N.Y. Tax Law § 437: Returns to be secret

§ 437. Returns to be secret. 1. Except in accordance with proper

judicial order or as in this section or otherwise provided by law, it

shall be unlawful for the tax commission, any tax commissioner, any

officer or employee of the department of taxation and finance, or any

officer or person who, pursuant to this section, is permitted to inspect

any return or report or to whom a copy, an abstract or a portion of any

return or report is furnished, or to whom any information contained in

any return or report is furnished, or 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 pursuant to this article to divulge or make known in any manner

the contents or any other information relating to the business of a

distributor, owner or other person contained in any return or report

required under this article. The officers charged with the custody of

such returns or 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 state, the state liquor authority,

any county alcoholic beverage control board, the New York city alcoholic

beverage control board or the tax commission in an action or proceeding

under the provisions of this chapter or chapter three-b of the

consolidated laws, or on behalf of the state or the tax commission in

any other action or proceeding involving the collection of a tax due

under this chapter to which the state or the tax commission is a party

or a claimant or on behalf of any party to any action or proceeding

under the provisions of this article or chapter three-b of the

consolidated laws, when the returns or the reports or the facts shown

thereby are directly involved in such action or proceeding, or in an

action or proceeding relating to the regulation or taxation of alcoholic

beverages on behalf of officers to whom information shall have been

supplied as provided in subdivision two of this section, in any of which

events the court may require the production of, and may admit in

evidence so much of said returns or reports or of the facts shown

thereby as are pertinent to the action or proceeding and no more. The

tax commission may, nevertheless, publish a copy or a summary of any

decision rendered after the formal hearing provided for in section four

hundred thirty of this chapter. Nothing herein shall be construed to

prohibit the tax commission, in its discretion, from allowing the

inspection or delivery of a certified copy of any return or report filed

under this article or of any information contained in any such return or

report by or to a duly authorized officer or employee of the state

liquor authority or of the New York city alcoholic beverage control

board or of any county alcoholic beverage control board; or by or to the

attorney-general or other legal representatives of the state when an

action shall have been recommended or commenced pursuant to this chapter

or chapter three-b of the consolidated laws in which such returns or

reports or the facts shown thereby are directly involved; 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 distributor or other person under this article; nor

to prohibit the delivery to a distributor, owner or other person, or a

duly authorized representative of such distributor, owner or other

person of a certified copy of any return or report filed by such

distributor, owner or other person pursuant to this article, nor to

prohibit the publication of statistics so classified as to prevent the

identification of particular returns or reports and the items thereof.

Returns and reports shall be preserved for three years and thereafter

until the tax commission orders them to be destroyed.

2. The tax commission, in its discretion and pursuant to such rules

and regulations as it may adopt, may permit the commissioner of internal

revenue of the United States, or the appropriate officers of any other

state which regulates or taxes alcoholic beverages, or the duly

authorized representatives of such commissioner or of any such officers,

to inspect returns or reports made pursuant to this article, or may

furnish to such commissioner or other officers, or duly authorized

representatives, a copy of any such return or report or an abstract of

the information therein contained, or any portion thereof, or may supply

such commissioner or any such officers or such representatives with

information relating to the business of a distributor, owner or other

person making returns or reports hereunder. The tax commission may

refuse to supply information pursuant to this subdivision to the

commissioner of internal revenue of the United States or to the officers

of any other state if the statutes of the United States, or of the state

represented by such officers, do not grant substantially similar

privileges to the tax commission of this state, but such refusal shall

not be mandatory. Information shall not be supplied to the commissioner

of internal revenue of the United States or the appropriate officers of

any other state which regulates or taxes alcoholic beverages, or the

duly authorized representatives of such commissioner or of any of such

officers, unless such commissioner, officer or other representatives

shall agree not to divulge or make known in any manner the information

so supplied, but such officers may transmit such information to their

employees or legal representatives when necessary, who in turn shall be

subject to the same restrictions as those hereby imposed upon such

commissioner, officer or other representatives.

3. (a) Any officer or employee of the state who willfully violates the

provisions of subdivision one or two of this section shall be dismissed

from office and be incapable of holding any public office in this state

for a period of five years thereafter.

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

of this chapter.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one of this section,

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

persons, distributors or owners liable for any tax imposed by this

article to make payment of any tax, penalty or interest to banks,

banking houses or trust companies designated by the tax commission and

to file returns and reports with such banks, banking houses or trust

companies as agents of the tax commission, in lieu of making any such

payment directly to the tax commission. However, the tax commission

shall designate only such banks, banking houses or trust companies as

are or shall be designated by the comptroller as depositories pursuant

to section four hundred thirty-five.

5. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one 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.

(b) 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).