2020 New York Laws
TAX - Tax
Article 29-C - Congestion Surcharge
1299-F - Secrecy of Returns and Reports.

§  1299-F.  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 tax due under this chapter  to  which  the
state,  the  commissioner  or  an agency that is authorized to permit or
regulate the provision of any relevant transportation 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 or the reports or
the 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 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.
Nothing   herein   shall   be   construed,   however,  to  prohibit  the
commissioner, in his or her discretion, from allowing the inspection  or
delivery  of  a  certified copy of any return or report filed under this
article, or from providing any information contained in any such  return
or  report,  by  or  to  a  duly  authorized  officer or employee of the
comptroller; nor to prohibit the inspection or delivery of  a  certified
copy  of any return or report filed under this article, or the provision
of any information contained therein, 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 in which such  returns
or  reports  or  the  facts  shown thereby are directly involved; nor to
prohibit the commissioner from providing or certifying to  the  division
of  budget  or  the  comptroller  the total number of returns or reports
filed  under  this  article  in  any  reporting  period  and  the  total
collections received therefrom; nor to prohibit the delivery to a person
liable  for  the surcharge imposed by this article, or a duly authorized
representative of such, a certified copy of any return or  report  filed
by such 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; nor 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 the surcharge imposed by this article.
  (b) 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  surcharge
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.
  (c) (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.
  (d) (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 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,  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,  and  any  social
security numbers, account numbers and residential address information.
  (2)  No returns shall be furnished pursuant to this subdivision unless
the chairperson of the requesting committee certifies  in  writing  that
such  returns  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 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).