(1) All taxes collected by any operator in accordance with this Chapter shall constitute a trust fund for the City and such trust shall be enforceable against such person and any person receiving any part of such fund without consideration, or knowing that the operator is committing a breach of trust; provided, however, that any person receiving payment of a lawful obligation of the operator from such fund shall be presumed to have received the same in good faith and without any knowledge of the breach of trust.

(2) The operator shall collect the tax imposed by this Chapter from the patron of the room and pay it over to the City as provided hereinafter. The operator, if he fails to collect the tax or pay it to the City when due, shall be liable to the City for the payment of the tax to the Department as provided in this Section.

(3) Every report and return shall be made upon a form furnished by the Department.

(4) Every operator shall transmit to the Department, on or before the fifteenth (15th) day of each month, a return for the month preceding the month in which the return is made, which return shall report the amount of consideration received for the transactions during the month for which the return is made, the amount of tax due from the operator for that month, and such other information as the Department may require.

(5) Every operator, at the time of filing every return required by this Section shall compute and pay to the Department the taxes shown as due on the return for the period for which the return is made.

(6) Every operator shall maintain records, which shall be made available to the Department upon its request, which shall include, but not be limited to, the number of transactions in each hotel reflected on an hourly, daily, or weekly basis, the rate(s) charged for each occupancy, the consideration received from all transactions during the month for which each return is made, as well as such other information as the Department may require.

(7) The tax due pursuant to this Chapter shall be collected and paid over to the City as though it were a continuation of the tax imposed by prior Chapter 19-2400, enacted pursuant to the act of December 7, 1982 (P.L. 808, No. 220), known as the First Class City Hotel Room Rental Tax Act, which act, in accordance with the provisions of Section 24 of the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority Act, June 27, 1986 (P.L. 124, No. 70), shall be repealed on the effective date of this Chapter.

(8) If an operator enters the business of the renting of hotel rooms subsequent to the effective date of this Chapter, the first return shall be filed on the fifteenth (15th) day of the first month subsequent thereto. The first return and tax payment due shall be for all transactions occurring during the preceding month based upon the actual taxable transactions during the preceding month.