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Sec. 35-157. Gas user tax.
<br />(a) There is hereby imposed a tax upon every person in the City of Santa Ana, other than a gas corporation or
<br />electrical corporation, using gas in the city which is delivered through a pipeline distribution system. The tax
<br />imposed by this section shall be at a rate of six (6) percent of the charges made for such gas, including all
<br />services related to the storage, transportation and delivery of such gas, and shall be collected from the
<br />service user by the service supplier or non -utility service supplier, or its billing agent.
<br />(b) As used in this section, the term "charges" shall apply to all services, components and items for gas service
<br />that are: i) necessary or common to the receipt, use and enjoyment of gas service; or, ii) currently, or
<br />historically have been, included in a single or bundled rate for gas service by a local distribution company to a
<br />class of retail customers. The term "charges" shall include, but is not limited to, the following charges:
<br />(1) The commodity charges for purchased gas, or the cost of gas owned by the service user (including the
<br />actual costs attributed to drilling, production, lifting, storage, gathering, trunkline, pipeline, and other
<br />operating costs associated with the production and delivery of such gas), which is delivered through a
<br />gas pipeline distribution system;
<br />(2) Gas transportation charges (including interstate charges to the extent not included in commodity
<br />charges);
<br />(3) Storage charges; provided, however, that the service provider shall not be required to apply the tax to
<br />any charges for gas storage services when the service provider cannot, as a practical matter, determine
<br />the jurisdiction where such stored gas is ultimately used; but it shall be the obligation of the service
<br />user to self -collect the amount of tax not applied to any charge for gas storage by the service provider
<br />and to remit the tax to the appropriate jurisdiction; and
<br />(4) Capacity or demand charges, late charges, service establishment or reestablishment charges, transition
<br />charges, customer charges, minimum charges, annual and monthly charges, and any other charges
<br />which are necessary or common to the receipt, use and enjoyment of gas service, and
<br />(5) Charges, fees or surcharges for gas services or programs, which are mandated by the California Public
<br />Utilities Commission or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, whether or not such charges, fees
<br />or surcharges appear on a bundled or line item basis on the customer billing.
<br />(c) As used in this section, the term "charges" shall include the value of any other services, credits, property of
<br />every kind or nature, or other consideration provided by the service user in exchange for the gas or services
<br />related to the delivery of such gas. If a non-taxable service and a taxable service are billed together under a
<br />single charge, the entire charge shall be deemed taxable unless the service supplier can reasonably identify
<br />charges not subject to the utility users tax based upon its books and records that are kept in the regular
<br />course of business, which shall be consistent with generally accepted accounting principles.
<br />(d) The tax administrator, from time to time, may survey the gas service suppliers to identify the various
<br />unbundled billing components of gas retail service that they commonly provide to residential and
<br />commercial/industrial customers in the city, and the charges therefor, including those items that are
<br />mandated by state or federal regulatory agencies as a condition of providing such gas service. The tax
<br />administrator, thereafter, may issue and disseminate to such gas service suppliers an administrative ruling
<br />identifying those components and items which are: i) necessary or common to the receipt, use and
<br />enjoyment of gas service; or, ii) currently, or historically have been, included in a single or bundled rate for
<br />gas service by a local distribution company to a class of retail customers. Unbundled charges for such
<br />components and items shall be subject to the tax of subsection (a) above.
<br />(e) There shall be excluded from the base on which the tax imposed in this section is computed:
<br />(1) Charges made for gas which is to be resold and delivered through a pipeline distribution system;
<br />City PiNPPAIRgil RFP No. 23-%-5 196 PaN@/? 196
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