N.Y. TAX Law § 437 — New York Code / Act TAX / Article 18 / Section 437
Returns to be secret
Status: in_force

§ 437. Returns to be secret. 1. Except in accordance with proper\njudicial order or as in this section or otherwise provided by law, it\nshall be unlawful for the tax commission, any tax commissioner, any\nofficer or employee of the department of taxation and finance, or any\nofficer or person who, pursuant to this section, is permitted to inspect\nany return or report or to whom a copy, an abstract or a portion of any\nreturn or report is furnished, or to whom any information contained in\nany return or report is furnished, or any person engaged or retained by\nsuch department on an independent contract basis, or any person who in\nany manner may acquire knowledge of the contents of a return or report\nfiled pursuant to this article to divulge or make known in any manner\nthe contents or any other information relating to the business of a\ndistributor, owner or other person contained in any return or report\nrequired under this article. The officers charged with the custody of\nsuch returns or reports shall not be required to produce any of them or\nevidence of anything contained in them in any action or proceeding in\nany court, except on behalf of the state, the state liquor authority,\nany county alcoholic beverage control board, the New York city alcoholic\nbeverage control board or the tax commission in an action or proceeding\nunder the provisions of this chapter or chapter three-b of the\nconsolidated laws, or on behalf of the state or the tax commission in\nany other action or proceeding involving the collection of a tax due\nunder this chapter to which the state or the tax commission is a party\nor a claimant or on behalf of any party to any action or proceeding\nunder the provisions of this article or chapter three-b of the\nconsolidated laws, when the returns or the reports or the facts shown\nthereby are directly involved in such action or proceeding, or in an\naction or proceeding relating to the regulation or taxation of alcoholic\nbeverages on behalf of officers to whom information shall have been\nsupplied as provided in subdivision two of this section, in any of which\nevents the court may require the production of, and may admit in\nevidence so much of said returns or reports or of the facts shown\nthereby as are pertinent to the action or proceeding and no more. The\ntax commission may, nevertheless, publish a copy or a summary of any\ndecision rendered after the formal hearing provided for in section four\nhundred thirty of this chapter. Nothing herein shall be construed to\nprohibit the tax commission, in its discretion, from allowing the\ninspection or delivery of a certified copy of any return or report filed\nunder this article or of any information contained in any such return or\nreport by or to a duly authorized officer or employee of the state\nliquor authority or of the New York city alcoholic beverage control\nboard or of any county alcoholic beverage control board; or by or to the\nattorney-general or other legal representatives of the state when an\naction shall have been recommended or commenced pursuant to this chapter\nor chapter three-b of the consolidated laws in which such returns or\nreports or the facts shown thereby are directly involved; or the\ninspection of the returns or reports required under this article by the\ncomptroller or duly designated officer or employee of the state\ndepartment of audit and control, for purposes of the audit of a refund\nof any tax paid by a distributor or other person under this article; nor\nto prohibit the delivery to a distributor, owner or other person, or a\nduly authorized representative of such distributor, owner or other\nperson of a certified copy of any return or report filed by such\ndistributor, owner or other person pursuant to this article, nor to\nprohibit the publication of statistics so classified as to prevent the\nidentification of particular returns or reports and the items thereof.\nReturns and reports shall be preserved for three years and thereafter\nuntil the tax commission orders them to be destroyed.\n  2. The tax commission, in its discretion and pursuant to such rules\nand regulations as it may adopt, may permit the commissioner of internal\nrevenue of the United States, or the appropriate officers of any other\nstate which regulates or taxes alcoholic beverages, or the duly\nauthorized representatives of such commissioner or of any such officers,\nto inspect returns or reports made pursuant to this article, or may\nfurnish to such commissioner or other officers, or duly authorized\nrepresentatives, a copy of any such return or report or an abstract of\nthe information therein contained, or any portion thereof, or may supply\nsuch commissioner or any such officers or such representatives with\ninformation relating to the business of a distributor, owner or other\nperson making returns or reports hereunder. The tax commission may\nrefuse to supply information pursuant to this subdivision to the\ncommissioner of internal revenue of the United States or to the officers\nof any other state if the statutes of the United States, or of the state\nrepresented by such officers, do not grant substantially similar\nprivileges to the tax commission of this state, but such refusal shall\nnot be mandatory. Information shall not be supplied to the commissioner\nof internal revenue of the United States or the appropriate officers of\nany other state which regulates or taxes alcoholic beverages, or the\nduly authorized representatives of such commissioner or of any of such\nofficers, unless such commissioner, officer or other representatives\nshall agree not to divulge or make known in any manner the information\nso supplied, but such officers may transmit such information to their\nemployees or legal representatives when necessary, who in turn shall be\nsubject to the same restrictions as those hereby imposed upon such\ncommissioner, officer or other representatives.