89-0192-Income

BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION

_____________________________________

XXXXX, )

Petitioner, :

v. ) INFORMAL DECISION

:

) Appeal No. 89-0192

COLLECTION DIVISION OF THE :

STATE TAX COMMISSION OF UTAH, )

: Acct No. XXXXX

Respondent. )

_____________________________________

STATEMENT OF CASE

This is an appeal to the Utah State Tax Commission for reconsideration of a Commission decision denying a request for waiver of a penalty assessment on Petitioners' XXXXX income tax return. Pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 63-46B-5(1)(b,j) (1986 Rep., 1988 Supp.) no hearing was held. A review of Petitioners' file served as the evidentiary basis for this decision.

Petitioners filed their income tax return with the Commission on XXXXX. Accompanying that return was an application for automatic extension of time to file a Utah income tax return which was not signed by the Petitioners. This application requested an extension to the date of XXXXX. The Tax Commission has no record of an earlier application for an extension being filed.

FINDINGS

Utah Code Ann. §59-10-516(1)(a) (1987 Rep.) authorizes the Commission upon application to grant an extension of time for the filing of returns. Utah Admin. R. No. R865-9I-23(A)(3) provides that such an application must be submitted to the Commission prior to the due date of the return, i.e., XXXXX. Because the request for extension was not filed by XXXXX and was not filed according to Tax Commission records until XXXXX, the filing of the return was not timely. Utah Code Ann. §59-1-401 (1987 Rep., 1989 Supp.) provides that penalties shall be assessed for failure to file timely tax returns. Utah Code Ann. §59-1-401(8) (1987 Rep., 1989 Supp.) provides that the Commission may grant a waiver or a reduction of such penalties upon reasonable cause shown. Such reasonable cause has not been shown in this case due to the fact that the returns was indeed filed late and the application for extension of time was not filed previous to the due date of the return.

DECISION AND ORDER

Based on the foregoing, it is the decision and order of the Utah State Tax Commission that the Petitioners' request for waiver of penalty be denied.

DATED this 26th day of December, 1989.

BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE COMMISSION.

FOR THE COMMISSION