01-1642

Income Tax

Signed 6/4/02

BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION

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PETITIONER, ) ORDER

)

Petitioner, ) Appeal No. 01-1642

)

v. ) Account No. #####

)

TAXPAYER SERVICES DIVISION OF ) Tax Type: Income Tax

THE UTAH STATE TAX )

COMMISSION, ) Tax Year: 2000

)

Respondent. ) Judge: Davis

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Presiding:

G. Blaine Davis, Administrative Law Judge

Appearances:

For Petitioner: No one appeared

For Respondent: Ms. Vickie Hymas, from the Taxpayer Services Division

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

This matter came before the Utah State Tax Commission for an Initial Hearing pursuant to the provisions of Utah Code Ann. '59-1-502.5 on May 13, 2002.

Petitioner created a trust, and funds at his investment broker were included within that trust. When he mailed his income tax return for the year 2000, he included a check on the trust to pay his income taxes. That check was returned by the investment firm, because the trust money had erroneously been placed by them in a different account.

Respondent informed Petitioner of the returned check on July 6, 2001. There was no response from Petitioner. Respondent sent a second notice to Petitioner on October 12, 2001, and Petitioner made payment on October 26, 2001.

Petitioner has requested waiver of the penalty and interest that were imposed, and the penalty has been waived. Petitioner is now asking that the interest be waived.

APPLICABLE LAW

The Tax Commission is granted the authority to waive, reduce, or compromise penalties and interest upon a showing of reasonable cause. Utah Code Ann. §59-1-401(10).

DISCUSSION

Petitioner is asking that the interest be waived. However, interest is normally only waived if it is incurred based upon a Tax Commission employee error. In this case, there is no Tax Commission employee error.

For the time when Petitioner was charged interest on the amounts which had not been received by the State of Utah, he was also earning interest on the money which was on deposit in his investment account. Therefore, waiver is not appropriate.

Further, if there was an error made, it was apparently made by his investment firm, and it would be more appropriate that his investment firm pay that interest rather than the state waive interest to which it is legally and lawfully entitled.

DECISION AND ORDER

Based upon the foregoing, the Commission finds that sufficient cause has not been shown to justify a waiver of the interest associated with the 2000 income tax return of Petitioner. It is so ordered.

This decision does not limit a party's right to a Formal Hearing. However, this Decision and Order will become the Final Decision and Order of the Commission unless any party to this case files a written request within thirty (30) days of the date of this decision to proceed to a Formal Hearing. Such a request shall be mailed to the address listed below and must include the Petitioner's name, address, and appeal number:

Utah State Tax Commission

Appeals Division

210 North 1950 West

Salt Lake City, Utah 84134

Failure to request a Formal Hearing will preclude any further appeal rights in this matter.

DATED this 4^th day of June , 2002.

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G. Blaine Davis

Administrative Law Judge

BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION.

The Commission has reviewed this case and the undersigned concur in this decision.

DATED this 4^th day of June , 2002.

Pam Hendrickson R. Bruce Johnson

Commission Chair Commissioner

Palmer DePaulis Marc B. Johnson

Commissioner Commissioner