Model City Tax Code City Profile

Scottsdale

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Seal Arizona Department of Revenue

 


Scottsdale, AZ 7447 East Indian School Road, 85251


Contact: Tax & Licensing Office
(480) 312-2400
Taxpayer Problem
Resolution Officer:

Sharron Walker
(480) 312-7867
Collection By: Self; Dept. of Revenue (effective 1/1/2017)
Sales Tax %: 1.2; 1.4 (effective 7/1/1995); 1.65 (effective 7/1/2004); 1.75 (effective 2/1/2019)
Use Tax %: 1.2 (effective 7/1/1995); 1.45 (effective 7/1/2004); 1.55 (effective 2/1/2019)
City Tax Rates: Web Page
Interest Rate %/month: (same as state)
License Fee: $50.00 plus a $12.00 application fee. Effective 1/1/15 License Fee is $50.00, No Application Fee, and Renewal Fee is $50.00. Residential Rental License Fee is $2.00 per Rental Unit up to Maximum of $50.00. All other business activities, License Fee are $50.00.
Length of License: Annual
Criminal Penalty: Class 1
Date Code Effective: 4-1-87
Chapter #:

Appendix C

 

Amendments or Special Provisions:

1. Impose an additional 3% bed tax. Impose an additional 5% rate effective July 1, 2010.

1A. Jet fuel taxed at $.018 per gallon.

2. Amendment to Sec. 447 as follows:

Sec. 447. Rental, leasing, and licensing for use of real property: additional tax upon transient lodging.

In addition to the taxes levied as provided in Appendix C, Section 444, there is hereby levied and shall be collected an additional tax in an amount equal to three (3) percent of the gross income from the business activity of any hotel engaging or continuing within the city in the business of charging for lodging and/or lodging space furnished to any transient. Two-thirds of the revenue derived from this additional tax imposed in this section shall be used for hospitality development, including destination and event promotion, visitor related capital projects and visitor research. "Transient" means any person who, for any period of not more than thirty (30) consecutive days, either at his own expense or at the expense of another, obtains lodging or the use of any lodging space in any hotel for which lodging or use of lodging space a charge is made.

3. Amendment to Sec. 310 as follows: (Effective July 1, 1989; amendment to subsection (f) effective August 6, 1992.) (Expires on December 31, 2014)

Sec. 310. Licensing: duration of license; annual license fee; transferability; display; penalties; residential property provisions; cancellation; renewal; late application provisions; actions.

(a) Except as provided in Section 320, the Privilege License shall be valid until request for cancellation and unless cancelled or revoked under the provisions of Section 320 or by surrender of the license by the licensee or expiration through cessation by the licensee of the business activity for which it was issued or through failure of the licensee to pay the annual license fee imposed hereunder.

(b) The Privilege License shall be nontransferable between owners or locations, and shall be on display to the public in the licensee's place of business.

(c) Any licensee who permits his license to expire through cancellation as provided in Section 320, by his request for cancellation, by surrender of the license, or by the cessation of the business activity for which the license was issued, and who thereafter applies for a license, shall be granted a new license as an original applicant and shall pay the current application license fee imposed by Section 300, and the annual license fee imposed herein. Any licensee who loses or misplaces his Privilege License which is still in effect shall be charged the current application license fee for each reissuance of a license.

(d) In addition to the license application fee imposed under Section 300, and excepting those persons paying the annual license fee imposed under (f) of this Section, each person licensed under this Chapter shall pay an annual license fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each license held by such person. Such fee shall be due and payable on or before January 1 of each year and shall be considered delinquent if not received on or before the last business day of January each year. Such annual fee must be paid to and received by the Tax Collector by the due date and shall be nonrefundable.

(e) Any licensee who fails to renew his license on or before the date provided in (d) above shall be deemed to be operating without a license following such due date, and shall be subject to all penalties imposed under this Chapter against persons required to be licensed and operating without a license. The non-licensed status may be removed by payment of an annual license fee in the amount of one hundred fifty percent (150%) imposed under (d) above, and the payment of a nonrefundable application fee required under Section 300.

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of (d) above, a person who is engaged in the rental of residential real property, other than transient lodging, shall pay an annual license fee of two dollars ($2.00) per residential unit, (excluding units primarily used for transient lodging) per year not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00). The due date for such fees shall be as set forth in (d) above, and such fee shall be nonrefundable. Any licensee required to pay an annual fee under this subsection, who fails to pay same by said due date shall be deemed to be operating without a license after such date, and subject to all penalties imposed under this Chapter against persons required to be licensed and operating without a license. The non-licensed status may be removed by payment of a penalty of an additional one dollar ($1.00) per unit per year, not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per year, and the annual license fee, and the payment of a nonrefundable application fee required under Section 300.

(g) (Reserved)

(h) If any person required to be licensed under this Chapter fails to obtain a license on or before the conducting of any business activity requiring such license, such person shall be subject to a penalty in the amount of one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the applicable fee for each event or period of time for which such fee would have been imposed from and after the date on which such activity commenced until paid. This penalty shall be in addition to any other penalty imposed under this Chapter and must be paid prior to the issuance of any license.

