BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
_____________________________________
XXXXX
:
Petitioner, : FINDINGS OF FACT,
: CONCLUSIONS
OF LAW
v. : AND FINAL DECISION
: Appeal No.
88-2231
COLLECTION
DIVISION OF THE :
UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION, : Account
No. XXXXX
:
Respondent. :
_____________________________________
STATEMENT OF CASE
This
matter came before the Utah State Tax Commission pursuant to the Utah
Administrative Procedures Act for a formal hearing on XXXXX before Joseph G.
Linford, Presiding Officer. Petitioner
was represented by XXXXX. No one representing Respondent appeared.
After
reviewing the evidence and arguments of the parties in the record and the
recommendation of the presiding officer, the Tax Commission hereby makes its:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. The tax in question is sales and use tax.
2. The period in question is the first quarter
of XXXXX.
3. XXXXX testified that he was out of town when
the deadline for filing and payment of the taxes for the period in question
arrived and that he forgot to arrange for those taxes to be taken care of in
his absence.
4. The tax in question was paid by check dated
XXXXX, XXXXX days after the deadline for payment and filing of taxes for the
period in question.
5. Petitioner has a good past history of timely
payment and filing of sales tax.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. Utah Code Ann. §§59-1-401 and59-1-402
provide that penalties and interest shall be imposed for the late payment and
filing of sales tax.
2. Utah Code Ann. §59-1-401(8) provides that
the Commission may, upon reasonable cause shown, waive or reduce penalties
assessed under the above statutes.
3. Such reasonable cause has been shown for a
waiver of a portion of the penalties assessed.
The fact that the tax in question was paid within a very short period of
time after the deadline coupled with Petitioner's good past history of timely
filing and paying of those taxes indicates that a waiver of a portion of the
penalty is warranted. Such reasonable
cause has not been shown, however, for a waiver of the remaining portion of the
penalty and for waiver of the interest assessed. Mere human error or negligence on the part of a taxpayer is not
sufficient cause for waiver of the remaining portion of the penalties. The State was deprived of the use of the tax
funds in question between the time those funds should have been paid and the
time that they were paid, and the State is entitled to be compensated for that
loss.
DECISION AND ORDER
Based
upon the foregoing, it is the decision and order of the Utah State Tax
Commission that penalties be reduced to $$$$$ and the remaining portion of the
interest be recalculated taking into consideration the reduction of the
penalty. Petitioner's request for
waiver of the remaining portions of the penalty and interest is denied.
DATED
this 17 day of May, 199O.
BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION.
ABSENT
R. H. Hansen Roger
O. Tew
Chairman Commissioner
Joe B.
Pacheco G.
Blaine Davis
Commissioner Commissioner