N.Y. Tax Law § 1146 — Returns to be secret

§ 1146. Returns to be secret. (a) Except in accordance with proper\njudicial order or as otherwise provided by law, it shall be unlawful for\nthe commissioner, any officer or employee of the department of taxation\nand finance, any person engaged or retained by such department on an\nindependent contract basis, or any person who in any manner may acquire\nknowledge of the contents of a return or report filed with the\ncommissioner pursuant to this article, to divulge or make known in any\nmanner any particulars set forth or disclosed in any such return or\nreport. The officers charged with the custody of such returns and\nreports shall not be required to produce any of them or evidence of\nanything contained in them in any action or proceeding in any court,\nexcept on behalf of the commissioner in an action or proceeding under\nthe provisions of the tax law or in any other action or proceeding\ninvolving the collection of a tax due under this chapter to which the\nstate or the commissioner is a party or a claimant, or on behalf of any\nparty to any action, proceeding or hearing under the provisions of this\narticle when the returns, reports or facts shown thereby are directly\ninvolved in such action, proceeding or hearing, in any of which events\nthe court, or in the case of a hearing, the commissioner may require the\nproduction of, and may admit into evidence, so much of said returns,\nreports or of the facts shown thereby, as are pertinent to the action,\nproceeding or hearing and no more. The commissioner may, nevertheless,\npublish a copy or a summary of any decision rendered after a hearing\nrequired by this article. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit\nthe delivery to a person who has filed a return or report or his duly\nauthorized representative of a certified copy of any return or report\nfiled in connection with his tax. Nor shall anything herein be\nconstrued to prohibit the delivery to a person required to collect the\ntax under this article or a purchaser, transferee or assignee personally\nliable under the provisions of subdivision (c) of section eleven hundred\nforty-one of this chapter for the tax due from the seller, transferor or\nassignor, of any return or report filed under this article in connection\nwith such tax provided, however, that there may be delivered only so\nmuch of said return, report or of the facts shown thereby as are\npertinent to a determination of the taxes due or liability owed by such\nperson or purchaser, transferee or assignee and no more or to prohibit\nthe publication of statistics so classified as to prevent the\nidentification of particular returns or reports and the items thereof,\nor the inspection by the attorney general or other legal representatives\nof the state of the return or report of any person required to collect\nor pay the tax who shall bring action to review the tax based thereon,\nor against whom an action or proceeding under this chapter has been\nrecommended by the commissioner of taxation and finance or the attorney\ngeneral or has been instituted, or the inspection of the returns or\nreports required under this article by the comptroller or duly\ndesignated officer or employee of the state department of audit and\ncontrol, for purposes of the audit of a refund of any tax paid by a\nperson required to collect or pay the tax under this article. Provided,\nfurther, nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the disclosure,\nin such manner as the commissioner deems appropriate, of the names and\nother appropriate identifying information of those persons holding\ncertificates of authority pursuant to section eleven hundred thirty-four\nof this article, those persons whose certificates of authority have been\nsuspended or revoked, those persons whose certificates of authority have\nexpired, those persons who have filed a certificate of registration for\na certificate of authority where the commissioner has refused to issue a\ncertificate of authority, those persons holding direct payment permits\npursuant to section eleven hundred thirty-two or those persons whose\ndirect payment permits have been suspended or revoked by the\ncommissioner; and provided further that nothing herein shall be\nconstrued to prohibit the disclosure, in such manner as the commissioner\ndeems appropriate, of information related to the tax on admissions to\nrace tracks and simulcast facilities to the gaming commission or the\ndivision of the budget.\n (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,\nthe tax commission may, in its discretion, permit the proper officer of\nany city, county or school district imposing any tax authorized by\narticle twenty-nine, or the authorized representative of such officer,\nto inspect any return filed under this article, or may furnish to such\nofficer or his authorized representative an abstract of any such return\nor supply him with information concerning an item contained in any such\nreturn, or disclosed by any investigation of tax liability under this\narticle; but such permission shall be granted or such information\nfurnished only if such city, county or school district shall have\nfurnished the tax commission with all information requested by it\npursuant to article twenty-nine of this chapter and shall have permitted\nthe tax commission or its authorized representative to make any\ninspection of returns or reports filed with such city, county or school\ndistrict which the tax commission may have requested pursuant to said\nsection.\n (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,\nthe tax commission, in its discretion, may require or permit any or all\npersons liable for any tax or required to collect any tax imposed by\nthis article, to make payment to banks, banking houses or trust\ncompanies designated by the tax commission and to file returns with such\nbanks, banking houses or trust companies as agents of the tax\ncommission, in lieu of paying any such tax directly to the tax\ncommission. However, the tax commission shall designate only such banks,\nbanking houses or trust companies as are already designated by the\ncomptroller as depositories pursuant to section eleven hundred\nforty-eight.