility, cogenerator, municipal utility district, federal power marketing authority, electric rural cooperative, or other supplier or seller of electricity;
(2) An electric service provider (ESP), electricity broker, marketer, aggregator, pool operator, or other electricity supplier other than a supplier of electric distribution services to all or a significant portion of the city, which sells or supplies electricity or supplemental services to electricity users within the city;
(3) A gas service supplier, aggregator, marketer, or broker, other than a supplier of gas distribution services to all or a significant portion of the city, which sells or supplies gas to users within the city; and
(4) A water service supplier, distributor, wholesaler, marketer, or broker, which sells or supplies water to users within the city (other than a supplier of water distribution services to all or a significant portion of the city).
PERSON. Without limitation, any natural individual, firm, trust, common law trust, estate, partnership of any kind, association, syndicate, club, joint stock company, joint venture, limited liability company, corporation (including foreign, domestic, and non-profit), municipal district or municipal corporation (other than the city) cooperative, receiver, trustee, guardian, or other representative appointed by order of any court.
PLACE OF PRIMARY USE.
(1) The street address representative of where the customer’s use of the telecommunications service primarily occurs, which must be:
(a) The residential street address or the primary business street address of the customer; and
(b) In the case of a mobile telecommunications service user, within the licensed service area of the home service provider.
(2) See Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act (4 U.S. C. §§ 116 et seq.).
SERVICE ADDRESS. The residential street address or the business street address of the service user. For a telephone communication service user, SERVICE ADDRESS means either:
(1) The location of the telecommunications equipment to which a service user’s call is charged and from which the call originates or terminates, regardless of where the call is billed or paid; or
(2) If the location in division (1) of this definition is unknown (e.g., mobile telecommunications or VoIP service), the
SERVICE ADDRESS means the location of the service user’s place of primary use.
SERVICE SUPPLIER. Any entity or person, including the city, that provides telephone communication, electric, gas, water or video service to a user of such services within the city, and includes an entity or person required to collect, or self-collect under § 5.76.060 of this chapter, and remit a tax as imposed by this chapter, including its billing agent in the case of electric, gas, water or video service suppliers.
SERVICE USER. A person required to pay a tax imposed under the provisions of this chapter.
STATE. The State of California.
TAX ADMINISTRATOR. The Finance Director/Treasurer of the City of Tulare or any person designated by the City Manager or the Finance Director to perform the functions of the Tax Administrator specified in this chapter.
TELEPHONE COMMUNICATION SERVICES. Any service that is capable of transmitting telephonic quality communications with the general telephone public (including the use of Internet Protocol (IP) or other protocol), whether provided by analog, digital, electronic, radio or similar means through INTERCONNECTED SERVICE with the PUBLIC SWITCHED NETWORK (as these terms are commonly used in the Federal Communications Act and the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission - see 47 U.S.C. § 332 (d)) or over digital networks by which communications with the general telephone public is available (e.g., voice using internet protocol or VoIP), and whether such transmission occurs by wire, typewriter, cable, cable modem or digital subscriber line (DSL), internet, fiber-optic, WiFi, light wave, laser, microwave, switching facilities, satellite, radio wave (including, but not limited to, mobile telecommunications service, cellular service, commercial mobile service and commercial mobile radio service (see 47 U.S.C. § 332(d) (1) and 47 C.F.R. part 20.3), personal communications service (PCS), specialized mobile radio (SMR), and other similar services regardless of radio spectrum used), or any other similar facilities and whether charges for such services are based on time, distance, or on any other basis. TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES shall also include, but is not limited to, COMMUNICATION SERVICES as defined in the Internal Revenue Code §§ 4251 and 4252, and the regulations thereunder.
VIDEO SERVICE SUPPLIER. Any person, company, or service which provides one or more channels of video programming including any communications that are ancillary, necessary or common to the use and enjoyment of the video programming, to or from an address in the city, including to or from a business, home, condominium, or apartment, where some fee is paid, whether directly or included in dues or rental charges for that service, whether or not public rights-of-way are utilized in the delivery of the video programming or communications. A VIDEO SERVICE SUPPLIER includes, but is not limited to: a multichannel video programming distributor (as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 522(13)); a supplier of open video systems (OVS), cable television, master antenna television, satellite master antenna television, multichannel multipoint distribution services (MMDS), video services using interne protocol (e.g., IP-TV and IP-Video, which provide, among other things, broadcasting and video on demand), or direct broadcast satellite to the extent federal law permits taxation of its video services, now or in the future; and other suppliers of video programming or communications (including two-way communications), whatever their technology.
VIDEO SERVICES. Any and all services related to the providing of video programming (including origination programming) including any communications that are ancillary, necessary or common to the use or enjoyment of such video programming, regardless of the content of such video programming or communications, or the technology used to deliver such services. VIDEO SERVICES shall not include services for which a tax is paid under § 5.76.030 of this chapter.
WATER CORPORATION, TELEPHONE CORPORATION, ELECTRICAL CORPORATION, AND GAS CORPORATION. Shall have the same meanings as defined in Cal. Public Utilities Code §§ 234, 218, 222, and 241, respectively, as the sections existed on January 1, 1969. ELECTRICAL CORPORATION and WATER CORPORATION shall be construed to include any organization, municipality or other agency engaged in the selling or supplying of electrical power or water to the service user; provided that, pursuant to Cal. Public Utilities Code § 218(b), ELECTRICAL CORPORATION does not include a corporation or person employing cogeneration technology or producing power from other than a conventional power source for the generation of electricity solely for the purposes specified therein.
(1995 Code, § 5.76.010) (Ord. 05-1958, passed - -2005)