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

§ 1146. Returns to be secret. (a) Except in accordance with proper

judicial order or as otherwise provided by law, it shall be unlawful for

the commissioner, any officer or employee of the department of taxation

and finance, any person engaged or retained by such department on an

independent contract basis, or any person who in any manner may acquire

knowledge of the contents of a return or report filed with the

commissioner pursuant to this article, to divulge or make known in any

manner any particulars set forth or disclosed in any such return or

report. The officers charged with the custody of such returns and

reports shall not be required to produce any of them or evidence of

anything contained in them in any action or proceeding in any court,

except on behalf of the commissioner in an action or proceeding under

the provisions of the tax law or in any other action or proceeding

involving the collection of a tax due under this chapter to which the

state or the commissioner is a party or a claimant, or on behalf of any

party to any action, proceeding or hearing under the provisions of this

article when the returns, reports or facts shown thereby are directly

involved in such action, proceeding or hearing, in any of which events

the court, or in the case of a hearing, the commissioner may require the

production of, and may admit into evidence, so much of said returns,

reports or of the facts shown thereby, as are pertinent to the action,

proceeding or hearing and no more. The commissioner may, nevertheless,

publish a copy or a summary of any decision rendered after a hearing

required by this article. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit

the delivery to a person who has filed a return or report or his duly

authorized representative of a certified copy of any return or report

filed in connection with his tax. Nor shall anything herein be

construed to prohibit the delivery to a person required to collect the

tax under this article or a purchaser, transferee or assignee personally

liable under the provisions of subdivision (c) of section eleven hundred

forty-one of this chapter for the tax due from the seller, transferor or

assignor, of any return or report filed under this article in connection

with such tax provided, however, that there may be delivered only so

much of said return, report or of the facts shown thereby as are

pertinent to a determination of the taxes due or liability owed by such

person or purchaser, transferee or assignee and no more or to prohibit

the publication of statistics so classified as to prevent the

identification of particular returns or reports and the items thereof,

or the inspection by the attorney general or other legal representatives

of the state of the return or report of any person required to collect

or pay the tax who shall bring action to review the tax based thereon,

or against whom an action or proceeding under this chapter has been

recommended by the commissioner of taxation and finance or the attorney

general or has been instituted, or the inspection of the returns or

reports required under this article by the comptroller or duly

designated officer or employee of the state department of audit and

control, for purposes of the audit of a refund of any tax paid by a

person required to collect or pay the tax under this article. Provided,

further, nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the disclosure,

in such manner as the commissioner deems appropriate, of the names and

other appropriate identifying information of those persons holding

certificates of authority pursuant to section eleven hundred thirty-four

of this article, those persons whose certificates of authority have been

suspended or revoked, those persons whose certificates of authority have

expired, those persons who have filed a certificate of registration for

a certificate of authority where the commissioner has refused to issue a

certificate of authority, those persons holding direct payment permits

pursuant to section eleven hundred thirty-two or those persons whose

direct payment permits have been suspended or revoked by the

commissioner; and provided further that nothing herein shall be

construed to prohibit the disclosure, in such manner as the commissioner

deems appropriate, of information related to the tax on admissions to

race tracks and simulcast facilities to the gaming commission or the

division of the budget.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,

the tax commission may, in its discretion, permit the proper officer of

any city, county or school district imposing any tax authorized by

article twenty-nine, or the authorized representative of such officer,

to inspect any return filed under this article, or may furnish to such

officer or his authorized representative an abstract of any such return

or supply him with information concerning an item contained in any such

return, or disclosed by any investigation of tax liability under this

article; but such permission shall be granted or such information

furnished only if such city, county or school district shall have

furnished the tax commission with all information requested by it

pursuant to article twenty-nine of this chapter and shall have permitted

the tax commission or its authorized representative to make any

inspection of returns or reports filed with such city, county or school

district which the tax commission may have requested pursuant to said

section.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,

the tax commission, in its discretion, may require or permit any or all

persons liable for any tax or required to collect any tax imposed by

this article, to make payment to banks, banking houses or trust

companies designated by the tax commission and to file returns with such

banks, banking houses or trust companies as agents of the tax

commission, in lieu of paying any such tax directly to the tax

commission. However, the tax commission shall designate only such banks,

banking houses or trust companies as are already designated by the

comptroller as depositories pursuant to section eleven hundred

forty-eight.