\n (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,\nthe tax commission may permit the secretary of the treasury of the\nUnited States or his delegates, or the proper tax officer of any state\nimposing a sales or compensating use tax, or the authorized\nrepresentative of either such officer, to inspect any return filed under\nthis article, or may furnish to such officer or his authorized\nrepresentative an abstract of any such return or supply him with\ninformation concerning an item contained in any such return, or\ndisclosed by any investigation of tax liability under this article, but\nsuch permission shall be granted or such information furnished only if\nthe laws of the United States or of such other state, as the case may\nbe, grant substantially similar privileges to the commission or officer\nof this state charged with the administration of the tax imposed by this\narticle, and only if such information is to be used for tax purposes\nonly; and provided further the commissioner of taxation and finance may\nfurnish to the commissioner of internal revenue or his authorized\nrepresentative such returns filed under this article and other tax\ninformation, as he may consider proper, for use in court actions or\nproceedings under the internal revenue code, whether civil or criminal,\nwhere a written request therefor has been made to the commissioner of\ntaxation and finance by the secretary of the treasury of the United\nStates or his delegates, provided the laws of the United States grant\nsubstantially similar powers to the secretary of the treasury of the\nUnited States or his delegates. Where the commissioner of taxation and\nfinance has so authorized use of returns and other information in such\nactions or proceedings, officers and employees of the department of\ntaxation and finance may testify in such actions or proceedings in\nrespect to such returns or other information.\n (e) Returns and reports filed under this article shall be preserved\nfor three years and thereafter until the tax commission orders them to\nbe destroyed.\n (f) (1) Any officer or employee of the state who willfully violates\nthe provisions of subdivision (a) of this section shall be dismissed\nfrom office and be incapable of holding any public office for a period\nof five years thereafter.\n (2) Cross-reference: For criminal penalties, see article thirty-seven\nof this chapter.\n (g) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,\nif the commissioner determines that a person required to collect tax is\nliable for any tax, penalty or interest under this article or is liable\nfor a penalty under subdivision (e) of section eleven hundred forty-five\nof this article with respect to any failure, upon request in writing of\nsuch person, the commissioner shall disclose in writing to such person\n(1) the name of any other person required to collect tax or any other\nperson liable for such penalty under such subdivision (e) whom the\ncommissioner has determined to be liable for the same tax, penalty or\ninterest or for such penalty with respect to such failure, and (2)\nwhether the commissioner has attempted to collect such tax, penalty or\ninterest or such penalty from such other person, the general nature of\nsuch collection activities, and the amount collected.\n (h) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this\nsection, upon written request from the chairperson of the committee on\nways and means of the United States House of Representatives, the\nchairperson of the committee on finance of the United States Senate, or\nthe chairperson of the joint committee on taxation of the United States\nCongress, the commissioner shall furnish such committee with any current\nor prior year returns or reports specified in such request that were\nfiled under this article by the president of the United States,\nvice-president of the United States, member of the United States\nCongress representing New York state, or any person who served in or was\nemployed by the executive branch of the government of the United States\non the executive staff of the president, in the executive office of the\npresident, or in an acting or confirmed capacity in a position subject\nto confirmation by the United States senate; or, in New York state: a\nstatewide elected official, as defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision\none of section seventy-three-a of the public officers law; a state\nofficer or employee, as defined in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) of\nsubdivision one of such section seventy-three-a; a political party\nchairperson, as defined in paragraph (h) of subdivision one of such\nsection seventy-three-a; a local elected official, as defined in\nsubdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the general\nmunicipal law; a person appointed, pursuant to law, to serve due to\nvacancy or otherwise in the position of a local elected official, as\ndefined in subdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the\ngeneral municipal law; a member of the state legislature, or a judge or\njustice of the unified court system; or filed by a partnership, firm,\nassociation, corporation, joint-stock company, trust or similar entity\ndirectly or indirectly controlled by any individual listed in this\nparagraph, whether by contract, through ownership or control of a\nmajority interest in such entity, or otherwise, or filed by a\npartnership, firm, association, corporation, joint-stock company, trust\nor similar entity of which any individual listed in this paragraph holds\nten percent or more of the voting securities of such entity; provided\nhowever that, prior to furnishing any return or report, the commissioner\nshall redact any copy of a federal return (or portion thereof) attached\nto, or any information on a federal return that is reflected on, such\nreport or return, and any social security numbers, account numbers and\nresidential address information.\n (2) No returns or reports shall be furnished pursuant to this\nsubdivision unless the chairperson of the requesting committee certifies\nin writing that such returns or reports have been requested related to,\nand in furtherance of, a legitimate task of the Congress, that the\nrequesting committee has made a written request to the United States\nsecretary of the treasury for related federal returns or reports or\nreturn or report information, pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section 6103(f), and\nthat if such requested returns or reports are inspected by and/or\nsubmitted to another committee, to the United States House of\nRepresentatives, or to the United States Senate, then such inspection\nand/or submission shall occur in a manner consistent with federal law as\ninformed by the requirements and procedures established in 26 U.S.C.\nSection 6103(f).\n