Ohio § 503.56

§ 503.56.

(A) As used in this section: (1) “ Tourism development district ” means a district designated by a township under this section. (2) “ Territory of a tourism development district ” means all of the area included within the territorial boundaries of a tourism development

district. (3) “ Business ” means a sole proprietorship, a corporation for profit, a pass-through entity as

defined in section 5733.04 of the Revised Code , the federal government, the state, the state's political subdivisions, a nonprofit

organization, or a school district.  A business “operates within the proposed district” if the business would be subject

to a tax levied in the proposed tourism development district pursuant to division (C) of section 5739.101 of the Revised Code . (4) “ Owner ” means a partner of a partnership, a member of a limited liability company, a majority

shareholder of an S corporation, a person with a majority ownership interest in a

pass-through entity, or any officer, employee, or agent with the authority to make

decisions legally binding upon a business.  The signature of any owner of a business operates as the signature of the business. (5) “ Eligible township ” means a township wholly or partly located in a county having a population greater

than three hundred seventy-five thousand but less than four hundred thousand that

levies taxes under section 5739.021 or 5739.026 of the Revised Code , the aggregate rate of which does not exceed one-half of one per cent on September

29, 2015. (B)(1) The board of trustees of an eligible township, by resolution, may declare an unincorporated

area of the township to be a tourism development district for the purpose of fostering

and developing tourism in the district if all of the following criteria are met: (a) The district's area does not exceed six hundred acres. (b) All territory in the district is contiguous. (c) Before adopting that resolution or ordinance, the board holds at least two public

hearings concerning the creation of the tourism development district. (d) Before adopting the resolution or ordinance, the board receives a petition signed

by every record owner of a parcel of real property located in the proposed district

and the owner of every business that operates in the proposed district. (e) The board adopts the resolution on or before December 31, 2020. (2) The petition described in division (B)(1)(d) of this section shall include an explanation

of the taxes and charges that may be levied or imposed in the proposed district. (3) The board shall certify the resolution to the tax commissioner within five days after

its adoption, along with a description of the boundaries of the district authorized

in the resolution.  That description shall include sufficient information for the commissioner to determine

if the address of a vendor is within the boundaries of the district. (4) Subject to the limitations of division (B)(1)(a) and (b) of this section, the board

of trustees of an eligible township may enlarge the territory of an existing tourism

development district in the manner prescribed for the creation of a district under

divisions (B)(1) to (3) of this section, except that the petition described in division

(B)(1)(d) of this section must be signed by every record owner of a parcel of real

property located in the area proposed to be added to the district and the owner of

every business that operates in the area proposed to be added to the district.  Division (B)(1)(e) of this section does not apply to a resolution enlarging the

territory of an existing tourism development district. (C) For the purpose of fostering and developing tourism in a tourism development district,

a lessor leasing real property in a tourism development district may impose and collect

a uniform fee on each parcel of real property leased by the lessor, to be paid by

each of the person's lessees.  A lessee is subject to such a fee only if the lease separately states the amount

of the fee.  Before a lessor may impose and collect such a fee, the lessor shall file a copy

of such lease with the fiscal officer of the township that designated the tourism

development district.  A lessor that imposes such a fee shall remit all collections of the fee to the fiscal

officer of the township in which the real property is located. The board shall establish all regulations necessary to provide for the administration

and remittance of such fees.  The regulations may prescribe the time for payment of the fee, and may provide for

the imposition of a penalty or interest, or both, for late remittances, provided that

the penalty does not exceed ten per cent of the amount of fee due, and the rate at

which interest accrues does not exceed the rate per annum prescribed pursuant to section 5703.47 of the Revised Code .  The regulations shall provide, after deducting the real and actual costs of administering

the fee, that the revenue be used exclusively for fostering and developing tourism

within the tourism development district. (D) The board of trustees of an eligible township that has designated a tourism development

district under this section may levy one or both of the taxes authorized under section 503.57 or 5739.101 of the Revised Code .  If the board does not levy a tax under section 5739.101 of the Revised Code , the board may enter into and enforce agreements imposing a development charge under section 503.58 of the Revised Code . (E) On or before the first day of each January and July, beginning after the designation

of the tourism development district, the fiscal officer of the township shall certify

a list of vendors located within the tourism development district to the tax commissioner,

which shall include the name, address, and vendor's license number for each vendor.