§ 15-43. Penalty for delinquent payment or engaging in business without first obtaining a business tax receipt.

(a)

All business tax receipts shall be sold by the business tax division beginning August 1 of each year and shall be due and payable on or before September 30 of each year and shall expire on September 30 of the succeeding year. If September 30 falls on a weekend or holiday, the fee is due and payable on or before the first working day following September 30. Receipts that are not renewed when due and payable are delinquent and subject to a delinquency penalty of ten (10) percent for the month of October, and a delinquency penalty of five (5) percent for each subsequent month of delinquency until paid. However, the total delinquency penalty may not exceed twenty-five (25) percent of the business tax for the delinquent entity.

(b)

Any person who engages in or manages any business, occupation, or profession without first obtaining a local business tax receipt, if required, is subject to a penalty of twenty-five (25) percent of the tax due, in addition to any other penalty provided by law or ordinance.

(c)

Any person who engages in any business, occupation, or profession, covered by this article, who does not pay the required business tax within one hundred fifty (150) days after the initial notice of tax due, and who does not obtain the required receipt is subject to civil actions and penalties, including court costs, reasonable attorneys' fees and additional administrative costs incurred as a result of collection efforts, and a penalty of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00).

(Code 1953, § 23-16; Ord. No. C-72-50, § 2, 7-5-72; Ord. No. C-89-50, § 8, 7-6-89; Ord. No. C-94-28, § 1, 7-19-94; Ord. No. C-06-41, § 2, 12-19-06 )

State law reference

Business tax receipts; dates due and delinquent; penalties. F.S. § 205.053.