A. The tax imposed by this chapter shall not apply to any individual 62 years of age or older who uses telephone, electric and gas in or upon any premises occupied by such individual; provided, the combined gross income of all members of the household in which such individual resided was less than 50 percent of the median family income for the given household size for the calendar year prior to the fiscal year (July 1st through June 30th) for which the exemption provided in this chapter is applied. Said income statistics shall be as determined annually for San Diego Metropolitan Statistical Area by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The exemption granted by this section shall not eliminate the duty of the service suppliers from collecting taxes from such exempt individuals or the duty of such exempt individuals from paying such taxes to the service suppliers, unless an exemption is applied for by the service user and granted in accordance with the provisions of subsection (B) of this section.

B. Any service user exempt from the taxes imposed by this chapter because of the provisions of subsection (A) of this section may file an application with the Director of Finance for an exemption. Such an application shall be made upon forms supplied by the Director of Finance and shall recite facts verified by declaration under penalty of perjury which qualify the applicant for an exemption. The Director of Finance shall review all such applications and certify as exempt those applicants determined to qualify therefor and shall notify all service suppliers affected that such exemption has been approved, stating the name of the applicant, the address to which such exempt service is being supplied, the account number, if any, and such other information as may be necessary for the service supplier to remove the exempt service user from its tax billing procedure. The certification of such application for exemption shall be granted if the eligibility requirements of subsection (A) of this section are met, except that no exemption shall be granted to an applicant who is receiving service from a service supplier through a master meter, or who is sharing or prorating service with other service users, even though such service users qualify under the provisions of subsection (A) of this section; provided, however, that the person receiving service through a master meter or sharing or prorating service with other service users shall be eligible for a rebate of the utility users’ tax in the amount of $12.00 per year, or any larger amount, upon a showing of actual billing from the person having control of said master meter, to be paid at the beginning of each fiscal year for the preceding fiscal year, commencing on July 1, 1977. Such person seeking said rebate must file the application therefor on or before September 1st of each year to receive said rebate for the preceding fiscal year. It is further provided that said rebate may be prorated if the applicant has not resided in the same location for the full preceding fiscal year. No exemption shall be granted with respect to any tax imposed by this chapter which is or has been paid by a public agency or where the applicant receives funds from a public agency specifically for the payment of such tax.

Upon receipt of such notice, the service supplier shall not be required to continue to bill any further tax imposed by this chapter from such exempt service user until further notice by the Director of Finance is given. The service supplier shall eliminate such exempt service user from its tax billing procedure for bills dated on or after July 1, 1976 upon receipt of such notice from the Director of Finance prior to July 1, 1976, and thereafter, from bills dated no later than 60 days after receipt of such notice from the Director of Finance.

All exemptions shall continue and be renewed automatically by the Director of Finance so long as the prerequisite facts supporting the initial qualification for exemption continue; provided, however, that the exemption shall automatically terminate with any change in the service address or residence of the exempt individual; and further provided, that such individual may nevertheless apply for a new exemption with each change of address or residence. Any individual exempt from the tax shall notify the Director of Finance within 10 days of any change in fact or circumstance which might disqualify said individual from receiving such exemption. It shall be a misdemeanor for any person to knowingly receive the benefits of the exemptions provided by this section when the basis for such exemption either does not exist or ceases to exist.

Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this subsection, however, any service supplier who determines by any means that a new or nonexempt service user is receiving service through a meter or connection exempt by virtue of any exemption issued to a previous user or exempt user of the same meter or connection, such service supplier shall immediately notify the Director of Finance of such fact, and the Director of Finance shall conduct an investigation to ascertain whether or not the provisions of this section have been complied with and, where appropriate, order the service supplier to commence collecting the tax from the nonexempt service user. (Ord. 2547 § 1, 1993; Ord. 1717 § 1, 1976; Ord. 1690 § 1, 1976).