Bill 2 (Legislature 5, Session 6)

L5 S6 9308

Alberta — Bills

BILL No.2 of 1926.

An Act to amend The Lethbridge Charter. (Assented to ,1926.) H IS MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Alberta, enacts as follows; The Lethbridge Charte'r, being

chapter 22 of the Statutes of Alberta, 1913, and amendments thereto, is hereby further amended as follows: 1. Title XXIV, ,by adding thereto, after paragraph 9 and before paragraph 10, the following paragraphs: "9a.

The Council may from time to time make by-laws for the purpose of making an assessment on all places of business and on all offices whether occupied for business or professional purposes, and such assessment shall be either on the rental value of the office or place of business occupied or upon the floor space occupied, and may levy a rate not exceeding twelve per cent on the rental value assessed~ and the assessment on fioor space may be made at different rates for the different businesses or professions according to the nature and importance thereof, and the Council may by the said by-law make all necessary regulations for mak ing assessment and collecting the taxes as may be neces sary.

"9b. The rate shall not exceed eight dollars per square foot except ill the case of banks, loan companies or other financial institutions, in which case such rate shall not exceed fifteen dollars per square foot. "9c. Wherever it is found by the A~sessor that a business is being carried on, either wholly or partially, outside of any building, he shall fix a rate per square foot of the yard space used for such business, and shall as far as he deems prac ticable classify the various businesses, and he may fix a different rate for each, but such rate shall not exceed four dollars pel' square foot. "9d.

The City, of Lethbridge shall have a preferred lien for the taxes or rates hereinabove assessed and provided for, preferred over all creditors except the Crown on the in terest of the occupant in any moveable property situated upon any premises assessed either upon the floor space oc cupied 01' the rental value of the office or place of business occupied and which moveable property belongs to the party assessed for the said space or place of business so occupied.

2 "Oe. The said rental tax and floor space tax may be re covered by suit in any Court having competent jurisdiction in the name of the City of Lethbridge as an ordinary debt, from any person liable to pay the same, and may also be recovered by dis~ress and sale of any personal property be longing to such person at any time after such tax becomes due and payable. "Of. That

Section 2, of

chapter 54, of the Statutes of Al berta, '1918, and

Section 27, of

chapter 91, of the Statutes of Alberta, 1922, and

Section 12, of

chapter 44, of the Stat utes of Alberta, 1924, being amendments to

Chapter 22, of the Statutes of Alberta, 1913, are hereby repealed. "Og. The foregoing provisions of this Act shall be deemed to have been in operation on the first day of January, 1924, and any assessment or levy made on or after that date by virtue of the provisions of the sections repealed by para graph 8 hereof, are hereby approved, ratified and confirmed and declared to be valid assessments and levies." 2. By inserting after Title XXXV, the following as Title XXXVa.: "TITLE XXXVa. SERVICE TAX. "1.

Except as hereinafter provided, every person, male or female of the age of twenty-one years or over, who resides in the I City of Lethbridge for at least three months, shall upon the passing of a by-law therefor, pay to the City (Of Lethbridge each year, as part of the general revenues of the City, a tax for services rendered,by the City, here~n referred to as 'the service tax' or 'the said tax.' "2.

For the purposes of this section, residence within the City of Lethbridge shall be understood as actual residence therein for the said period of three- months, irrespective of whether such person intends to reside in the City perman ently or whether or not the said period of residence is wholly or in part only within the year in which the said tax be comes due. -"3. The amount of the annual service tax payable by each person liable therefor· shall not be less than the sum 'Of one dollar'or more than the sum of two hundred and fifty dollars as provided for in the next subsection. "4.

The Council of the 'City is hereby empowered to pass a by-law fixing the amount of the service tax payable an nually by all persons as above provided, and for the said pur pose may adopt any basis of classification the Council may deem advisable, and may differentiate between the amount payable by the different classes of persons as defined in the said by-law. "5. The Council may by by-law provide for exempting from the said tax any class or classes of persons. "5a. Notwithstanding anything contained in

Chapter 22, of the Statutes of Alberta, 1913, or any amendments thereto; the Council may make the basis of the said tax and may im pose, levy and collect the said tax, upon the monthly wages

3 pr salary actually being paid or likely to be paid to any per son during the year in which Jhe said tax is made payable by a by-law of the Council, or upon the estimated income for the year in which the said tax is made so payable, or upon the wages or salary pa.id to any person for the year pre ceding the year in which the said tax is so payable, or upon the income of any person for the year preceding the year in which the said tax is so payable or upon any other basis or bases which to ;the Council may seem proper. "5b.

For the purposes of the said tax the Council may by by-law define the word 'income' and the tax may;be pay able upon income so defined. "5c. The said tax may be imposed, levied and collected for the year 1926 and for any subsequent year. ' "5d. The Council may make such allowances for depend ent relations, desertion 'or other particular domestic circum stances and such allowances for or total or partial offsets against other mlmicipal taxes, as to the Council may seem advisable. ' "6.

