(a) Refunds or Credits of Overpayments. In the case of overpayment of any tax, additions to tax, penalties or interest imposed by this article or any of the other ordinances to which this article is applicable, the City Treasurer shall, subject to the provisions of this article, refund to the taxpayer the amount of the overpayment or, if the taxpayer so elects, apply the same as a credit against the taxpayer's liability for such tax for other periods. The refund or credit shall include any interest due the taxpayer under the provisions of Section 753.17.
(b) Claims for Refund or Credit. No refund or credit shall be made unless the taxpayer has timely filed a claim for refund or credit with the City Treasurer. A person against whom an assessment or an administrative decision has become final shall not be entitled to file a claim for refund or credit with the City Treasurer as prescribed herein. The City Treasurer shall determine the taxpayer's claim and notify the taxpayer in writing of his determination.
(c) Petition for Refund or Credit; Hearing. If the taxpayer is not satisfied with the City Treasurer's, determination of his claim for refund or credit, or if the City Treasurer has not determined the taxpayer's claim within thirty days after such claim was filed the taxpayer may file with the City Treasurer either personally or by certified mail, a petition for refund or credit, provided, that no petition for refund or credit may be filed more than thirty days after the taxpayer is served with notice of denial of his claim. The petition for refund or credit shall be in writing, verified under oath by the taxpayer or his duly authorized agent having knowledge of the facts, and shall set forth with particularity the items of the determination objected to, together with the reasons for the objections. When a petition for refund or credit is properly filed, the procedures for hearing and for decision prescribed in Section 753.09 shall be followed.
(d) Appeal. An appeal from the City Treasurer's decision upon the petition for refund or credit may be taken by the taxpayer in the same manner and under the same procedure as that set forth in Section 753.11 relating to an appeal from the City Treasurer's decision on a petition for reassessment, but no bond shall be required of the taxpayer.
(e) Decision of the Court. Where the appeal is to review an administrative decision on a petition for refund or credit, the court may determine the legal rights of the parties but in no event shall it enter a judgment for money.
(f) Refund Made or Credit Established. The City Treasurer shall promptly issue his requisition on the treasury or establish a credit, as requested by the taxpayer, for any amount finally administratively or judicially determined to be an overpayment of any tax administered under this article. The Auditor shall issue his warrant on the Treasurer for any refund requisitioned under this section payable to the taxpayer entitled to the refund, and the Treasurer shall pay such warrant out of the fund into which the amount so refunded was originally paid.
(g) Forms for Claim for Refund or a Credit. The City Treasurer may prescribe by rule or regulation the forms for claims for refund or credit.
(h) Remedy Exclusive. The procedure provided by this section shall constitute the sole method of obtaining any refund or any credit.
(i) Applicability. The provisions of this section shall apply to refunds or credits of any tax, additions to tax, penalties or interest imposed by any to which this article is applicable for any refund or credit sought after the first day of July, 1987, irrespective of whether the claim of refund or credit is for a tax period ending prior to that date.
(j) Erroneous Refund or Credit. If the City Treasurer believes that an erroneous refund has been made or an erroneous credit has been established he may proceed to investigate and may make an assessment or institute civil action to recover the amount of such refund or credit.
(k) Limitation on Claims for Refund or Credit.
(1) General rule. Whenever a taxpayer claims to be entitled to a refund or credit of any tax, additions to tax, penalties or interest paid into the treasury of this City such taxpayer shall except as provided in subsection (c) hereof, file his claim within three years after the due date of the return in respect of which the tax was imposed or within two years from the date the tax was paid, whichever of such periods expires the later, or if no return was filed by the taxpayer, within two years from the time the tax was paid, and not thereafter.
(2) Extension of time for filing claim by agreement. The City Treasurer and the taxpayer may enter into written agreement to extend the period within which the taxpayer may file a claim for refund or credit, which period shall not exceed two years. The period so agreed upon may be extended for additional periods not in excess of two years each by subsequent agreements in writing made before the expiration of the period previously agreed upon.
(3) Special rule where agreement to extend time for making an assessment. Notwithstanding subsection (k)(1) and (2) hereof, if, an agreement is made under the provisions of Section 753.15 extending the time period in which an assessment of a tax can be made, then the time period for filing a claim for refund or credit for an overpayment of the same tax made during the periods subject to assessment under the extension agreement shall also be extended for the period of the extension agreement plus ninety days.
(Ord. 0-19-87. Passed 4-9-87.)