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,

the tax commission may permit the secretary of the treasury of the

United States or his delegates, or the proper tax officer of any state

imposing a sales or compensating use tax, or the authorized

representative of either such officer, to inspect any return filed under

this article, or may furnish to such officer or his authorized

representative an abstract of any such return or supply him with

information concerning an item contained in any such return, or

disclosed by any investigation of tax liability under this article, but

such permission shall be granted or such information furnished only if

the laws of the United States or of such other state, as the case may

be, grant substantially similar privileges to the commission or officer

of this state charged with the administration of the tax imposed by this

article, and only if such information is to be used for tax purposes

only; and provided further the commissioner of taxation and finance may

furnish to the commissioner of internal revenue or his authorized

representative such returns filed under this article and other tax

information, as he may consider proper, for use in court actions or

proceedings under the internal revenue code, whether civil or criminal,

where a written request therefor has been made to the commissioner of

taxation and finance by the secretary of the treasury of the United

States or his delegates, provided the laws of the United States grant

substantially similar powers to the secretary of the treasury of the

United States or his delegates. Where the commissioner of taxation and

finance has so authorized use of returns and other information in such

actions or proceedings, officers and employees of the department of

taxation and finance may testify in such actions or proceedings in

respect to such returns or other information.

(e) Returns and reports filed under this article shall be preserved

for three years and thereafter until the tax commission orders them to

be destroyed.

(f) (1) Any officer or employee of the state who willfully violates

the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section shall be dismissed

from office and be incapable of holding any public office for a period

of five years thereafter.

(2) Cross-reference: For criminal penalties, see article thirty-seven

of this chapter.

(g) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section,

if the commissioner determines that a person required to collect tax is

liable for any tax, penalty or interest under this article or is liable

for a penalty under subdivision (e) of section eleven hundred forty-five

of this article with respect to any failure, upon request in writing of

such person, the commissioner shall disclose in writing to such person

(1) the name of any other person required to collect tax or any other

person liable for such penalty under such subdivision (e) whom the

commissioner has determined to be liable for the same tax, penalty or

interest or for such penalty with respect to such failure, and (2)

whether the commissioner has attempted to collect such tax, penalty or

interest or such penalty from such other person, the general nature of

such collection activities, and the amount collected.

(h) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a) of this

section, upon written request from the chairperson of the committee on

ways and means of the United States House of Representatives, the

chairperson of the committee on finance of the United States Senate, or

the chairperson of the joint committee on taxation of the United States

Congress, the commissioner shall furnish such committee with any current

or prior year returns or reports specified in such request that were

filed under this article by the president of the United States,

vice-president of the United States, member of the United States

Congress representing New York state, or any person who served in or was

employed by the executive branch of the government of the United States

on the executive staff of the president, in the executive office of the

president, or in an acting or confirmed capacity in a position subject

to confirmation by the United States senate; or, in New York state: a

statewide elected official, as defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision

one of section seventy-three-a of the public officers law; a state

officer or employee, as defined in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) of

subdivision one of such section seventy-three-a; a political party

chairperson, as defined in paragraph (h) of subdivision one of such

section seventy-three-a; a local elected official, as defined in

subdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the general

municipal law; a person appointed, pursuant to law, to serve due to

vacancy or otherwise in the position of a local elected official, as

defined in subdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the

general municipal law; a member of the state legislature, or a judge or

justice of the unified court system; or filed by a partnership, firm,

association, corporation, joint-stock company, trust or similar entity

directly or indirectly controlled by any individual listed in this

paragraph, whether by contract, through ownership or control of a

majority interest in such entity, or otherwise, or filed by a

partnership, firm, association, corporation, joint-stock company, trust

or similar entity of which any individual listed in this paragraph holds

ten percent or more of the voting securities of such entity; provided

however that, prior to furnishing any return or report, the commissioner

shall redact any copy of a federal return (or portion thereof) attached

to, or any information on a federal return that is reflected on, such

report or return, and any social security numbers, account numbers and

residential address information.

(2) No returns or reports shall be furnished pursuant to this

subdivision unless the chairperson of the requesting committee certifies

in writing that such returns or reports have been requested related to,

and in furtherance of, a legitimate task of the Congress, that the

requesting committee has made a written request to the United States

secretary of the treasury for related federal returns or reports or

return or report information, pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section 6103(f), and

that if such requested returns or reports are inspected by and/or

submitted to another committee, to the United States House of

Representatives, or to the United States Senate, then such inspection

and/or submission shall occur in a manner consistent with federal law as

informed by the requirements and procedures established in 26 U.S.C.

Section 6103(f).