2023 New York Laws › TAX - Tax › Article 18 - Taxes on Alcoholic Beverages › 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).