(i) Notwithstanding the failure of any person to apply for a license and to remit all fees and penalties, if any, imposed herein, such person conducting a business activity subject to licensing without obtaining a license, shall be liable to the city for all applicable fees and penalties and shall be subject to the provisions of Sections 580 and 590, to the same extent as if said fees and penalties were taxes and penalties under such Sections.

4. Section 315 is added as follows: (Effective July 1, 1989) (Expires on December 31, 2014)

Sec. 315. Transient privilege licenses.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 300, a person who will be engaged in business for a period of thirty (30) days or less, may be issued a transient privilege license, which shall be valid only for a thirty (30) day period following the application date, upon payment of a transient application and license fee of twenty-five ($25.00) dollars in lieu of all other fees imposed under this Article. In the event that a person obtaining and operating a business activity by virtue of a transient privilege license, continues to conduct said business beyond the thirty (30) days set forth in such license, such person shall be deemed to be conducting a business activity in the city without a valid privilege license, and shall be subject to all penalties imposed on such activity under this Chapter. In addition thereto, such person shall not be relicensed with either a privilege license under the provisions of Section 300, or a further temporary license under the provision of this Section without paying all other applicable application fees and annual fees.

5. Regulation 310.1 is added as follows: (Effective July 1, 1989) (Expires on December 31, 2014)

Reg. 310.1. Proration of initial annual license fees.

(a) Licensees, subject to the provisions of Section 310(d), whose initial application for a privilege license is received by the Tax Collector after May 28, 2002, will be subject to an initial annual license fee imposed by Section 310(d) on a proration schedule as follows:

BUSINESS START DATE
APPLICABLE LICENSE FEE
January 1 - March 31
$50.00
April 1 - June 30
37.50
July 1 - September 30
25.00
October 1 - December 31
12.50

(b) Licensees, subject to the payment of the annual license fee imposed by Section 310(f) for residential real property, whose initial application for a privilege license is received by the Tax Collector after May 28, 2002, will be subject to an initial annual license fee imposed by Section 310(f) on a proration schedule as follows:

BUSINESS START DATE APPLICABLE LICENSE FEE
January 1 - March 31 $2.00 (per unit)
April 1 - June 30 1.50 (per unit)
July 1 - September 30 1.00 (per unit)
October 1 - December 31 .50 (per unit)

6. Reg. 310.2. "Casual" exemption of activities from the licensing requirements of Section 310. (Expires on December 31, 2014)

Individuals, other than those engaging in rental of real property, may be considered as engaged in "casual" activities, and not subject to the annual license fee imposed under Section 310, provided that they are engaged in activities such as the private sale of personal automobiles, garage sales, and the sale of homemade artifacts, on no more than three separate occasions during any calendar year.

7. Regulation 310.3 is added as follows: (Effective July 1, 1989; amendment to subsection (c)(1) effective August 6, 1992.) (Expires on December 31, 2014)

Reg. 310.3. Annual license fee for persons engaged in providing transient and non-transient lodging.

(a) For the purposes of payment of the annual license fee imposed by Section 310, and this regulation, "primarily used for transient lodging" shall mean actual use of that particular lodging unit as transient lodging at or exceeding eighty-five percent (85%) of total use.

(b) For the purposes of subsections 310(b) and (b) only, it shall be presumed that each lodging unit is not primarily used for transient lodging and is therefore subject to the two dollar ($2.00) per unit annual fee, until the contrary is established by the licensee to the satisfaction of the Tax Collector.

(c) A person who is engaged in providing both transient and non -transient lodging shall pay:

(1) The two dollar ($2.00) per unit annual license fee for each unit not primarily used for transient lodging not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00); plus

(2) The fifty dollar ($50.00) per location annual license fee for each location where he is providing units primarily used for transient lodging.

8. Section 485 is added as follows: (Effective July 1, 1993)

Sec. 485. Wastewater Removal Services

(a) The tax rate shall be an amount equal to one and six and one-half tenths percent (1.65%) of the gross income from the business activity upon every person engaging or continuing in the business of providing wastewater removal services from premises, locations, or facilities located within the city limits of Scottsdale by means of sewer lines or similar pipelines.

(b) The tax imposed by this section shall not apply to gross income relating to the providing of wastewater removal services from any nonprofit primary health care facility.

9. Regulation 270.1 is amended as follows: (Effective July 1, 1993)

(d) providing wastewater removal to consumers or ratepayers, by means of sewers or pipeline, or by any other method.

10. Regulation 460.1 (a) is amended as follows: (Effective July 1, 1993)

(10) wastewater removal services, per Section 485.

11. On November 6,2018, a majority of voters in the City of Scottsdale approved Question 1 to increase the Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) to 1.75% as well as increase the Use Tax Rates to 1.55%. The rate increases will remain for 10 years to provide funds for transportation improvement projects.

This change has an effective date of February 1, 2019.

12. On June 11, 2019, the Mayor and Council of the City of Scottsdale passed Ordinance No. 4403 electing Local Option QQ in Section 465 of the Model City Tax Code allows a Retail Transaction Privilege Tax Exemption for sales of fine art to out of state customers. The provisions of this Ordinance conforms to the Model City Tax Code, which is controling.

This change has an effective date of May 1, 2019.