Chapter 25 - Miscellaneous
Division 6 - Gross Receipts Utility Tax
SEC. 25.6-1. A tax is imposed on all persons engaged in the following occupations or privileges:
- Persons engaged in the business of transmitting messages
by means of electricity, or radio magnetic waves or fiber optics,
at the rate of five percent (5%) of the gross receipts from
such business originating within the corporate limits of the
Town of Normal. (Amended 1/3/95 by Ord. No. 4280)
- Persons engaged in the business of distributing, supplying,
furnishing, or selling gas for use or consumption within the
corporate limits of the Town of Normal, and not for resale,
at the rate of five percent (5%) of the gross receipts therefrom.
- Persons engaged in the business of distributing, supplying, furnishing, or selling electricity for use or consumption within the corporate limits of the Town of Normal, and not for resale, at the rate of five percent (5%) of the gross receipts therefrom.
SEC. 25.6-2. No tax is imposed by this ordinance with respect to any transaction in interstate commerce or otherwise to the extent to which such business may not, under the constitution and statutes of the United States, be made subject to taxation by this State or any political subdivision thereof; nor shall any persons engaged in the business of distributing, supplying, furnishing, or selling gas or electricity, or engaged in the business of transmitting messages be subject to taxation under the provisions of this ordinance for such transactions as are or may become subject to taxation under the provisions of the “Municipal Retailer’s Occupation Tax Act” authorized by Section 8-11-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code.
SEC. 25.6-3. Such tax shall be in addition to the payment of money, or value of products or services furnished to this municipality by the taxpayer as compensation for the use of its streets, alleys or other public places, or installation and maintenance therein, thereon, or thereunder of poles, wires, pipes, or other equipment used in the operation of the taxpayers’ business or for their respective franchise rights.
SEC. 25.6-4. For the purposes of this ordinance, the following definitions shall apply:
- Gross receipts means the consideration received for
the transmission of messages, or for distributing, supplying,
furnishing, or selling gas or electricity for use or consumption
and not for resale, as the case may be; and for all services
rendered in connection therewith valued in money, whether received
in money or otherwise, including cash, credit, services and
property of every kind and material and for all services rendered
therewith; and shall be determined without any deduction on
account of the cost of transmitting said messages without any
deduction on account of the cost of the service, product, or
commodity supplied, the cost of materials used, labor or service
cost, or any other expenses whatsoever.
- Transmitting messages, in addition to the usual and
popular meaning of person to person communication, shall include
the furnishing, for a consideration, of services or facilities
(whether owned or leased), or both, to persons in connection
with the transmission of messages where such persons do not,
in turn, receive any consideration in connection therewith,
but shall not include such furnishing of services or facilities
to persons for the transmission of messages to the extent that
any such services or facilities for the transmission of messages
are furnished for a consideration, by such persons to other
persons, for the transmission of messages.
In the case of persons engaged in the business of transmitting messages through the use of mobile equipment, such as cellular phones and paging systems, the gross receipts from the business shall be deemed to originate within the corporate limits of a municipality only if the address to which the bills for the service are sent is within those corporate limits. If, however, that address is not located within a municipality that imposes a tax under this Section, then (i) if the party responsible for the bill is not an individual, the gross receipts from the business shall be deemed to originate within the corporate limits of the municipality where that party's principal place of business in Illinois is located, and (ii) if the party responsible for the bill is an individual, the gross receipts from the business shall be deemed to originate within the corporate limits of the municipality where that party's principal residence in Illinois located. (Amended 1/3/95 by Ord. No. 4280)
- Person means any natural individual, firm, trust, estate, partnership, association, joint stock company, joint adventure, corporation, municipal corporation, or political subdivision of this State, or a receiver, trustee, conservator or other representative appointed by order of any court.
SEC. 25.6-5. This ordinance shall take effect after publication, and the tax provided for herein shall be based on the gross receipts, as herein defined actually paid to the taxpayer for services billed on or after the first day of July, 1965.
SEC. 25.6-6. On or before the last day of October, 1965, each taxpayer shall make a return to the City Clerk for the months of July, August, and September, 1965, stating:
- His name;
- His principal place of business;
- His gross receipts during those months upon the basis of which the tax is imposed;
- Amount of Tax;
- Such other reasonable and related information as the corporate authorities may require.
On or before the last day of every month thereafter, each taxpayer shall make a like return to the Town Treasurer for a corresponding one month period.
