N.Y. Tax Law § 1296: Secrecy of returns and reports

§ 1296. Secrecy of returns and reports. (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, any person engaged or retained by the 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 this chapter or in any other action or proceeding

involving the collection of a state assessment fee due under this

article 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 division

of tax appeals 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 or the division of tax appeals may, nevertheless,

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

required by this article. Nothing in this section shall be construed to

prohibit the delivery to a person who has filed a return or report or to

such person's duly authorized representative of a certified copy of any

return or report filed in connection with such person's state assessment

fee. Nor shall anything in this section be construed 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 pay the state

assessment fee who shall bring action to review the state assessment fee

based thereon, or against whom an action or proceeding under this

chapter has been recommended by the commissioner 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 state assessment fee paid by a

person required to pay the state assessment fee under this article.

Provided, further, nothing in this section 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 required to pay state assessment fee under this

article.

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

the commissioner, in his or her discretion, may require or permit any or

all persons liable for any state assessment fee imposed by this article,

to make payment to banks, banking houses or trust companies designated

by the commissioner and to file returns with such banks, banking houses

or trust companies as agents of the commissioner, in lieu of paying any

such state assessment fee directly to the commissioner. However, the

commissioner shall designate only such banks, banking houses or trust

companies as are already designated by the comptroller as depositories

pursuant to section twelve hundred eighty-eight of this chapter.

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

the commissioner may permit the secretary of the treasury of the United

States or such secretary's delegate, or the authorized representative of

either such officer, to inspect any return filed under this article, or

may furnish to such officer or such officer's authorized representative

an abstract of any such return or supply such person with information

concerning an item contained in any such return, or disclosed by any

investigation of liability under this article, but such permission shall

be granted or such information furnished only if the laws of the United

States grant substantially similar privileges to the commissioner or

officer of this state charged with the administration of the state

assessment fee imposed by this article, and only if such information is

to be used for purposes of tax administration only; and provided further

the commissioner may furnish to the commissioner of internal revenue or

such commissioner's authorized representative such returns filed under

this article and other tax information, as such commissioner 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 by the secretary of

the treasury of the United States or such secretary's delegate, provided

the laws of the United States grant substantially similar powers to the

secretary of the treasury of the United States or his or her delegate.

Where the commissioner has so authorized use of returns and other

information in such actions or proceedings, officers and employees of

the department may testify in such actions or proceedings in respect to

such returns or other information.

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

for three years and thereafter until the commissioner orders them to be

destroyed.

(e) (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.

(f) (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

return or report, 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).