The Tax Collector, or authorized designee, is authorized to examine any of the books, papers and records of any person or business entity who the Tax Collector reasonably believes has engaged in taxable activity within the borough, in order to verify the accuracy of any return made or, if no return has been made, to arrive at a reasonable assessment of the amount of tax, interest and penalty due.
(A) Issuance of subpoenas to compel attendance and production. The Tax Collector is authorized to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of persons deemed by the Tax Collector to be necessary to examine as witnesses, and to compel the production of books, records and papers relating to any person or business entity under examination.
(B) Minimum time periods for taxpayer response. Taxpayers shall have at least 30 calendar days from the mailing date to respond to an initial request for information from the borough. The Tax Collector shall notify any taxpayer from whom information is initially requested of the procedures to obtain an extension of time in which to respond, and shall grant reasonable extensions of time in which to respond for good cause shown. No action shall be taken against a taxpayer for the tax year in question until the expiration of the response period, including extensions.
(C) Inquiry as to prior year returns. Except as provided below, an initial inquiry regarding a taxpayer’s compliance with the tax provisions may include taxes required to be paid or tax returns required to be filed no more than three years prior to the mailing date of the notice of such inquiry. If, after the initial request, the Tax Collector determines that the taxpayer failed to file a tax return, underreported income, or failed to pay a tax for one or more of the tax periods covered by the initial request, subsequent requests for tax returns or supporting information may be made. Subsequent requests will be limited to two additional years (for a total of five years prior to the first date of initial inquiry), unless the taxpayer filed no return or filed a fraudulent return, in which case the borough may request information for another additional year (for a total of six years prior to the first date of initial inquiry). Note, however, that in the event the Tax Collector has sufficient information to indicate that a taxpayer has failed to file a required return or pay tax which was due more than three years prior to the date of the notice, an initial request is not limited to three years and may include as many as six years prior to the date of the initial inquiry.
(Ord. 2015-5, passed 4-28-2015)