Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance-1975-0188 - Refund of Property Taxes for Qualifying SeniorsINTRODUCED BY COUNCILMAN MERKL ORDINANCE NO. 188 Series of 1975 TITLE: AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE REFUND OF CITY PROPERTY TAXES ON OWNER OCCUPIED DWELLING UNITS AND RENTAL UNITS FOR QUALIFIED SENIOR CITIZENS OF THE CITY OF WHEAT RIDGE AND ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS RELATING THERETO. WHEREAS, the burdens of inflation and taxation and particularly property taxation have fallen heavily upon the Senior Citizens of this City causing them frequently to endure significant financial hardship and, in some cases, placing the security of their homes in jeopardy; and WHEREAS, the Council recognizes that said Senior Citizens have paid property taxes and have otherwise financially supported the community for many years; and WHEREAS, it is the desire of the City Council to provide a means of financial relief to Senior Citizens of the City of Wheat Ridge by authorizing and granting a refund to such persons based on their respective property tax payments to the City's General Fund, whether such payment is in the form of a direct City property tax payment or in the form of an indirect payment by means of rental payments; and WHEREAS, it has been determined that refunds of City property tax payments to said members of the community will not adversely affect the financial status of the City of Wheat Ridge; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WHEAT RIDGE, COLORADO, THAT: Section 1. Authority. That the City of Wheat Ridge is hereby authorized, in the manner prescribed in this Ordinance, to grant a cash refund for a certain percentage of property taxes or rental payments for housing paid by qualified Senior Citizens of the City of Wheat Ridge upon submission of prescribed claim forms no later than September 1 of each year for the prior taxable year. ORDINANCE NO. 188 -2- Section II. Purpose. It is the purpose of this ordinance to refund to qualified Senior Citizens of this City a part of the preceding year's property tax assessed and collected by the City of Wheat Ridge. Section III. Qualified Senior Citizens. 1. In order to be a qualified Senior Citizens elegible to file a claim for a refund, the following re- quirements must be met: (a) The claimant must be sixty-five (65) years of age or older as of January 1 of the year in which application is made for a refund. (b) During some part or all of the tax year, the applicant must have lived in a dwelling or dwelling unit located within the corporate limits of the City of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, and because of his ownership of all or part of said dwelling or dwelling unit or because of an enforceable con- tractual obligation, the applicant must have been obligated to pay all or a part of the property taxes thereon for the taxable year, and the appli- cant, in fact, must have paid all of the taxes for which he was legally obligated to pay, including specific ownership taxes in the case of a mobile home or a house trailer; or (c) During all or some part of the tax year, the applicant must have lived in a dwelling or dwelling unit located in the corporate limits of the City of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, and must have been legally obligated to pay rent with respect to such dwelling or dwelling unit and, in fact, must have paid such rent. (d) The applicant must have been a resident of the City of Wheat Ridge for some part of the calendar year preceding the calendar year in which the appli- cation is made. No refund shall be paid to any resident of any dwelling or dwelling unit for any prior year if any resident of that same dwelling or dwelling unit has received or is entitled to receive an allowance for the same period of time. Section IV. Definitions. (a) When this ordinance refers to property tax it shall mean that portion of the total property tax on any particular parcel of property attributable to the mill levy of the City of Wheat Ridge, and where applicable, shall include the average rebate of specific ownership tax per mobile home received by the City. (b) The term "tax year" is defined as the calendar year immediately preceding the calendar year in which the application for a City tax refund is made. (c) The term "household" is defined as one or more ORDINANCE NO. 188 It persons who live under one roof and who pay property tax or rent on the dwelling or dwelling unit in which the members of the household live. Property taxes or rent paid on a dwelling unit which is not occupied by the taxpayer do not qualify for refund under this ordinance, (d) The term "dwelling" and "dwelling unit" as used in this ordinance shall mean any personal residence, abode, house trailer, mobile home, room habitation, or apartment, in which the applicant and/or his spouse primarily reside. Such terms shall be deemed to include but not limited to single and multi- family houses, apartments, condominiums, rented rooms, house trailers, mobile homes, and nursing home residences. Section V. Application Procedure. Every qualified person