The service tax for the year 1926 shall become due and payable on the first day of July, 1926, unless the Coun cil by by-law fixes an earlier date for the payment thereof, in which case the service tax shall become due and payable on the date fixed by such by-law. "7. The service tax shall become due and payable in each year after the year 1926 on the first day of January of each year. "8.

If any person has not resided within the City for three months prior to the date the service tax becomes due and payable in imy year, such person shall become liable to pay to the City {the said tax for that year so soon as such per son shall have been a resident of the City for three months. "9. The service tax shall be due and payable from each person liable therefor upon and after the date such tax be comes due and payable in any year, 01' so soon as any per son shall have been a resident of the City for three months, without any formal demand for payment thereof. "10.

Every employer, including partnerships and com panies, shall upon application therefor to such employer, or to the Manager of the business of such employer, either per sonally or by letter addr.essed to the place of business, furn ish forthwith to the Tax Collector of the City, or to any per son authorized by him to apply therefor, the name and ad dress of each and every person in his or its employ, and the wages or salary paid to'such employee, and any other in formation that may be reasonably required for the purpose of the said tax. "11.

Every person shall furnish forthwith, upon request made by the Tax Collector of the City, or by any other per son authorized by him to apply therefor, his or her name, place and period of residence within the City, and shall also inform the Collector or 'other person whether he or she is of the age of twenty-one years, or over, and the wages or

4 salary received during the three months preceding the date the said tax became due and payable by such person to the City; and any other information the Council of the City may require from any person, or class of persons, for any of the purposes of the said tax.

"~~a" The City Assessor, the Deputy Assessor and all permanent or temporary clerks, whose duty it is to keep·a record of the returns to be made for the payment of the said tax,shall take an oath of secrecy in a form to be pre scribed by by-law before a Justice of the Peace, and no per son employed in the service of the City shall communicate or allow to be communicated to any persoil not legally en titled thereto, any information obtained in respect of the said returns or allow any such person to inspect or have ac cess to any such written statement or return furnished un der the provisions of this Ordinance or of any by-law of the City of Lethbridge.

Any person violating any of the pro visions of this subsection, shall in addition to any other pun ishment that may be prescribed by law, be liable on sum- 'mary conviction to a fine not exceeding two hundred dol lars, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both fine and imprisonment. "~~b. The clerks, permanent or temporary, charged with the keeping and examination of the said returns, shall work in a separate office or room or, in a portion of a general of fice partitioned from the rest of the general office. "~2.

Every employer, and the manager of the business of such employer, and every person who refuses, or neglects for three days after request made therefor, to furnish the in formation required to be furnished under either of the two preceding subsections, or who furnishes any false informa tion, shall upon

summary conviction thereof be liable to the penalties provided by The .LethMidge Charter, and in addi tion thereto shall be liable to a penalty of ten dollars for each day of default; provided, however, that such penalty shall not in any case exceed three hundred dollars. "~3.

Every employer shall pay to the City of Lethbridge within one month after notice by the Tax Collector of the City the full amount of the service tax payable to the City by any employee of such employer, whether such tax has been previously demanded from such employee or not, and the amount so paid may be .deducted by the employer from the wages or salary of the employee. "~4.

The service tax may be recovered by suit, in the name of the City as an ordinary debt from any person liable to pay same, and may also be recovered by distress and sale of any personal property belonging to such person at any time after such tax becomes due and payable, provided, how ever, that before action is commenced or seizure is made. demand in writing for payment of the service tax shall have been delivered to such person or shall have been mailed to the correct address of such person.

5 "15. In the case of the person primarily liable for the said t.ax at least three days, and in the case of the employer at least one month shall have elapsed after the delivery or mailing of such demand. "16. The service tax shall be collectable on behalf of the City by the Tax Collector of the City, or any person duly authorized for such purpose. "17.

The Tax Collector or person duly authorized for such purposes, shall keep a register of the names and addresses of all persons who have paid to the City the service tax in any year, and the names of all such persons shall be added to the Voters' list of the City for the year, by the City Clerk, unless such names already appear on the Voters' list for that year, or unless the Voters' list shall have been completed prior to the payment of the said tax."

No.2. SIXTH SESSION FIFTH LEGISLATURE 16 GEORGE V 1926 BILL

An Act to amend The Lethbridge Charter. Received and read the First time .................... . Second time .................. . Third time ................... . MR. PEARSON. ED-MONTON, W. D. McT.EAN. ACTIN6 KING'S PRINTER AJ).1II26. Title: 1926 (5th, 6th) Bill 2,

An Act to amend The Lethbridge Charter

Document details

Collection	Alberta — Bills
Citation	L5 S6 9308
Type	bill
Volume / chapter	L5 S6 9308
Language	en
Format	json
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	f5cf30534d915181ef3f31b791e0665370611e73

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