The Roswell City Council has changed the way the city figures the occupation tax it levies on businesses, a change that’s expected to boost annual collections from $800,000 to more than $2 million.
The city currently assesses its occupation tax based on the number of employees at a business. The Council recently amended its Occupation Tax Ordinance to change that calculation to a gross receipts method, effective for licenses with a renewal or initial tax year date of Jan. 1, 2018. The Council also passed a resolution establishing seven tax rates ranging from 0.01 percent to 0.12 percent.
The gross receipts option will establish a tax class structure based on business type profitability indexes, based on IRS business returns, with a $50,000 exemption on gross receipts, according to a staff summary of the changes.
The gross receipt methodology will not apply to home occupation businesses, which pay a fee of $100. The fee for professional services will double, to $400 per practitioner.
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