N.Y. Tax Law 1283 – Liability for tax; special provisions
§ 1283. Liability for tax; special provisions. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary: (a) The taxicab owner or HAIL base, as the case may be, shall be liable for the tax imposed by this article.
Terms Used In N.Y. Tax Law 1283
- Agent: means a person that acts, by employment, contract, or otherwise, on behalf of one or more taxicab owners to operate or provide for the operation of a licensed medallion taxicab in accordance with the TLC's rules. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- City: means a city of a million or more located in the MCTD. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- HAIL base: means a person who or which is a for-hire vehicle base station established pursuant to section 19-511 of the administrative code of the city of New York and permitted by the TLC to be affiliated with holders of HAIL licenses. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- HAIL vehicle: means a for-hire vehicle having a taximeter and a TLC-sanctioned trip record system, licensed by the TLC to carry passengers for hire and authorized to accept hails from prospective passengers in the streets of the city, provided that such authorization shall prohibit the pick-up of passengers by street hail at airports and by street hail or pre-arranged call in Manhattan south of east ninety-sixth street and south of west one hundred tenth street, or in such area as the TLC shall by rule prohibit pursuant to the chapter of the laws of two thousand twelve which added this subdivision. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- HAIL vehicle owner: means a person licensed by the TLC to own and operate, or operate, a HAIL vehicle for which the TLC has issued a HAIL license. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- HAIL vehicle trip: means a HAIL vehicle trip provided to one or more passengers regardless of the number of stops, that originated by street hail, and for which the taximeter is required to be in the recording or hired position designating a street hail trip subject to the tax imposed by this article. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- owner: means a person licensed by the TLC to own and operate a medallion taxicab. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- Person: means an individual, partnership, limited liability company, society, association, joint stock company, corporation, estate, receiver, trustee, assignee, referee or any other person acting in a fiduciary or representative capacity, whether appointed by a court or otherwise, any combination of individuals, and any other form of unincorporated enterprise owned or conducted by two or more persons. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- Taxicab: means a motor vehicle licensed by the TLC to carry passengers for hire and authorized to accept hails from prospective passengers in the street. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- Taximeter: means an instrument or device approved by the TLC by which the charge to a passenger for hire of a licensed taxicab for a taxicab trip or of a HAIL vehicle for a HAIL vehicle trip is automatically calculated and on which such charge is plainly indicated. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- TLC: means the taxi and limousine commission of the city. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
- TSP: means a person that acts by employment, contract or otherwise on behalf of one or more taxicab owners or HAIL vehicle owners to collect the trip record for a taxicab trip or HAIL vehicle trip. See N.Y. Tax Law 1280
(b) (1) If the taxicab owner has designated an agent, then the agent shall be jointly liable with the taxicab owner for the tax on trips occurring during the period that such designation is in effect. Even if the TLC has specified that the taxicab owner's agent cannot operate as an agent, that agent shall be jointly liable with the taxicab owner if the agent has acted for the taxicab owner. During the period that a taxicab owner's designation of an agent is in effect, the agent shall file the returns required by this article and pay any tax due with such return, but the taxicab owner shall not be relieved of liability for tax, penalty or interest due under this article, or for the filing of returns required to be filed, unless the agent has timely filed accurate returns and timely paid the tax required to be paid under this article. If a taxicab owner has designated an agent, then the agent must perform any act this article requires the taxicab owner to perform, but the failure of such agent to perform any such act shall not relieve the taxicab owner from the obligation to perform such act or from any liability that may arise from failure to perform the act.
(2) (A) Notwithstanding the foregoing, a TSP that collects the trip record and the trip fare on behalf of a taxicab owner or a HAIL vehicle owner shall withhold from daily collections the taxes due on such trips, and shall withhold from such collections the taxes due on cash trips. If the TSP's daily collections, after retaining any fees to which it is entitled pursuant to a contract with such taxicab owner or HAIL vehicle owner, are insufficient to cover the taxes due on such cash trips, the TSP shall withhold an amount from subsequent daily collections, to the extent funds are available, until all taxes due for a quarterly period described in section twelve hundred eighty-four of this article have been withheld. If a TSP is unable to withhold all the taxes due in such quarterly period, it shall withhold such unwithheld taxes from daily collections in the next quarterly period. A TSP shall be jointly liable for the tax due on all trips for which it collects the trip record, but shall be relieved of liability for any taxes attributable to cash trips for which it was unable to withhold the taxes due because there was insufficient daily collections during four successive quarterly periods.
(B) For any period that the TSP collects trip records on behalf of a taxicab owner or HAIL vehicle owner, the TSP shall file returns reporting the tax due on all trips for which it collected trip records and shall remit the taxes withheld on all such trips and shall report any unwithheld taxes due because of insufficient daily collections to cover the taxes due on cash trips.
(c) (1) Although the tax is imposed on the taxicab owner or the HAIL base, the city or the TLC shall adopt or amend ordinances or regulations to ensure that the economic incidence of the tax is passed through to passengers, such as by increasing taxicab or HAIL vehicle trip fares. The passing along of such economic incidence may not be construed by any court or administrative body as imposing the tax on any person other than the taxicab owner or the HAIL base. The city or the TLC must adjust trip fares to include therein the pass-through of the economic incidence of the tax imposed by this article, as the rate of such tax may from time to time change, and must timely require that any taximeter in a taxicab or HAIL vehicle used to provide trips that originate in the city be adjusted to include the pass-through.
(2) A taxicab owner or a HAIL base or HAIL vehicle owner in such city must timely adjust the taximeter in any of such person's taxicabs or HAIL vehicles so that it reflects such pass-through as such pass-through amount may from time to time change.
(3) Neither the failure of such city or the TLC to adjust fares nor the failure of a taxicab owner, HAIL base, HAIL vehicle owner, or other person to adjust a taximeter will relieve any person liable for the tax imposed by this article from the obligation to pay such tax timely, at the correct rate.
(d) Nothing in this article shall be construed as limiting the imposition of any tax imposed by article twenty-eight of this chapter on transportation service provided by a HAIL base, HAIL vehicle, or owner or operator of a HAIL vehicle. Nor shall anything in article twenty-eight of this chapter be construed as limiting the imposition of any tax imposed by this article on a HAIL vehicle trip or as limiting the obligation on a HAIL base to pay such tax.