BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
_______________________________
In Re: ) FINDINGS OF FACT,
: CONCLUSIONS
OF LAW,
XXXXX ) AND FINAL DECISION
:
: Appeal No.
91-0329
: 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 was
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. In XXXXX, Petitioners took their tax papers
for the year in question to a professional tax preparer. On XXXXX, the tax preparer sent extension
forms to the Petitioners for state and federal taxes. Petitioners filed these extension forms and included with the
state extension a $$$$$ prepayment.
Petitioners estimated that their tax liability to the state would be no
more than this amount, but did not attempt to determine the amount accurately
since the tax papers were in the hands of their tax preparer.
4. Petitioners received their completed tax
returns from the tax preparer on XXXXX, and Petitioners submitted the completed
state tax return with payment for the remaining tax liability on XXXXX. Contrary to Petitioners' expectations, the
$$$$$ prepayment was insufficient to validate the extension. In order to
validate an extension, a prepayment must be at least 90% of the amount due for
the period in question or at least 100% of the previous year's tax liability. Utah Code Ann. §59-10-516; Tax Commission
RuleR865-9I-23.
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
The
penalty and interest assessed in this case should not be waived. Petitioners
had the responsibility to follow up more closely with their tax preparer,
particularly as the deadline for filing tax returns approached. Additionally,
when Petitioners filed their extension, Petitioners could have contacted the
tax preparer and obtained information to more accurately estimate the amount of
the prepayment that should have been submitted. In the final analysis, the tax return and the remaining tax
liability were submitted untimely, with no valid extension being filed because
of the lack of a sufficient prepayment.
The penalty and interest were properly assessed.
Based
upon the foregoing, the Tax Commission finds that sufficient cause has not been
shown which would justify a waiver of the penalty and interest associated with
Petitioners' income tax for the tax year XXXXX. It is so ordered.
DATED
this 7th day of June, 1991.
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