SEC. 21.108. MONEY LENDERS.

(Amended by Ord. No. 178,101, Eff. 1/9/07.)

(a) Subject to the exceptions stated here, for each person engaged in the business of lending money, advancing credit or lending credit, or arranging for the loan of money or advancing of credit or lending of credit, for and on the person’s own behalf or on behalf of any other person as principal, agent or broker, whether security of any kind is taken for the loan or advance or not, or purchasing or discounting or arranging for the purchase or discounting of any obligation or evidence of money due or to become due, whether the obligation or evidence is secured or guaranteed or not, and whether the person so purchasing or arranging for the purchase of items and acts mentioned above, as principal, agent or broker, the tax shall be $2,660.63 per year.

(b) The tax imposed under the provisions of Subsection (a) shall not apply to the business of lending money or advancing credit or arranging for the loan of money or the advancing of credit as principal or agent, where the obligation to repay the money lent or debt incurred or to compensate for the advance of credit is secured by a lien on real property, or some interest in real property; nor shall the provisions of this section apply to the business of purchasing, either as principal or agent, any debt or evidence of debt secured by any lien upon real property; nor shall the provisions of this section apply to any transaction involving the purchase or sale of real property. All persons engaged in businesses as are described in this subsection shall be subject to tax under Section 21.49, Professions and Occupations.

(c) The tax imposed under the provisions of Subsection (a) shall not apply to a person who, in the conduct of another business in the City, engages in a business of the kind described in Subsection (a) solely with customers or suppliers of that other business; nor shall the tax apply to a person engaged in this type of business, whether or not the relation of customer or supplier exists, when the person confines the business dealings to other persons who are their employees, stand in the relation of parent or subsidiary to the person, are so constituted as to have substantially common ownership with the person or are employees of any person who is the person’s parent or subsidiary or has substantially common ownership with the person; provided, however, if the other business is subject to a tax under this article measured by gross receipts, all interest and other charges received as a result of the activity described in Subsection (a) shall be included in the gross receipts by which the tax elsewhere imposed by this article is measured; and if the other business is not subject to a tax measured by gross receipts, or if there is no other business, the person shall pay a tax under the provisions of Section 21.49, Professions and Occupations, for engaging in the kind of activity described in Subsection (a).