(a) Any information gained as a result of returns, investigations, hearing or verifications required or authorized by Sections 891.26 to 891.42 is confidential and no person shall disclose such information, except for official purposes in accordance with a proper judicial order, or as provided in R.C. §§ 4123.271 or 5703.21. 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 a particular taxpayer.
(b) In May and November of each year, the Tax Commissioner shall provide each Tax
(1) The taxpayer's name, address and Federal employer identification number;
(2) The taxpayer's apportioned ratio for, and amount of municipal taxable income apportioned to, the municipal corporation pursuant to Sections 891.28;
(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;
(c) Not later than the thirty-first day of January of each year, every municipal corporation having taxpayers that have made the election allowed under Section 891.26 shall provide to the Tax Commissioner, in a format prescribed by the Tax Commissioner, the name and mailing address of up to two persons to whom the municipal corporation requests that the Tax Commissioner send the information described in divisions (b) and (c) of this section. The Tax 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 municipal corporation or by a tax administration as defined in Section 891.03 that administers the municipal corporation's income tax, except as may otherwise be provided by law
(d) (1) The Tax Commissioner may adopt rules that further govern the terms and conditions under which tax returns filed with the Tax Commissioner under this chapter, and other information gained in the performance of the Tax Commissioner's duties prescribed by this chapter, shall be available for inspection by properly authorized officers, employees, or agents of the municipal corporation under 891.28.
(2) As used in this section, "properly authorized office, employee, or agent" means an officer, employee or agent of a municipal corporation who is authorized by section or chapter of the municipal corporation to view or possess information referred to in Section 891.14.
(e) (1) If after receiving the information described in Section 891.41(b), or divisions (b) or (c) of this section, a municipal corporation discovers that it has additional information in its possession that could result in a change to a taxpayer's tax liability; the municipal corporation may refer the taxpayer to the Tax Commissioner for an audit. Such referral shall be made on a form prescribed by the Tax Commissioner and shall include any information that forms the basis for the referral.
(2) After receipt of a referral under division (e)(1) of this section, the Tax 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 Tax Commissioner.
(3) Nothing in division (e) of this section shall be construed as forming the sole basis upon which the Tax Commissioner may conduct an audit of a taxpayer.
(4) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a municipal corporation from filing a writ of mandamus in the municipal corporation believes that the Tax Commissioner has violated the Tax Commissioner's fiduciary duty as the administrator of the tax levied by the municipal corporation.
(Ord. 19-17. Passed 9-3-19.)