BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
__________________________
In Re: ) FINDINGS
OF FACT,
: CONCLUSIONS
OF LAW,
XXXXX &
XXXXX ) AND FINAL DECISION
:
: Appeal No.
90-1423
: Account
No. XXXXX
_____________________________________
STATEMENT OF CASE
This
matter came before the Utah State Tax Commission for a formal hearing on
XXXXX. Joseph G. Linford, Presiding
Officer, heard the matter for and on behalf of the Commission. Present and representing the Petitioners
were XXXXX and XXXXX.
Based
upon the evidence and testimony presented at the hearing, the Tax Commission
hereby makes its:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1.
The tax in question is individual income tax.
2.
The period in question is the tax year XXXXX.
3.
During the time period from late XXXXX to XXXXX, Petitioners and their
accountants were involved in negotiations with the Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) regarding previous tax years, including the assessment of an additional
amount of tax by the IRS which was later shown to have been an erroneous
assessment.
When
the settlement with the IRS did occur in XXXXX, the settlement resolved all of
the disputes between Petitioners and the IRS and also finalized amounts due in
the intervening years, up until the time of settlement. The final settlement did not result in as
large a refund to Petitioners as Petitioners had expected. In anticipation of the larger refund,
Petitioners did not file their taxes timely for the year in question because
they felt that a refund would be owed them for that year as well.
4.
Petitioner, XXXXX, states that Petitioners could not file a complete tax return
for the year in question until the negotiations with the IRS for previous years
had been finalized. Petitioners assert
that before this time they did not have the information necessary to file an
accurate return for XXXXX. When the
return for XXXXX was filed on XXXXX, Petitioner states that there were
"adjustments and corrections" relative to the settlement with the IRS
that had an effect on the XXXXX tax return.
Petitioners had timely filed an extension for the year in question.
5.
Petitioners, for similar reasons, did not file their XXXXX federal income tax
return timely. Upon presentation of the
above facts to the IRS, the federal penalty for that late filing was waived.
6.
Based on the foregoing facts, Petitioners request a waiver of the penalty
assessed in this case.
CONCLUSIONS OF 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(8).)
DECISION AND ORDER
It
is clear that Petitioner had a duty to timely file for the year in question,
but did not so file. If adjustments
would later be warranted because of the impact of the actions of the IRS, an
amended return could have been filed.
Based
upon the foregoing, the Tax Commission finds that sufficient cause has not been
shown which would justify a waiver of the penalty associated with the tax year
XXXXX. It is so ordered.
DATED
this 9 day of January, 1991.
BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION.
R. H. Hansen Roger
O. Tew
Chairman Commissioner
Joe B.
Pacheco G.
Blaine Davis
Commissioner Commissioner