Section 92.110

Title VII CITIES, TOWNS AND VILLAGES

Chapter 92

Effective - 29 Aug 1953, 2 histories, see footnote   (history) 

  92.110.  Tax may be levied on earnings and profits (St. Louis). — Any constitutional charter city in this state which now has or may hereafter acquire a population in excess of seven hundred thousand inhabitants, according to the last federal decennial census, is hereby authorized to levy and collect, by ordinance, for general revenue purposes, an earnings tax on the salaries, wages, commissions and other compensation earned by its residents; on the salaries, wages, commissions and other compensation earned by nonresidents of the city for work done or services performed or rendered in the city; on the net profits of associations, business or other activities conducted by residents; on the net profits of associations, businesses or other activities conducted in the city by nonresidents; and on the net profits earned by all corporations as the result of work done or services performed or rendered and business or other activities conducted in the city.

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(Reenacted L. 1953 2d Ex. Sess. p. 14 § 1)

(1956) Tax on earnings imposed by city under §§ 92.110 to 92.200 held not tax on privilege of practicing law so as to be prohibited by § 71.620. Lawyers Assn. of St. Louis v. City of St. Louis (A.), 294 S.W.2d 676.

(1963) Validity of ordinance of St. Louis City imposing earnings tax upheld against charges by Illinois resident (1) that it deprived nonresident workers of property without due process of law by exacting a tax without corresponding benefit and (2) that it placed an undue burden on interstate commerce.  Arnold v. Berra (Mo.), 366 S.W.2d 321.

(1967) Five-year statute of limitations applies to action by city to collect delinquent city earnings tax and the statute begins running at the time the grace period for the payment of the taxes due expires whether or not a return was filed as the tax became delinquent at that time. State v. Robertson (A.), 417 S.W.2d 699.

(1968) The enabling legislation for the St. Louis earnings tax does not violate constitutional provisions against arbitrary and unreasonable classification of taxes. Barhorst v. City of St.  Louis (Mo.), 423 S.W.2d 843.

(1978) Held payments made to employees in form of supplemental unemployment benefits were dependent on so many other factors than services rendered by employee, that they could not be considered earnings for general revenue purposes in an ordinance passed based on this section. Adams v. City of St. Louis (Mo.), 563 S.W.2d 771.