\n  3. (a) Any officer or employee of the state who willfully violates the\nprovisions of subdivision one or two of this section shall be dismissed\nfrom office and be incapable of holding any public office in this state\nfor a period of five years thereafter.\n  (b) Cross-reference: For criminal penalties, see article thirty-seven\nof this chapter.\n  4. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one of this section,\nthe tax commission, in its discretion, may require or permit any or all\npersons, distributors or owners liable for any tax imposed by this\narticle to make payment of any tax, penalty or interest to banks,\nbanking houses or trust companies designated by the tax commission and\nto file returns and reports with such banks, banking houses or trust\ncompanies as agents of the tax commission, in lieu of making any such\npayment directly to the tax commission. However, the tax commission\nshall designate only such banks, banking houses or trust companies as\nare or shall be designated by the comptroller as depositories pursuant\nto section four hundred thirty-five.\n  5. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one of this\nsection, upon written request from the chairperson of the committee on\nways and means of the United States House of Representatives, the\nchairperson of the committee on finance of the United States Senate, or\nthe chairperson of the joint committee on taxation of the United States\nCongress, the commissioner shall furnish such committee with any current\nor prior year returns or reports specified in such request that were\nfiled under this article by the president of the United States,\nvice-president of the United States, member of the United States\nCongress representing New York state, or any person who served in or was\nemployed by the executive branch of the government of the United States\non the executive staff of the president, in the executive office of the\npresident, or in an acting or confirmed capacity in a position subject\nto confirmation by the United States senate; or, in New York state: a\nstatewide elected official, as defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision\none of section seventy-three-a of the public officers law; a state\nofficer or employee, as defined in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) of\nsubdivision one of such section seventy-three-a; a political party\nchairperson, as defined in paragraph (h) of subdivision one of such\nsection seventy-three-a; a local elected official, as defined in\nsubdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the general\nmunicipal law; a person appointed, pursuant to law, to serve due to\nvacancy or otherwise in the position of a local elected official, as\ndefined in subdivisions one and two of section eight hundred ten of the\ngeneral municipal law; a member of the state legislature; or a judge or\njustice of the unified court system, or filed by a partnership, firm,\nassociation, corporation, joint-stock company, trust or similar entity\ndirectly or indirectly controlled by any individual listed in this\nparagraph, whether by contract, through ownership or control of a\nmajority interest in such entity, or otherwise, or filed by a\npartnership, firm, association, corporation, joint-stock company, trust\nor similar entity of which any individual listed in this paragraph holds\nten percent or more of the voting securities of such entity; provided\nhowever that, prior to furnishing any return or report, the commissioner\nshall redact any copy of a federal return (or portion thereof) attached\nto, or any information on a federal return that is reflected on, such\nreturn or report, and any social security numbers, account numbers and\nresidential address information.\n  (b) No returns or reports shall be furnished pursuant to this\nsubdivision unless the chairperson of the requesting committee certifies\nin writing that such returns or reports have been requested related to,\nand in furtherance of, a legitimate task of the Congress, that the\nrequesting committee has made a written request to the United States\nsecretary of the treasury for related federal returns or reports or\nreturn or report information, pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section 6103(f), and\nthat if such requested returns or reports are inspected by and/or\nsubmitted to another committee, to the United States House of\nRepresentatives, or to the United States Senate, then such inspection\nand/or submission shall occur in a manner consistent with federal law as\ninformed by the requirements and procedures established in 26 U.S.C.\nSection 6103(f).\n