§ 288-52. Penalties for offenses; interest.

A. 

Any person failing to file a return or to pay or pay over any tax to the City Commissioner of Finance within the time required by this article shall be subject to a penalty of 5% of the amount of tax due per month or any fraction of a month to a maximum of 25% for each year; plus interest at the rate of 1% of such tax for each month of delay or fraction of a month after such return was required to be filed or such tax became due; but the City Commissioner of Finance, if satisfied that the delay was excusable, may return all or any part of such penalty; but not interest. Such net penalties and interest shall be paid and disposed of in the same manner as other revenues from this article. Unpaid penalties and interest may be enforced in the same manner as the tax imposed by this article.

B. 

Any operator or occupant and any officer of an operator or occupant failing to file a return required by this article, or filing or causing to be filed or making or causing to be made or giving or causing to be given any return, certificate, affidavit, representation, information, testimony or statement required or authorized by this article which is willfully false, and any operator and any officer of a corporate operator willfully failing to file a bond required to be filed pursuant to § 288-43 of this article or failing to file a registration certificate and such data in connection therewith as the City Commissioner of Finance may by regulation or otherwise require, or to display or surrender the certificate of authority as required by this article or assigning or transferring such certificate of authority; and any operator or any officer of a corporate operator willfully failing to charge separately from the rent the tax herein imposed or willfully failing to state such tax separately on any evidence of occupancy and on any bill or statement or receipt of rent issue or employed by the operator or willfully failing or refusing to collect such tax from the occupant, any operator or any officer of a corporate operator who shall refer or cause reference to be made to this tax in a form or manner other than that required by this article, and any such person or operator failing to keep records required by this article, shall, in addition to the penalties herein or elsewhere prescribed, be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment for not more than one year, or both such fine and imprisonment. Officers of a corporate operator shall be personally liable for the tax collected or required to be collected by such corporation under this article and penalties and interest thereon and subject to the fines and imprisonment herein authorized.

C. 

The certificate of the City Commissioner of Finance to the effect that a tax has not been paid, that a return, bond or registration certificate has not been filed or that information has not been supplied pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be presumptive evidence thereof.