BEFORE THE UTAH STATE TAX
COMMISSION
____________________________________
In Re: )
: FINDINGS
OF FACT,
XXXXX, ) CONCLUSIONS OF LAW,
: AND FINAL
DECISION
)
: Appeal No.
92-1922
)
: 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. Owner XXXXX represented Petitioner by telephone.
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 sales and use tax.
2. The period in question is the fourth quarter
of XXXXX.
3. Petitioner contracted with twelve XXXXX
stores in Utah to sell Christmas trees in their parking lots during the holiday
season.
4. Mr. XXXXX, owner of XXXXX, understood that
his managers of the lots in Utah had the necessary tax forms and had filed and
paid the sales tax for the fourth quarter of XXXXX to Utah.
5. It wasn't until XXXXX that Mr. XXXXX learned
from the Tax Commission that these taxes had not been paid and the return had
not been filed. The reason for this
delay in notification was that the Tax Commission was sending late notices to
Petitioner at a XXXXX address. XXXXX,
in turn, had been rejecting this mail intended for Petitioner.
6. Petitioner filed the delinquent return and
paid the tax in XXXXX. Two ten percent
penalties were assessed for the untimely filing and payment, plus interest.
7. Later, the Tax Commission waived one of the
ten percent penalties.
8. Petitioner is requesting a waiver of the
remaining ten percent penalty and interest amount.
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 not been
shown which would justify a waiver of the remaining ten percent penalty or the
interest associated with the sales and use tax due on the fourth quarter of
XXXXX. The mailing of late notices to
the wrong address does not dismiss the fact that Petitioner had a duty to see
that the fourth quarter return was filed and submitted with payment on time in
the first place. It is so ordered.
DATED
this 22nd day of June, 1993.
BY ORDER OF THE UTAH STATE TAX COMMISSION.
R. H. Hansen Roger
O. Tew
Chairman Commissioner
Joe B.
Pacheco S.
Blaine Willes
Commissioner Commissioner