(a) Any information gained as a result of returns, investigations, hearings, or verifications required or authorized by Sections 194.80 to 194.95 of this chapter is confidential, and no person shall disclose such information, except for official purposes, in accordance with a proper judicial order, or as provided in Section 4123.271 or 5703.21 of the ORC. The tax commissioner may furnish the Internal Revenue Service with copies of returns filed. This section does not prohibit the publication of statistics in a form which does not disclose information with respect to particular taxpayers.
(b) In May and November of each year, the tax commissioner shall provide Grove City with the following information for every taxpayer that filed tax returns with the commissioner under Sections 194.80 to 194.95 of this chapter and that had municipal taxable income apportionable to Grove City under this chapter for any prior year:
(1) The taxpayer’s name, address, and federal employer identification number;
(2) The taxpayer’s apportionment ratio for, and amount of municipal taxable income apportionable to Grove City pursuant to Section 194.82 of this chapter;
(3) The amount of any pre-2017 net operating loss carryforward utilized by the taxpayer;
(4) Whether the taxpayer requested that any overpayment be carried forward to a future taxable year;
(5) The amount of any credit claimed under Section 194.94 of this chapter.
(c) Not later than thirty days after each distribution made to Grove City under Section 194.83 of this chapter, the tax commissioner shall provide to Grove City a report stating the name and federal identification number of every taxpayer that made estimated payments that are attributable to Grove City and the amount of each such taxpayer’s estimated payment.
(d) Not later than the thirty-first day of January of each year, if Grove City has taxpayers that have made the election allowed under Section 194.80 of this chapter, the Tax Administrator shall provide to the tax commissioner, in a format prescribed by the commissioner, the name and mailing address of up to two persons to whom Grove City requests that the commissioner send the information described in subsections (b) and (c) of this section. The commissioner shall not provide such information to any person other than a person who is designated to receive the information under this section and who is employed by the Grove City or by a tax administrator, as defined in Section 718.01 of the ORC, that administers Grove City’s income tax, except as may otherwise be provided by law.
(e) (1) The tax commissioner may adopt rules that further govern the terms and conditions under which tax returns filed with the commissioner under this chapter, and any other information gained in the performance of the commissioner’s duties prescribed by this chapter related to taxpayers that have apportioned net profits to Grove City under Section 194.82 of this chapter, shall be available for inspection by properly authorized officers, employees, or agents of Grove City.
The City expects that the tax commissioner will, pursuant to this subsection and Section 718.84(E) of the ORC, provide tax returns and other information it receives in the performance of its administration of Grove City’s municipal net profits tax for taxpayers making the election under Section 194.80 of this chapter so that the Tax Administrator may review these returns and information, as well as the information received pursuant to subsections (b) and (c) of this section, and, at the Tax Administrator’s discretion, refer the taxpayer for audit by the tax commissioner under subsection (f) of this section.
(2) As used in this subsection, “properly authorized officer, employee, or agent” means an officer, employee, or agent of Grove City who is authorized by charter or ordinance of Grove City to view or possess information referred to in Section 194.16 of this chapter.
(f) (1) If, upon receiving the information described in subsection (b) of Section 194.91 of this chapter or subsections (b) or (c) of this section. Grove City discovers that it has additional information in its possession that could result in a change to a taxpayer’s tax liability, Grove City may refer the taxpayer to the tax commissioner for an audit. Such referral shall be made on a form prescribed by the commissioner and shall include any information that forms the basis for the referral.
(2) Upon receipt of a referral under subsection (f)(1) of this section, the commissioner shall review the referral and may conduct an audit of the taxpayer that is the subject of the referral based on the information in the referral and any other relevant information available to the commissioner.
(3) Nothing in subsection (f) of this section shall be construed as forming the sole basis upon which the commissioner may conduct an audit of a taxpayer.
(4) A. Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit Grove City from filing a writ of mandamus if duty as the administrator of the tax levied by Grove City.
B. In accordance with Section 1.47 of the ORC, Grove City intends for subsection (f)(4)A. to be effective, and thus intends for subsection (f)(4)A. to serve as acknowledgement that a de facto fiduciary duty exists.
C. The following actions shall be presumptive breaches of the tax commissioner’s fiduciary duty:
1. The approval of an alternative apportionment method under subsection 194.82(b)(1) of this chapter by the tax commissioner primarily for reasons related to economic development, job creation, or improvement of the business climate without the expressed written consent of the Tax Administrator.
2. The failure to perform an audit or pursue an audit issue primarily for reasons related to economic development, job creation, or improvement of the business climate without the expressed written consent of the Tax Administrator.
3. Any other actions that the courts have held to be presumptively invalid when performed by a fiduciary.
D. Non-presumptive breaches of the tax commissioner’s fiduciary duty are to be evaluated without application of the maxim expressio unius est exclusion alterius.
(5) If the tax commissioner declines to audit a taxpayer referred by the Tax Administrator under this section, or upon auditing the taxpayer does not adequately address and resolve the audit issues raised by the Tax Administrator as determined solely by the Tax Administrator, the City reserves its right to pursue any and all remedies, whether at law or in equity, to ensure that the correct liability as determined by the Tax Administrator has been calculated and paid by the taxpayer.
(Ord. C10-18. Passed 2-23-18.)