Sec. 35-19. Records to be kept.
It shall be the duty of every operator liable for the collection and payment to the City of any tax imposed by this Article to keep and preserve, for a period of four years not including the present calendar year, all records as may be necessary to determine the amount of such tax the operator may have been liable for the collection of and payment to the City. The Finance Director and authorized agents shall have the right to inspect such records at all reasonable times. The records maintained by the operator under this section shall include, but are not limited to, the following:
a.A written report that includes daily records of all of the following:
1.Name of person occupying the room;
2.Number or other identifier of the room occupied;
3.Room rate;
4.Amount charged, if any, for the occupancy;
5.Amount of transient occupancy tax collected; and
6.Method of payment.
b.A written record of each occupancy for which an exemption is claimed, including the name of the person occupying the room, date(s) of occupancy, reason(s) for the exemption, and the exemption claim form required under Section 35-12.
All records which may be necessary to inspect shall be kept within the City or shall be produced within 10 working days of written notice at the business location within the City.
In the event that records are not produced upon request, or such records are not reasonably able to be audited, tax, interest, and penalties will be levied based upon the average room rate and occupancies for similar properties within the City during the audit period. Further, and without limitation, any operator who does not produce records following written notice as set forth herein shall pay, as a civil penalty, in addition to any tax, penalty or interest, the sum of $100.00 per day for each business day the records are not produced for audit.
Further, the City may issue a subpoena pursuant to Government Code Section 37104 et seq., as may be amended, or utilize any other lawful means to access and inspect the records of an operator who refuses to make such records available for inspection. (Ord. 3659 § 5, 2023; Ord. 3636 § 9, 2021)