City of Spokane

Spokane Municipal Code

***Note: Many local criminal codes can now be located under Chapter 10.60 SMC while others are now cited under the Revised Code of Washington (RCW), which was incorporated into the municipal code in 2022. (See SMC 10.58.010). Code Enforcement, including Noise Control and Animal Regulations are located in Chapters 10.62 through 10.74.

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Title 08
Chapter 08.10
Section 08.10.010
 

Title 08 Taxation and Revenue

Chapter 08.10 Utilities, Franchise Taxes

Section 08.10.010 Definitions

In construing the provisions of this chapter, except where otherwise stated or apparent from the context, the following definitions apply:

  1. “Cable franchise fee” means a fee assessed pursuant to SMC 10.27A.310 upon a cable operator by the City as a condition of a cable franchise.
  1. “Department” means the administrative official responsible for the functions of the office of taxes and licenses, or other designee of the division director of finance, treasury and administration.
  1. Gross Income.
    1. “Gross income” or “gross revenues” means the value proceeding or accruing from the sale of tangible personal property or service, and receipts (including all sums earned or charged, whether received or not) by reason of the investment of capital in the business engaged in, including rentals, royalties, fees, interest and other emoluments however designated (excluding receipts or proceeds from the sale or use of real property or any interest therein, and the proceeds from the sale of notes, bonds, mortgages or other evidences of indebtedness, or stocks and the like), and without any deduction on account of the cost of the property sold, the cost of materials used, labor costs, taxes, interest or discount paid, or any expense whatsoever, and without any deduction on account of losses.
    1. “Gross income” is further defined to mean the total gross income received or earned as above noted on a cash receipts or on an accrual basis according to the method of accounting regularly employed by the taxpayer during the period for which the taxes are applicable.
  1. “Internet” means the international computer network of both federal and nonfederal interoperable packet switched data networks, including the graphical subnetwork called the world wide web.
  1. “Internet service” means a service that includes computer processing applications, provides the user with additional or restructured information, or permits the user to interact with stored information through the internet or a proprietary subscriber network. “Internet service” includes provision of internet electronic mail, access to the internet for information retrieval, and hosting of information for retrieval over the internet or the graphical subnetwork called the world wide web.
  1. “Pager telephone business service”, commonly known as pager service, has that common meaning and includes one-way communication services such as tone only (beeper), numeric or alphanumeric messaging, and tone and voice messaging. It includes talk-back paging, conventional dispatch radio and specialized mobile radio pager service.
  1. “Person” means an individual, entity, co-partnership, joint venture, firm, club, company, joint stock company, corporation, assignee, successor, receiver, administrator, executor, trustee in bankruptcy, trust, estate, association, society, governmental unit, municipal corporation or quasi-municipal corporation, including the City, a City department, or officer, agent or employee of any of the foregoing.
  1. Solid Waste.
    1. “Solid waste collection service” means receiving solid waste for transfer, processing, treatment, storage or disposal, including but not limited to, all collection services. It does not include the operation of public or private dumps, transfer stations and similar operations. It does not include operation of a regional solid waste disposal system, to the extent the same may be established by interlocal agreement between the City and County of Spokane, although components of charges for taxable solid waste collection service may include charges of regional system facilities, including transfer stations, dumps or waste-to-energy disposal facilities.
    1. “Solid waste”, for purposes of this subsection, means garbage, trash, rubbish or other material discarded by the generator as worthless or not economically viable for further use. “Solid waste” includes infectious, hazardous or toxic wastes, and recyclable or reusable materials collected in whole or part for recycling or salvage as part of a general solid waste collection service to the public.
  1. “Taxpayer” means any person liable for the tax or license fee imposed under this chapter.
  1. “Tax year” or “taxable year” means the particular taxpayer’s fiscal year or such fiscal year as adjusted in the discretion of the division director of finance, treasury and administration to accommodate the taxpayer’s method of accounting.
  1. Telephone Business.
    1. “Telephone business” means the business of providing by any person of access to a local telephone network, local telephone network switching service, toll service or coin telephone services, or the providing of telephonic, video, data or similar communication or transmission for hire, via a local telephone network, toll line or channel, cable, microwave or similar communication or transmission system. It includes the provision of transmission to and from the site of an internet provider via a local telephone network, toll line or channel, cable microwave or similar communication or transmission system, or any other similar telecommunications business activity lawfully taxable by the City of Spokane.
    1. “Telephone business” includes cooperative or farmer line telephone companies or associations operating exchanges.
    1. “Telephone business” includes cellular telephone service, which is a two-way voice and/or data telephone/telecommunications system based in whole or in a substantial part upon wireless radio communications, whether or not subject to regulation by the Washington State Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC). It includes cellular mobile service.
      1. “Cellular mobile service” includes additional varieties of partly or entirely wireless radio communications services commonly referenced or marketed as specialized mobile radio (SMR), personal communications services (PCS) and other such wireless radio communications technologies accomplishing a purpose similar to cellular mobile service.
    1. “Telephone business” does not include the providing of competitive telephone service, the providing of cable television service, the providing of broadcast services by radio or television stations. It further does not include the provision of internet service, including the reception of dial-in connection, provided at the site of the internet service provider; provided, in the event any statutory prohibition of municipal taxation of internet service providers hereafter expire or otherwise be removed, then at such time, “telephone business” shall thereafter include the provision of internet service, including the reception of dial-in connection, provided at the site of the internet service provider. (Note:  State prohibits taxation of internet providers.)
  1. “Competitive telephone service” means the providing by any person of telecommunications equipment or apparatus, or service related to that equipment or apparatus, such as repair or maintenance service, if the equipment or apparatus is of a type which can be provided by persons that are not subject to regulation as telephone companies under Title 80 RCW and for which a separate charge is made, provided “competitive telephone service” does not include cellular telephone service. “Telecommunications” is as defined in RCW 80.04.010.

Date Passed: Monday, May 7, 2007

Effective Date: Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Recodification ORD C34025 Section 1