Chapter 9.04
TAXATION – GENERALLY
Sections:
9.04.030 Real and personal property tax – Liability, assessment and collection.
9.04.042 Annual tax levy – Registered watercraft.
9.04.046 Real and personal property tax – Exemptions.
9.04.044 Personal property tax – Assessments – Aircraft – Appeal.
9.04.050 Business dealings with violators of tax code.
Prior legislation: Ords. 5-310.4, 72-3, 76-8 and 90-15; Code 1967 § 13A-100.
9.04.030 Real and personal property tax – Liability, assessment and collection.
a. All real and personal property located within the corporate limits of the City which is not exempt from taxation by State law or City Code is subject to and liable for an annual tax for City purposes.
b. The Kenai Peninsula Borough shall assess and collect the taxes levied by the City in accordance with AS 29.35.170, AS 29.45 and Chapter 5.12 KPBC. [Ord. 90-28 § 2, 1990].
9.04.040 Annual tax levy.
By June 15th of each year the City Council shall establish, by budget ordinance or resolution, the annual property tax levy rate and notify the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly of said rate. [Ord. 06-45 § 1, 2006; Ord. 90-28 § 3, 1990].
9.04.042 Annual tax levy – Registered watercraft.
a. Except as provided below, for purposes of taxation, watercraft for which the USCG certificate of number, U.S. or foreign documentation or registration document, Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles registration number, or the Alaska Department of Fish and Game number has been issued, or other watercraft subject to a tax, shall be totally exempted from ad valorem taxes, and shall be taxed in accordance with the following flat tax schedule. Watercraft shall be measured according to length overall.
|
Class |
Watercraft Length Overall |
Annual Tax |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
less than 15 feet |
$0 |
|
2 |
15 to less than 20 feet |
$0 |
|
3 |
20 to less than 25 feet |
$10.00 |
|
4 |
25 to less than 36 feet |
$30.00 |
|
5 |
36 to less than 60 feet |
$50.00 |
|
6 |
60 to less than 100 feet |
$100.00 |
|
7 |
100 feet or more |
$200.00 |
b. Watercraft for which all certificates of number, registration, or documentation, or other form of maritime licensing or registration and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game number, if applicable, have been surrendered to the issuing authority by January 1st of the tax year shall be taxed on an ad valorem basis. Vessels for which such registration or licensing has lapsed but has not been surrendered shall not qualify for ad valorem taxation.
c. A vessel owner may appeal the determination of the Borough Assessor under this section, using the procedures set out in KPBC 5.12.050 through 5.12.060. [Ord. 01-53(S), 2001; Ord. 98-3(A) § 1, 1998].
9.04.044 Personal property tax – Assessments – Aircraft – Appeal.
a. For purposes of taxation, aircraft that have been issued an N number by the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) by January 1st of the tax year shall be totally exempted from ad valorem taxes and shall be taxed in accordance with the following flat tax schedule:
|
Aircraft Flat Tax Schedule Based on Manufacturers Gross Weight With an Internal Load (MGWIL) |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fixed Wing |
Rotorcraft/Rotary Wing |
||||
|
Class |
Weight |
Annual Tax |
Class |
Weight |
Annual Tax |
|
1 |
Less than 2,000 lbs |
$50 |
1 |
Less than 1,500 lbs |
$100 |
|
2 |
2,000 to less than 4,000 lbs |
$100 |
2 |
1,500 to less than 3,500 lbs |
$600 |
|
3 |
4,000 to less than 6,000 lbs |
$300 |
3 |
3,500 lbs to more in weight |
$1,000 |
|
4 |
6,000 to less than 12,500 lbs |
$600 |
|
|
|
|
5 |
12,500 lbs or more in weight |
$1,000 |
|
|
|
b. The owner of record of an aircraft that has been dismantled, destroyed or crashed and the FAA N number has been retained by the aircraft’s owner of record may submit to the assessor on an approved form “Aircraft Statement of Condition” that would allow for ad valorem taxation of that aircraft if approved. Aircraft for which such registration or licensing has lapsed or that has not passed the annual inspection required by the FAA shall not qualify on this basis alone for ad valorem taxation unless it has been dismantled, destroyed or crashed.
c. Definitions. For purposes of this section:
“Aircraft” means any engine powered contrivance invented, used, or designed to navigate, or fly in, the air and that is capable of being manned and is required by the FAA to be registered and certified in order to be manned.
“Aircraft engine” means an engine used, or intended to be used, to propel an aircraft, except the tail rotor of a helicopter.
“Crashed” means aircraft for which only parts remain that, due to their condition, can no longer be assembled to create any contrivable aircraft. This shall be evidenced by an FAA accident report and/or copy of an insurance claim that determines the aircraft to be a total loss.
