§ 3.64.010. Definitions.

The following terms, when used in this Chapter, shall for the purpose of this Chapter, have the following respective meanings except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

A.

"Business license section" means the business license section, City Department of Financial Management.

B.

"Guestroom" means any room or rooms or space or portion thereof in a "hotel", as defined in this Section, occupied, or intended, arranged or designed for occupancy.

C.

"Hotel" means any apartment house, auto court, boarding house, bungalow court, club, hotel, inn, lodging house, motel, rooming house, camp, studio, dormitory, tourist home or other structure, private or public, or portion thereof, within the City offering or renting to transients for lodging, dwelling, or sleeping purposes, in guestrooms for compensation, and shall further include any trailer court, trailer spaces, or combinations of such spaces and trailers, including mobilehomes, timeshare units not occupied by the timeshare owner or a guest of the owner, and docked boats and ships, occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes. It does not mean any convalescent home or facility, home for the aged, hospital, jail, military installation, fraternity or sorority house recognized and approved by a Long Beach educational institution, nor does it mean a structure operated exclusively by an association or corporation for religious, charitable or educational purpose or purposes, no part of the earnings of which association or corporation inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.

D.

"Occupancy" means the use or possession, or the right to the use or possession, of any guestroom or rooms or space or portion thereof in any hotel for lodging, dwelling, or sleeping purposes.

E.

"Occupant" means any individual who, for a consideration, uses, possesses or has the right to use any guestroom.

F.

"Operator" means the person who is either the proprietor of the hotel or any other person who has the right to rent rooms within the hotel, whether in the capacity of owner, lessee, licensee, mortgagee in possession, sublessee or any other capacity. The owner or proprietor who is primarily responsible for operation of the hotel shall be deemed to be the principal operator. If the principal operator performs or assigns its functions, in whole or in part, through a managing agent, a booking agent, a room seller or room reseller, or any other agent or contractee, including, but not limited to, online room sellers, online room resellers, and online travel agents, of any type or character other than an employee, those persons shall be deemed to be secondary operators.

A secondary operator shall be deemed an operator for purposes of this Chapter and shall have the same duties and liabilities as the principal operator, including, but not limited to, the collection and remittance of the full amount of the tax owed under the provisions of this Chapter to the City. A secondary operator may satisfy its obligations under the provisions of this Chapter by submitting the full amount of tax due under this Chapter, with credit for any taxes remitted to any other operator, either directly to the Director or through the principal operator. The principal operator may satisfy any potential liability it may have for taxes owed by a secondary operator by entering into a legally binding agreement with that secondary operator to remit the portion of the tax owed by the secondary operator directly to the City. Upon request, the principal operator shall provide the Director with copies of any such agreements.

Compliance with the provisions of this Chapter by either the principal operator or the secondary operator shall be deemed to require the payment and/or remittance of any amount other than the full amount of the tax owed by the transient.

G.

"Person" means any individual, association, company, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, firm, joint venture, social club, fraternal club, organization, joint stock company, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, trustee, syndicate or any other group or combination of individuals acting as a unit.

H.

"Permanent lodger" means any occupant who, as of a given date, has occupied or has had the right of occupancy of any guestroom in a hotel for at least thirty (30) consecutive days next preceding such date.

I.

"Rent" means the consideration charged, whether or not received, for occupancy of room or space in a hotel, valued in money, whether received in money, or goods, labor, or otherwise, including all receipts, cash, credits, property or services of any kind or nature, without any deduction therefrom whatsoever, including, but not limited to, credit card charges. If the charge made by a hotel includes any charge and services in addition to that for occupancy, such as food, then such amount shall be distinctly set out and billed as separate items with the appropriate tax charged. Nothing in this definition shall be construed to mean that rent is charged directly or indirectly for the occupancy of room or space in a hotel when that room or space is provided to the occupant as a compliment from the operator and where no consideration is charged to or received from any other person.

J.

"Return" means any tax return filed or required to be filed as provided in this Chapter.

K.

"Tax Collector" means the Tax Collector of the City.

L.

"Transient" means any occupant who, for a period of not more than thirty (30) consecutive days, either at his or her own expense or at the expense of another, obtains the right of occupancy of a guestroom, for which occupancy rent is charged.

For an individual to avoid being deemed a transient during a thirty (30) consecutive day period, the individual exercising occupancy rights in a hotel must, prior to occupancy, enter into a written agreement with the hotel operator. The written agreement shall obligate a person to pay rent for the individual's occupancy for a period of at least thirty-one (31) consecutive days. The minimum substance of such written agreement shall contain the guest's name, address, period of occupancy, rent and signature. If the written agreement requirements are satisfied, the individual exercising such occupancy rights shall not be considered a transient under this Chapter and, therefore, shall not be subject to the tax imposed pursuant to Sections 3.64.030 and 3.64.035. In the absence of the written agreement prior to the commencement of occupancy, the individual shall be deemed a transient and subject to the tax until the qualifying period (thirty (30) consecutive days) for nontransient status has been satisfied. On the thirty-first consecutive day, and on each consecutive day thereafter, the tax shall not apply. If the individual fails to stay for at least thirty-one (31) consecutive days, irrespective of the written agreement, then the tax shall be due.

Nothing in this definition or this Chapter shall be construed as prohibiting the operator from refunding or making a credit allowance to a person who has paid tax as required by this Chapter where it is established that the person was not a "transient" as defined herein or was exempt from the tax for any other reason, or had for any reason overpaid the tax.

In determining whether an individual is a transient, uninterrupted periods of time extending both prior and subsequent to the effective date of the ordinance codified herein may be considered.

M.

"Director" means the Director of Financial Management or his or her designee.

N.

"Imposition" or "imposed" means the determination that the transient occupancy tax is applicable to and levied upon the transient and attaches as a condition of occupancy or the right to the use or possession of any room or rooms or space or portion thereof in any hotel for dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes.

O.

"Tax" means the transient occupancy tax imposed in Sections 3.64.030 and 3.64.035 which shall include all penalties, interest or other fees, costs and charges, if applicable, for collection purposes.

(ORD-05-0010 §§ 1—10, 2005; Ord. C-7770 §§ 1, 2, 2001; prior code § 2450)