The taxpayer making the return herein provided for shall, at the time of making such return, pay to the City, the amount of tax herein imposed; provided that in connection with any return the taxpayer may, if he so elects, report and pay an amount based upon his total billings of business subject to the tax during the period for which the return is made (exclusive of any amounts previously billed) with prompt adjustments of later payments based upon any differences between such billings and the taxable gross receipts.
SEC. 25.6-7. If it shall appear that an amount of tax has been paid which was not due under the provisions of this ordinance, whether as the result of a mistake of fact or an error of law, then such amount shall be credited against any tax due, or to become due, under this ordinance from the taxpayer who made the erroneous payment; provided that no amounts erroneously paid more than three (3) years prior to the filing of a claim herefore shall be so credited.
SEC. 25.6-8. No action to recover any amount of tax due under the provisions of this ordinance shall be commenced more than three (3) years after the due date of such amount. The Town Treasurer shall have the authority to audit and otherwise review the financial records of the taxpayer in order to determine compliance with this division. (Amended 7/21/97 by Ord. No. 4459)
SEC. 25.6-9. Any taxpayer who fails to make a return, or who makes a fraudulent return, or who willfully violates any other provision of this ordinance is guilty of misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), and in addition shall be liable in a civil action for the amount of tax due. A separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. (Amended 7/21/97 by Ord. No. 4459)
SEC. 25.6-10. Should a court of competent jurisdiction declare any word, sentence, or paragraph of this ordinance to be invalid or unconstitutional, such declaration shall in no way affect the remaining portion of said ordinance.
SEC. 25.6-11. This ordinance shall
be in full force and effect from and after its passage, approval,
and due publication as provided by law; however, the effective date
of the tax herein imposed shall be as above set forth, namely, July
1, 1965.
(ENTIRE DIVISION ADDED BY ORDINANCE NO. 3337, 8/6/84)
SEC. 25.6-12 ENTERPRISE ZONE REFUND. Until January 1, 1999, certified business enterprises described herein shall be entitled to a refund of fifty percent (50%) of a portion of the additional charge imposed by the persons engaged in occupations described in Section 25.6-1 of this Code on the certified business enterprise pursuant to 220 ILCS 5/9-221 State Bar Edition, 1992, as amended. The portion of the additional charge subject to the fifty percent (50%) refund shall be that portion equal to the five percent (5%) municipal gross receipts utility tax imposed by this Division. Any business meeting the following qualifications shall be considered a certified business enterprise eligible for the fifty percent (50%) refund provided herein: (Amended 6/7/93 by Ord. No. 4143)
- makes investments which cause the creation of a minimum
of two hundred (200) full-time equivalent jobs or makes investments
which causes the retention of a minimum of two thousand (2,000)
full-time jobs; and
- is located within the Town of Normal enterprise zone as
established by Ordinance No. 3364 and any amendment thereto;
and
- is certified by the Town Council and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs as complying with the qualifications specified in clauses A and B.
Certified business enterprises shall make application for refund in the manner prescribed by the City Manager. (ADDED 3/6/89)
SEC. 25.6-13. Coordination with Telecommunications
Tax imposed pursuant to Division 14 of this Chapter. The five per
cent (5%) Gross Receipts Utility Tax imposed on persons engaged
in the business of transmitting messages by means of electricity
or radio magnet waves or fiber optics from such business originating
within the corporate limits of the Town of Normal be and the same
is hereby declared of no force and effect during such time as the
Telecommunications Tax imposed in Division 14 of this Chapter is
in full force and effect. If the Telecommunications Tax imposed
in Division 14 of this Chapter pursuant to Section 8-11-17 of the
Illinois Municipal Code is repealed or becomes ineffective for any
reason, then the five per cent (5%) Gross Receipts Utility Tax on
the business of transmitting messages imposed pursuant to this Division
6 of Chapter 25 shall be deemed to be in full force and effect as
of the date the Telecommunications Tax enacted pursuant to Section
8-11-17 of the Municipal Code is repealed or becomes ineffective.
Provided, however, that in the event the Gross Receipts Utility
Tax on the business of transmitting messages and the Telecommunications
Tax authorized pursuant to Section 8-11-17 of the Municipal Code
are converted to another tax pursuant to law, then it is the intent
of the Normal Town Council that such conversion to such new tax
shall be made on the basis of the Telecommunications Tax authorized
by Section 8-11-17 of the Illinois Municipal Code.
(SEC. 25.6-13 Added 2/18/02 by Ord. No. 4775)