Sec. 4-160. Minimum standards fees.
A. There is hereby imposed a fee for the purpose of defraying the cost of reviewing activities associated with minimum standards for aeronautical activity at an airport that result in increased usage and demands on the City’s airport system and to help ensure that the airport is self-sustaining.
B. The Aviation Director shall set fees for reviewing activities associated with minimum standards as follows:
1. Self-fueling annual fee: not to exceed $100.00.
2. The annual fee shall be $500.00 for:
a. Independent maintenance operators.
b. Independent avionics and independent instrument maintenance operators.
c. Sightseeing flight operators.
d. Aircraft sales operators.
3. For flight training operators:
a. Beginning January 1, 2009, the fee shall be $1.00 for every student flight hour.
b. Beginning January 1, 2010, the fee shall be $2.00 for every student flight hour.
c. Beginning January 1, 2011, and each year thereafter, the $2.00 fee shall be adjusted annually according to the Phoenix-Mesa Consumer Price Index.
d. Flight training operators shall submit student flight hour reports and fees for the preceding month to the City of Phoenix on a monthly basis on or before the twentieth day of each month.
e. For purposes of this subsection, student flight hours shall be recorded from the moment an aircraft leaves the surface of the earth until that aircraft touches the surface of the earth at the next point of landing.
4. Flight charter operators and aircraft management operators shall pay as follows:
a. For each based aircraft that is 12,500 pounds or less maximum gross landed weight, the fee shall be $100.00 per month.
b. For each based aircraft that exceeds 12,500 pounds maximum gross landed weight, the fee shall be $250.00 per month.
c. On or before the twentieth day of each month, the operator shall submit:
(1) A report of its based aircraft at each airport during the preceding month, including the name of each aircraft’s manufacturer, type, and maximum gross landed weight; and
(2) The fees for the preceding month, which shall be calculated by multiplying the number of based aircraft at each airport by the fee described in subsections (B)(4)(a) and (b) of this section.
d. For purposes of this subsection, based aircraft means an aircraft:
(1) That the owner or lessor physically locates at the airport with the intent and purpose to remain for an undetermined duration;
(2) That, whenever absent from the airport, its owner or lessor intends to return to the airport for permanent storage; and
(3) Whose presence at the airport is not transitory in nature.
(4) Based aircraft includes an aircraft that is located at the airport for a limited or seasonal duration.
5. For all other Specialized Aviation Service Operators (SASOS), the annual fee shall be two percent of gross receipts. On or before the twentieth day of each month, the operator shall submit a monthly statement of gross receipts and the fee for the preceding month.
6. For the purpose of this section, gross receipts includes all amounts received, billed (whether collected or not), delivered or realized, without deduction or offset, whether by cash, credit or otherwise, related to activities at the airport, including rents, service fees and sales. All amounts are included in the definition of gross receipts unless specifically excluded as provided below in subsection (B)(7) of this section. In determining whether an amount is or is not gross receipts, the burden of proof is on the operator and the exclusion in subsection (B)(7) of this section will be construed narrowly.
7. Gross receipts shall not include the cost for fuel for which the operator has paid fuel flowage as required in this Code. (Ord. No. G-4648, § 2, 2004; Ord. No. G-5248, § 1, 2008; Ord. No. G-5936, 2014)