BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
_____________________________________
XXXXX
:
Petitioner : FINDINGS OF FACT,
: CONCLUSIONS
OF LAW
v. : AND FINAL DECISION
:
: Appeal No.
89-1396
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 third quarter of XXXXX.
3.
The period in question was the first period during which Petitioner was in
business. Petitioner was very
inexperienced in tax matters and in dealing with the Utah State Tax
Commission. The taxes in question were
mailed one day late.
There
have been no difficulties with timely payment and filing of taxes since that
time as Petitioner has hired an accountant to help them with such matters.
4.
Petitioner incurred penalties and interest from both the state and federal
governments. The federal government
granted Petitioner's request for a waiver on XXXXX, and Petitioner's penalties
and interest for withholding tax were waived by the State Tax Commission by a
letter dated XXXXX. When Petitioner
received this notice from the Tax Commission, Petitioner thought that this
applied to both withholding and sales tax.
Petitioner did not realize that there were two separate taxes and two
separate penalties involved.
5.
Petitioner's request for waiver of penalty and interest on the sales tax was
denied by the Utah State Tax Commission by letter dated XXXXX.
6.
The circumstances which incurred the penalties and interest for both the
withholding and the sales tax were the same.
7.
In addition, the forms and notices were being consistently sent from the Tax
Commission to Petitioner at an erroneous address. The address to which these items were sent was an address at which
Petitioner had never been located and of which Petitioner had no
knowledge. This added to the confusion
and to Petitioner's difficulty in resolving the matter.
8.
Petitioner now requests that all penalties and interest be waived for the sales
tax account as they were for the withholding tax account.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1.
Utah Code Ann. §§59-1-401 and59-1-402 provide that penalties and interest shall
be assessed for the late filing of sales taxes.
2.
Utah Code Ann. §59-1-401(8) provides that the Commission may, upon reasonable
cause shown, waive or reduce the penalties assessed under the above statutes.
3.
Such reasonable cause has been shown in this case. This is the first time Petitioner has had to file sales tax and
Petitioner's history since the time involved in this case has been good. The same circumstances which dictated a
waiver of the withholding penalties and interest would also indicate that a
waiver in the sales tax penalties and interest is warranted.
DECISION AND ORDER
Based
upon the foregoing, it is the decision and order of the Utah State Tax
Commission that Petitioner's request for waiver of penalties and interest be
granted.
DATED
this 17th day of May, 1990. 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