Information on the tangible (business) tax

Tangible tax information

Definition. This tax is an annual tax, payable quarterly, levied on business equipment and furnishings. The current bill is for equipment you owned in the prior calendar year.*

The City's Tax Assessor conducts on-site verification of equipment every three years. Business owners must verify annually (in December) any changes to the equipment and mail the inventory back to the Assessor for the next year's tax levy.

Failure to return this inventory results in an automatic 25% increase in the tax.

Timely quarterly payments. Per ordinance, late payment of any quarterly installment accelerates the entire unpaid tax (up to all four quarter's and acquires an interest penalty of 1%/month from July on the unpaid balance.

For example, if you have a $400 annual tax ($100 quarterly payments) and miss the third installment of $100 in January, the tax payment due in February will be $216.00. (Third and fourth quarter's installment of $100 each, plus 8% interest on $200, or $16.) The only way to prevent interest from accruing further is to pay the account off in its entirety.

Appeals. If you dispute the valuation of your equipment or anything else regarding the amount of tax levied, you must file your appeal with the Assessor's Office within 90 days of the first quarter's due date (July 24).

Common problems you can avoid.

*Buying a business? See the tangible bill before you buy! The collection of this tax lags behind the assessment by several months, so the buyer should settle the annual tax up to the day of purchase. Whatever business equipment you buy from the seller will incur a tax and you should not have to pay the tax during the period the seller owned the business. But, you will be liable for the tax if you do not settle with the seller upon purchase.

Suspension of business license. If your business requires licensing through the city's Board of Licenses, you will not be able to renew your license if the tax is in arrears.

Moving without notifying the Assessor. The annual inventory list and the bill will continue to be mailed to the address on file with the Assessor. If this results in a penalty or delinquent tax charges, failure to receive a bill is not a reason to excuse penalties.

Fixing it "tomorrow." If you suspect a problem with your tax bill or the payment hasn't been received by us, please contact us as soon as possible. The best way to do that is to use the "Contact us" link on the Collector's webpage. We can send you duplicate bills, histories of payments and other information by return email. Include your tangible account number in your email to help us locate your account quickly.

Mergers, Closings, Suspension of Business. Notify the Assessor immediately when there is a change of business so your account can be noted.