desiring a refund of City property taxes must file in the office of the City Clerk a written application on a form to be provided by the City. Such application must be filed no earlier than March 1 and no later than October 31 of the calendar year in which the taxes sought to be partially refunded were paid. The application form may require any and all information reasonably necessary for the administration of this ordinance and shall contain an Affidavit by the applicant certifying to the applicant's qualifications for the refunded entitlement. Section VI. Computation of Refund. A qualified Senior Citizen of an owner-occupied dwelling unit, after filing an application in proper form showing compliance with this ordinance, must bring his paid tax notice receipt showing the amount of property taxes paid to the City to be checked and verified by the City Clerk. The City shall re- fund to the applicant the amount of taxes received by the City from the applicant's dwelling or dwelling unit up to a maximum of $35.00 Dollars for any tax year. A qualified Senior Citizen who occupies a rental unit or other dwelling unit as defined (d) shall be entitled to a refund rental located within the City of signature verifying the amount of year; in no event shall this refu more rental units occupied in the in Section IV, sub-paragraph of .1%) one percent of his annual Wheat Ridge, upon the landlord's rent paid in the preceding ad exceed $35.00 for one or preceding year. ORDINANCE NO. 188 -4- Section VII. Administration of Refunds. (a) The City Clerk is hereby given the responsibility for the distribution of all refund claim forms and for the receipt, checking, and verification of information submitted on the form. (b) The City Clerk, after receipt and verification of the refund information, shall forward the application to the City Treasurer for payment pursuant to the terms and conditions of this ordinance, (c) City property tax refunds shall be payable by the City at any time between September 15 and December 31 of the year in which application is made at the discretion of the City Treasurer. Section VIII. Intervening Death of Applicant. The City of Wheat Ridge shall make tax refunds pur- suant to this ordinance payable only to the applicant who qualifies hereunder, and refunds shall not be paid to anyone other than the applicant himself. In the event an applicant dies prior to receiving or cashing a refund pursuant hereto, and the decedent is survived by a spouse who would be otherwise qualified as a Senior Citizen applicant for such refund, the City will honor an application for a refund by such surviving spouse, even though the application is not timely made in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance. Section IX. Rules and Regulations. The City Clerk, subject to the approval of the City Administrator, may promulgate such rules and regulations as he deems appropriate for the administration of this ordinance, and such rules and regulations may, among other things, impose reasonable requirements upon applicants regarding proof of age, rental payments, property taxes paid, place of residence, or other items of eligibility. Section X. Severability Clause. It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent ORDINANCE NO. 188 -5- of the City Council. that the several provisions of this ordinance shall be severable and if any part, section, sub-section, sentence, clause, or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason determined to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance, and the City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this ordinance in each of the sections, sub-sections, sentences, clauses, or phrases irrespective of the fact that any one or more parts, sections, sub-sections, sentences, clauses, or phrases are declared invalid. Section XI. Unlawful Acts. No person applying for benefits under this or- dinance shall make any false statement or submit any false information either knowingly or with a careless disregard for the truth of the statement made or information submitted. A violation of this section shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00), or imprisonment not to exceed ninety (90) days or by both such fine and imprisonment. Upon conviction of a violation of this or- dinance the applicant may be disqualified from any future benefits under this ordinance. Section XII. Effective Date. This ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days after final publication. INTRODUCED, PASSED, ADOPTED AND ORDERED PUBLISHED on first reading this 18thday of August AoD. 1975, by a vote of 6 to 0 PASSED, ADOPTED, AND ORDERED PUBLISHED on second and final reading this 22nd day of September A.D. 19759 by a vote of 6 to 0 ER L. R E3ENE Y R ATTEST: EVEse Broug it ler< I, Fli.se Rrnuoham, herPhy rerti `V th-it upoinancP ~F}A: was 11u1y ,iublished in the Llheat dr]e L-pr+inr' nn thra ~215 daV of F;4 uqus+ after Fi rst rnadi nri if Elise [lrnugham, i'nrthrr r,erti fv that [ordinance-.-- IM 25t wz s rJuly nubli.shnd in the !Jheat Rid!ie Si~ntinel on the day of Sentember, 1975 after second readimi. ?6 l's . nrougham, City lP*