City of Los Angeles v. A.E.C. Los Angeles, Inc.

In this appeal from a judgment in favor of the City of Los Angeles (City) for amounts found due to it from appellant A.E.C. Los Angeles (Taxpayer) for business tax, Taxpayer contends: (1) it is immune from municipal taxation measured by gross receipts on its business conducted with agencies of the State of California; and (2) recovery of taxes for the years 1962 and 1963 is barred by the statute of limitations.

The City of Los Angeles is a freeholders’ charter city. Section 21.03 of the Los Angeles Municipal Code provides: “(a) Subject to the provisions of this Article, a business tax registration certificate must be obtained and a business tax must be paid by every person engaged in any of the businesses or occupations specified in sections 21.50 to 21.198, inclusive, of this Article; and a business tax is hereby imposed in the amount prescribed in the applicable section. No person shall engage in any business or occupation subject to tax . . . without obtaining a registration certificate and paying the tax ... (b) The business tax registration certificate required to be obtained and the tax required to be paid are hereby declared to be required pursuant to the taxing…