Consumer complaint received 2022-01-18
Company: ORG GC GP Buyer, LLC
State: WY
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: Took or threatened to take negative or legal action
Sub-issue: Threatened or suggested your credit would be damaged

Complaint:
I am writing to you regarding the Utah State Tax Commission and the tax collection practices within the Commission. The Utah State Tax Commission is currently engaged with GC Services for collection of back and past due taxes involving individual accounts. 

Based on a letter that I received from GC Services on XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, I currently owe the Utah State Tax Commission, {$4200.00}. The letter from GC Services dated XX/XX/XXXX, alleges that GC Services has made repeated attempts to contact me by telephone and letters urging me to contact GC Services, regarding my Utah State Tax Commission delinquency. This letter from GC Services, is false and misrepresents the facts surrounding my account at the Utah State Tax Commission. I have been making monthly payments directly to the Utah State Tax Commission on my account. 

Because of what I have experienced with GC Services and the Utah State Tax Commission, on Friday, XX/XX/XXXX, I reached out to the Utah State Taxpayer Advocate requesting assistance to establish a repayment plan. On Friday, XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call from the taxpayer advocate however, as I quickly realized, the taxpayer advocate representing the Utah State Tax Commission is no other than GC Services! 

Obviously, I was shocked, but not at all surprised based upon what I have experienced with the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services. The Utah State Tax Commission has completely misrepresented the rights of taxpayers and falsely advertised what they claim is the Taxpayer Advocate within the State of Utah. There is a huge difference between a debt collector and advocate! 

Debt collection is the process of pursuing payments of debts owed by individuals or businesses. An organization that specializes in debt collection is known as a collection agency or debt collector. 

The role of an advocate is to offer independent support to those who feel they are not being heard and to ensure they are taken seriously and that their rights are respected. It is also to assist people to access and understand appropriate information and services. 

The Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services have repeatedly engaged in violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ( FDCPA ). When I spoke with the agent from GC Services on XX/XX/XXXX, at XXXX PM, the agent told me they were calling on behave of the Utah State Taxpayer Advocates regarding my request to set up a payment plan. I then explained my situation, that I had been seriously ill with XXXX and had not been working full time, that I was making payments to the Utah State Tax Commission based on what I could afford at the time. The Utah State Taxpayer Advocate from GC Services immediately wanted me to set up automatic payments going directly to GC Services that I could not afford. 

When I explained that I could not afford the payments they were requiring nor did I want to make payments directly to GC Services, the agent then informed me that I could continue to make payments as I had been but that I needed to contact GC Services once I was working full-time to arrange payments that fit into the required payment model. I was told that unless I set up automatic payments directly with GC Services, I could not be considered for payment arrangements. I agreed that once I was employed full-time that I would contact GC Services and update the payment arrangements. 

The last time I spoke with anyone at GC Services was on XX/XX/XXXX, at XXXX PM. Based on my phone records, I have not received any additional calls from GC Services since that date nor had I received any written communications in XXXX from GC Services. Please look at the language included on the letter enclosed that I received from GC Services today, Thursday, XX/XX/XXXX. As of today, XX/XX/XXXX, I requested verification from GC Services regarding all attempts to contact me both by telephone and written communication. 

Because I am unable to meet the payment requirements that GC Services and the Utah State Tax Commission have required, I have been denied the right to enter into a monthly payment agreement and as a result have been threatened with wage garnishment, had liens and warrants filed against me. All while making monthly payments that I could afford to the Utah State Tax Commission. I am essentially being punished for being poor and not being able to meet the payment requirements of the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services. 

I have chosen to make payments directly to the Utah Tax Commission and not GC Services and as a result, have been harassed, threatened, and punished with excessive legal fees and judgements. Adding additional liens, warrants, and wage garnishments to my account, only continues to add to the balance, all while I have been paying what I could afford now. The excessive amount of legal action taken against me during the pandemic amounts to cruel and usual punishment! 

Because of the trauma and repeated psychological abuse experienced at the hands of the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services, on XX/XX/XXXX, I filed Form 911, Request for Taxpayer Advocate Service Assistance with the IRS. Being under constant psychological threat and fear, at the hands of the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services, has taken a huge toll on my emotional, mental, and physical well-being. Having my wages garnished, potentially means that I would no longer be able to afford my apartment, holding down a job while homeless is next to impossible which serves to only prolong my ability to repay this debt. 

In XXXX, I filed for chapter XXXX bankruptcy, which I completed on my own. I had included the tax debt at the Utah State Tax Commission within the bankruptcy, however, the Utah State Tax Commission refused to accept that I had included the tax debt within the bankruptcy because apparently, I didnt file the correct paperwork they required. Based upon what I was told from the Utah State Tax Commission, I had to accept the lability for the tax debt even though I had filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy to get a fresh start and had included the tax debt at the Utah State Tax Commission within the bankruptcy. 

I was denied the opportunity of a fresh start because of the Utah State Tax Commission and due to the excessive liens, judgements and warrants issued, my credit is destroyed. In XXXX I requested an offer in compromise, suggesting that I pay just the total tax owed and requested that the penalties, interest, and late fees be waved so that I could have an opportunity for a fresh start by simply paying the total tax owed. This offer in compromise was rejected. In the State of Utah and the United States, you are punished for being poor. I completed the chapter 7 bankruptcy filling on my own, because I couldnt afford an attorney and as a result, the Utah State Tax Commission has ensured that my credit is destroyed and additionally added a huge amount of legal fees onto my account.

Based on the Utah State Tax Commission using their collection agency as a tax advocate, taxpayers in the State of Utah have zero rights. I believe that it is in the interest of justice and all taxpayers under the Utah State Tax Commission for the Tax Division and the Consumer Protection Branch at the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the abusive and predatory practices at the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services.

Having lived in other states, Ive experienced other States Tax Commissions, for example Colorado. The Colorado State Tax Commission website is topnotch, transparent, and effective, all the taxpayer information is assessable to the taxpayer. The complete taxpayer account ledger is available online, making it very easy for the taxpayer to verify any account related information in the State of Colorado. Address changes can be submitted online. Any issues can easy be resolved in a professional and timely manner.

The Utah State Tax Commission and their website is inept! Address changes must be made through the US Postal Service ; no individual taxpayer information can be accessed online. While the Utah State Tax Commission says that you are entitled to your individual taxpayer account information, you must request the information again through the US Postal Service. If you request an accounting ledger of your account, the Utah State Tax Commission makes you pay to verify the accounting on your own taxpayer account. There is zero transparency surrounding the accounting practices at the Utah State Tax Commission and no easy and effective way for the taxpayer to verify anything with the commission. The Utah State Tax Commission website is an inept mess stuck in 1999 with little effectiveness.

I am not denying the debt owed to the Utah State Tax Commission. There has been and continues to be egregious practices on behave of the Utah State Tax Commission and potentially illegal practices on behalf of the Utah State Tax Commission and GC Services. I have included the letters and communications that I have received from GC Services, all the statements they have made on behalf of the Utah State Tax Commission should be easily verifiable, if in fact truthful. 

Lastly, I have included a letter that I received from the Utah State Tax Commission, dated XX/XX/XXXX. This letter was sent to the wrong address, I have little confidence in the Utah State Tax Commission given the fact they cant even get an individuals address correct! Is it reasonable for me to have any confidence in anything the Utah State Tax Commission does or continues to do given what I have experienced and the complete lack of transparency at the Utah State Tax Commission? 

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation