N.Y. General City Model 772/66 § 87: General powers of director of finance

§ 87. General powers of director of finance. 1. General.--The director

of finance shall administer and enforce the tax imposed by the named

parts and he is authorized to make such rules and regulations, and to

require such facts and information to be reported, as he may deem

necessary to enforce the provisions of this part and of the named parts;

and he may delegate his powers and functions under all parts of this

title to one of his deputies or to any employee or employees of his

department.

2. Examination of books and witnesses.--The director of finance for

the purpose of ascertaining the correctness of any return, or for the

purpose of making an estimate of tax liability of any corporation, shall

have power to examine or to cause to have examined, by any agent or

representative designated by it for that purpose, any books, papers,

records or memoranda bearing upon the matters required to be included in

the return, and may require the attendance of the corporation rendering

the return through any officer or employee of such corporation, or the

attendance of any other person having knowledge in the premises, and may

take testimony and require proof material for his information, with

power to administer oaths to such person or persons.

3. Abatement authority.--The director of finance, of his own motion,

may abate any small unpaid balance of an assessment of tax, or any

liability in respect thereof, if the director of finance determines

under uniform rules prescribed by him that the administration and

collection costs involved would not warrant collection of the amount

due. He may also abate, of his own motion, the unpaid portion of the

assessment of any tax or any liability in respect thereof, which is

excessive in amount, or is assessed after the expiration of the period

of limitation properly applicable thereto, or is erroneously or

illegally assessed. No claim for abatement under this subdivision shall

be filed by a taxpayer.

4. Special refund authority.--Where no questions of fact or law are

involved and it appears from the records of the director of finance that

any moneys have been erroneously or illegally collected from any

taxpayer or other person, or paid by such taxpayer or other person under

a mistake of facts, pursuant to the provisions of this part or of any of

the named parts, the director of finance at any time, without regard to

any period of limitations, shall have the power, upon making a record of

his reasons therefor in writing, to cause such moneys so paid and being

erroneously and illegally held to be refunded.

5. Authority to set interest rates.--The commissioner of finance, by

regulation, may set the rate of interest to be paid pursuant to sections

six and eight of part two, sections seventy-five, seventy-six and

seventy-nine of this part, and those sections of any local law imposing

a tax such as is imposed by article thirty-two of the tax law which

correspond to sections fourteen hundred sixty-one and fourteen hundred

sixty-three of the tax law. Such rate shall be the same for each such

section and shall be not less than six percent per annum nor more than

the rate of interest prescribed by the banking board pursuant to section

fourteen-a of the banking law, but if the commissioner of finance has

not set such rate, interest at six percent per annum shall apply, except

that for purposes of subdivision five of section eight of part two

interest at the rate of four percent per annum shall apply. Any rate set

by the commissioner of finance shall go into effect not less than sixty

days after the regulation is promulgated, and shall apply only to taxes

due or paid for a calendar or fiscal year or other period commencing

after the effective date of such regulation.

6. Interest required to be paid.--In computing the amount of any

interest required to be paid under this part or any of the named parts

by the commissioner of finance or by the taxpayer, or any other amount

determined by reference to such amount of interest, such interest and

such amount shall be compounded daily. The preceding sentence shall not

apply for purposes of computing the amount of any addition to tax for

failure to pay estimated tax under subdivision three of section

seventy-six of this part.

7. Fractional parts of a dollar.--The commissioner of finance may

provide by regulation (a) that in any determination, assessment,

collection, refund or credit under the named parts, a fractional part of

a dollar may be disregarded unless it amounts to fifty cents or more, in

which case it shall be increased to one dollar, and (b) that any person

making a return, report or other statement required to be filed under

the named parts, may elect with respect to any amount required to be

shown thereon, if such amount is other than a whole dollar amount,

either to disregard the fractional part of a dollar or to disregard the

fractional part of a dollar unless it amounts to fifty cents or more, in

which case the amount (determined without regard to the fractional part

of the dollar) shall be increased by one dollar; provided, however, that

such election shall not be applicable to items which must be taken into

account in making the computations necessary to determine the amount

required to be shown on any such return, report or other statement but

shall be applicable only to the final amount required to be shown

thereon.