NY Tax L § 1296 (2021)
2021 New York Laws TAX - Tax Article 29-B - State Assessment Fee on Transportation Network Company Prearranged Trips 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).