“Destroyed” means aircraft that have been damaged by age, weather, neglect and/or external influences outside the owner’s control, and only unusable parts remain that, due to their condition, can no longer be assembled to create any contrivable aircraft. This shall be evidenced by photographs and a physical inspection by the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assessing staff appraiser if deemed necessary by the Borough Assessor.
“Dismantled” means aircraft that have been voluntarily disassembled and only parts remain that can no longer be assembled to create any contrivable aircraft. Evidence such as photographs and a physical inspection by the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assessing staff appraiser shall be provided or allowed if deemed necessary by the Borough Assessor.
d. An aircraft owner may appeal the determination of the Borough Assessor under this section using the procedures set out in KPBC 5.12.050 through 5.12.060. [Ord. 21-62(S)(A) § 1, 2021].
9.04.046 Real and personal property tax – Exemptions.
a. The following property is exempt from the real and personal property tax imposed by this chapter:
1. The first $100,000 of assessed valuation of personal property, other than motor vehicles and watercraft, owned by each taxpayer; for taxpayers with more than one personal property tax account, this exemption shall be distributed pro rata among all of the taxpayer’s accounts based on the proportion of the assessed value in each account to the total assessed value of that taxpayer’s personal property;
2. Motor vehicles that are subject to a motor vehicle registration tax imposed by Chapter 5.12 KPBC, and as the same may be thereafter amended, revised, or replaced.
b. The first $20,000 of assessed valuation of a single parcel of residential real property owned and occupied by the owner of record as the owner’s permanent place of residence in the City shall be exempt from the City tax levy on real property within the City of Homer. The Borough Assessor’s determination of whether property in the City qualifies for the Borough exemption under KPBC 5.12.115 shall be determinative of whether the property qualifies for the exemption under this subsection.
c. Property of an organization not organized for business or profit-making purposes and used exclusively for community purposes is exempt from taxation under this chapter. Property or a part of the property from which rentals or income is derived is not exempt from taxation unless the income derived from the rentals does not exceed the actual cost to the owner of the use by the renter. The Borough Assessor’s determination of whether property in the City qualifies for the Borough exemption under KPBC 5.12.100 shall be determinative of whether the property qualifies for the exemption under this subsection.
d. This section shall be applied and construed to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the laws of the City and the Kenai Peninsula Borough with respect to the exemptions granted by this section. [Ord. 08-49 § 1, 2008; Ord. 06-59 § 1, 2007; Ord. 01-53(S), 2001; Ord. 98-3(A) § 1, 1998].
9.04.048 Real property tax – Exemption for volunteer fire fighters and providers of emergency medical services.
a. The amount of $10,000 of the assessed value of real property owned and occupied as a permanent place of abode by a resident who provides volunteer fire fighting services or volunteer emergency medical services in the City is exempt from the real property tax imposed by this chapter.
b. To qualify for this exemption, a person must be certified as current and active volunteer of the Homer Volunteer Fire Department by the Fire Chief, and (1) if providing volunteer fire fighting services, be certified as a fire fighter by the Alaska Department of Public Safety, or (2) if providing volunteer emergency medical services, be certified under AS 18.08.082.
c. If two or more individuals are eligible for an exemption for the same property, not more than two exemptions may be granted.
d. No exemption under this section may be granted except upon written application on a form prescribed by the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assessor. The application must be filed with the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assessor no later than January 15th of the tax year for which the exemption is sought.
e. For purposes of this section, the terms “real property,” “own and occupy,” and “permanent place of abode” have the meanings given to them in KPBC 5.12.105(F).
f. For purposes of this section, the term “resident” means a person who has a permanent place of abode in the City, and who, when absent, intends to return to the City. [Ord. 02-32, 2002].
9.04.050 Business dealings with violators of tax code.
a. No contract, lease or license shall be awarded to any person who is in violation of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Code or the Homer City Code in the several areas of taxation, unless the City shall offset or withhold amounts owing to a person under a contract, lease or license between the City and the person against amounts owed by the person for delinquent Borough or City taxes, and may pay such amounts to the appropriate taxing authority.
b. Any contract, lease or license can be terminated for cause if the person is in violation of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Code or the Homer City Code in the several areas of taxation and if such violation is not remedied within 10 days of notification by regular mail.
c. For the purposes of this section, a person shall be deemed in violation of the Borough or City tax provisions when:
1. The Kenai Peninsula Borough has indicated that a required sales tax return is missing or there is a balance of sales taxes due of more than $100.00; or
2. A person who is required to register for collection of sales taxes under Chapter 5.18 of the Kenai Peninsula Borough fails to register. [Ord. 92-11(A) § 1, 1992].