BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
_____________________________________
In Re: )
:
XXXXX, ) FINDINGS OF FACT,
: CONCLUSIONS
OF LAW,
) AND FINAL
DECISION
:
) Appeal No.
92-1727
: Account
No. XXXXX
_____________________________________
STATEMENT OF CASE
This
matter came before the Utah State Tax Commission for a formal hearing on
XXXXX. XXXXX, Presiding Officer, heard
the matter for and on behalf of the Commission. Petitioner was present and represented himself.
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 year XXXXX.
3. Petitioner filed and paid his XXXXX personal
income tax late.
4. Petitioner is claiming hardship. He has had a series of medical and personal
problems in the intervening years.
5. As an employee of XXXXX in XXXXX,
Petitioner's health began to fail. His
employer terminated him because of his absences due to a heart condition.
6. Petitioner successfully petitioned to regain
his job and went back to work in XXXXX.
7. Also about this time, Petitioner's ex-wife
took their minor son from Petitioner's custody without the authority to do so.
8. Despite Petitioner's efforts, he did not
locate his son for several years.
9. In XXXXX and XXXXX, Petitioner's health
continued to wane.
10. In XXXXX, Petitioner was hospitalized five
times. In addition to heart problems,
he had two detached retinas at the same time.
He also had cornea lens implants.
11. In XXXXX, Petitioner lost his father.
12. Also in XXXXX, Petitioner continued heart
treatment. In addition to heart valve
problems, Petitioner was diagnosed with a severe hypertension problem.
13. Between XXXXX and XXXXX, Petitioner was
hospitalized for a total of fourteen weeks in a twelve month period due to
heart problems. His heart is working at
a third of the normal rate.
14. Further, severe arthritis has caused
Petitioner to have surgeries on his knuckles and elbows. A nerve rash of unknown cause has also
stricken Petitioner.
15. Petitioner is currently taking numerous
prescriptions for his medical conditions.
16. In XXXXX, Petitioner went to XXXXX to help
him prepare his XXXXX state income tax return.
He claims he sent in full payment with the return and requested a waiver
of the $$$$$ penalty plus interest.
17. Then in October XXXXX, Petitioner retired
from the XXXXX.
18. In mid-XXXXX, Petitioner was notified by the
Tax Commission that he owed his XXXXX taxes.
He then went back through his records and found that his XXXXX check
never was cashed.
19. By this time, Petitioner states he had no
money to pay the tax amount.
20. In XXXXX, Petitioner paid the tax amount in
full and requested another waiver of the penalty and interest assessments.
21. As verified with Tax Commission employee
XXXXX, Petitioner's initial waiver requests never were processed.
22. By XXXXX, Petitioner still had no response
on his waiver request so he filed a fourth request; this time he included the
year XXXXX as well as XXXXX.
23. In XXXXX, Petitioner states he filed his
fifth waiver request. This request was
denied in XXXXX.
24. Petitioner contends that the medical
problems he has faced together with the Tax Commission's own delays in
processing his requests are grounds for a waiver or reduction of some sort.
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
Based
upon the foregoing, the Tax Commission finds that sufficient cause has been
shown which would justify a waiver of the penalty assessment. The interest is waived for the time period
of XXXXX through XXXXX. It is so
ordered.
DATED
this 18th day of February, 1993.
BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION.
ABSENT
R. H. Hansen Roger
O. Tew
Chairman Commissioner
Joe B.
Pacheco S.
Blaine Willes
Commissioner Commissioner