2009 California Business and Professions Code - Section 16000-16004 :: Chapter 1. Licensing By Cities

16000.  (a) The legislative body of an incorporated city may, in the
exercise of its police power, and for the purpose of regulation, as
herein provided, and not otherwise, license any kind of business not
prohibited by law transacted and carried on within the limits of its
jurisdiction, including all shows, exhibitions and lawful games, and
may fix the rates of the license fee and provide for its collection
by suit or otherwise. Any legislative body, including the legislative
body of a charter city, that fixes the rate of license fees pursuant
to this subdivision upon a business operating both within and
outside the legislative body's taxing jurisdiction, shall levy the
license fee so that the measure of the fee fairly reflects that
proportion of the activity actually carried on within the taxing
jurisdiction.
   (b) No license fee levied pursuant to subdivision (a) that is
measured by the licensee's income or gross receipts, whether levied
by a charter or general law city, shall apply to any nonprofit
organization that is exempted from taxes by Chapter 4 (commencing
with Section 23701) of Part 11 of Division 2 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code or Subchapter F (commencing with Section 501) of
Chapter 1 of Subtitle A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or the
successor of either, or to any minister, clergyman, Christian Science
practitioner, rabbi, or priest of any religious organization that
has been granted an exemption from federal income tax by the United
States Commissioner of Internal Revenue as an organization described
in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or a successor to
that section.
   (c) Before a city, including a charter city, issues a business
license to a person to conduct business as a contractor, as defined
in Section 7026, the city shall verify that the person is licensed by
the Contractors' State License Board.

16000.5.  Notwithstanding Section 16000, no incorporated city shall
require a regulatory license or impose a regulatory license fee with
respect to cafe musicians.
   "Cafe musician," for the purposes of this section, means any
person playing a musical instrument in any place or establishment
where food or alcoholic beverages are sold, offered for sale or given
away, who is an employee, or independent contractor, of such place
or establishment. "Cafe musician" does not include an owner, manager,
or operator of such place or establishment.

16000.7.  (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
prohibition on the imposition of regulatory licenses and license fees
on federally chartered veterans' organizations that solicit
donations as specified in this section is in need of uniform
statewide regulation and constitutes a matter of statewide concern
that shall be governed solely by this section.
   (b) Notwithstanding Section 37101 of the Government Code, Section
16000 of this code, or any other provision of law, no city, including
a charter city, shall require a regulatory license or impose a
regulatory license fee with respect to the solicitation of donations
for the support of veterans by federally chartered veterans'
organizations specified in Title 36 of the United States Code.
   (c) This section shall not be construed to prohibit licensing and
regulation of business-related activities, such as those involving
the sale or exchange of goods or services.

16001.  Every honorably discharged or honorably relieved soldier,
sailor, or marine of the United States or Confederate States who
served in the Civil War, any Indian war, the Spanish-American War,
any Philippine insurrection, the Chinese Relief Expedition, the World
War of 1914 and years following, or World War II, who is physically
unable to obtain a livelihood by manual labor, and who is a voter of
this state, may distribute circulars, and hawk, peddle, and vend any
goods, wares or merchandise owned by him, except spirituous, malt,
vinous, or other intoxicating liquor, without payment of any license
tax or fee whatsoever, whether municipal, county or state, and the
legislative body shall issue to such soldier, sailor or marine,
without cost, a license therefor.

16001.5.  Every person who was honorably discharged or honorably
relieved from the military, naval or air service of the United States
who served on or after June 27, 1950, and prior to February 1, 1955,
or on or after August 5, 1964, and prior to a future date to be
established by the Legislature, who is physically unable to obtain a
livelihood by manual labor, and who is a resident of this state, may
distribute circulars, and hawk, peddle, and vend any goods, wares or
merchandise owned by him, except spirituous, malt, or vinous, or
other intoxicating liquor, without payment of any license tax or fee
whatsoever, whether municipal, county or state, and the legislative
body shall issue to such person, without cost, a license therefor.

16001.7.  Every person who is honorably discharged or honorably
relieved from the military, naval, or air service of the United
States and who is a resident of this state, may distribute circulars,
and hawk, peddle and vend any goods, wares, or merchandise owned by
him or her, except spiritous, malt, or vinous, or other intoxicating
liquor, without payment of any business license fee, whether
municipal, county, or state, and the legislative body shall issue to
that person, without cost, a license therefor.

16002.  No license fee may be collected from, nor any penalty for
the nonpayment thereof enforced against, any commercial traveler
whose business is limited to goods, wares, and merchandise sold or
dealt in at wholesale in this State.

16002.1.  No license fee for the privilege of auctioning real estate
may be collected from any real estate auctioneer, whose business is
limited exclusively to auctioning real estate, except by the city in
which he has a permanent place of business.

16002.2.  No city shall impose a license fee or tax, other than a
fee or tax based on gross receipts, for the privilege of renting,
leasing, or operating laundry equipment, whether or not coin
operated, upon any individual or firm whose business is limited
exclusively to renting, leasing, or operating such equipment, which
license fee taxes or has the effect of taxing any gross receipts,
other than gross receipts actually derived from the conduct of
business within such city. For purposes of this section, the tax
shall be based on the entire gross receipts of the taxpayer derived
within the city, and no minimum tax shall be imposed upon any
business location, nor shall such tax be measured by the number of
business locations or machines of the taxpayer within the city.
   This section shall not apply to coin-operated laundry equipment
owned and operated by a retail establishment providing coin-operated
laundry equipment for general public use.

16002.5.  No city shall impose a license fee or tax, other than a
fee or tax based on gross receipts, for the privilege of renting,
leasing, or operating coin-operated vending machines, upon any
individual or firm whose business is limited exclusively to renting,
leasing, or operating such machines, which license fee or tax has the
effect of taxing any gross receipts other than gross receipts which
are directly attributable to the business activities conducted within
the city. For the purposes of this section, the license fee or tax
shall be based on the entire gross receipts which are directly
attributable to the business activities conducted within the city,
and no minimum license fee or tax shall be imposed upon any business
location, nor shall such license fee or tax be measured by the number
of business locations or machines of the taxpayer within the city.
   Any license to conduct a business issued by a city in connection
with which the city imposes a license fee or tax upon coin-operated
vending machines within the city, may be revoked for failure of the
licensee to report to the city the gross receipts from such machines.
The city may demand an audit of any such licensee and require him to
submit a copy of the state sales and use tax returns filed relative
to such machines, and a copy of any other tax statement filed with
any government entity by him or by any other individual or firm
owning, renting, leasing, or operating such machines disclosing the
gross receipts received from owning, renting, leasing, or operating
such machines.
   The provisions of this section shall not apply to a chartered city
or to a chartered city and county.

16003.  This article does not repeal any act vesting municipal
corporations with power to license for revenue purposes.

16004.  Any license issued to a business pursuant to this chapter
shall be revoked for a violation of Section 24185 of the Health and
Safety Code, relating to human cloning.