Coliseum Pizzeria, Inc. v. Director, Division of Taxation

24 N.J. Tax 369
CourtNew Jersey Tax Court
DecidedSeptember 22, 2008
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 24 N.J. Tax 369 (Coliseum Pizzeria, Inc. v. Director, Division of Taxation) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Jersey Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Coliseum Pizzeria, Inc. v. Director, Division of Taxation, 24 N.J. Tax 369 (N.J. Super. Ct. 2008).

Opinion

PIZZUTO, J.T.C.

Defendant Director of the Division of Taxation, (the “Division”) has moved for summary judgment sustaining the Division’s assessment of $151,050.34 against plaintiff taxpayer for unpaid Sales Tax, Corporation Business Tax (“CBT”), Litter Tax and Gross Income Tax withholding. In auditing taxpayer’s transactions, the Division determined that adequate records were not available to demonstrate taxpayer’s actual receipts. The Division therefore undertook a reconstruction of taxpayer’s operations utilizing available records to determine its purchases and a markon (sometimes called a “markup”) analysis to determine taxable sales. See Yilmaz, Inc. v. Director, Division of Taxation, 22 N.J.Tax 204 (Tax 2005), aff'd, 390 N.J.Super. 435, 915 A.2d 1069 (App.Div. 2007), certif. denied, 192 N.J. 69, 926 A.2d 854 (2007).

The Division’s moving papers include a detañed certification of the auditor who conducted the examination of taxpayer’s business. It explains the documents requested, those provided, the data extracted and the reconstruction process employed. Taxpayer’s opposition papers consist essentially of brief eonelusory statements of taxpayer’s principal that the business did not realize the revenue the Division imputes to it. No documentation is provided nor is any particular issue taken with the methodology utilized in the auditor’s reconstruction. The question presented is whether the Division is entitled to summary judgment or whether taxpayer’s opposition demonstrates the existence of a genuine dispute concerning a material issue of fact so as to require trial under the [371]*371standard articulated in Brill v. Guardian Life Ins. Co. of America, 142 N.J. 520, 666 A.2d 146 (1995).

The auditor’s certification narrates the following facts, considered to be established without dispute. Taxpayer, Coliseum Pizzeria, Inc., is a “C” Corporation, which operates a pizzeria, located in Teaneck, New Jersey. Taxpayer sells pizza, hot and cold sandwiches, and entrees such as steak, chicken, eggplant and shrimp. In addition to food, taxpayer also sells beverages in sizes from twelve ounces to twenty-two ounces.

The Division audited taxpayer for the period from. January 1, 1998 through December 31, 2001. On April 4, 2002, the auditor sent a letter to taxpayer’s accountant requesting the following records: payroll records, W2s, New Jersey Withholdings (NJW3s) for 1999, 2000 and 2001; cancelled checks for 1999; purchase invoices for 1999; three months of current purchase invoices; fixed asset invoices for 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001 with depreciation schedule; register tapes and consumer checks for 1999; cash disbursement journal; and general ledger.

Taxpayer claimed that it maintained the following records: a general ledger; a cash disbursement journal; a sales journal; a cash receipts journal; a depreciation schedule; vendor bills; bank statements; cancelled checks; a check register and payroll records. Despite the Division’s follow-up meetings and numerous requests, taxpayer was unable to produce any cash register tapes, a cash disbursement journal, a sales journal and/or purchase invoices for the audited period.

Taxpayer’s inability to produce the financial documents requested by the Division resulted, in part, from a lack of record-keeping. Taxpayer used a computerized cash register, but register tapes were not saved. Also, the cash register drawer was emptied approximately three times a day by the president of the corporation, who also made the bank deposits. Cash disbursements used for employee wages and certain purchases were not recorded. Orders for supplies were generally placed by telephone, and as a result no written purchase orders were completed. Also, coupons accepted by taxpayer were discarded at the close of business each [372]*372day. Taxpayer calculated its receipts by subtracting sales tax from the total bank deposits. Also, sales tax due to the state was determined by multiplying the total bank deposits by a percentage factor.

Upon review of the documents actually produced by taxpayer,1 the auditor determined that taxpayer’s submission was inadequate to conduct the audit properly and a markon analysis was necessary. To apply the markon analysis, the auditor performed the following steps:

1. Purchases, as stated in actual invoices provided for a one-month period in 2002 ($10,497), were multiplied by 12 to calculate an annual figure ($125,964). This amount was compared with the annual purchases reported in taxpayer’s CBT return for 2002 ($126,452). Purchases for 2002, the year following the audit period, were accepted as those reported.
2. This 2002 reported figure was compared with purchases as reported in the 2001 CBT return ($19,992). On the assumption that purchases for 2001 and 2002 were approximately equal, the auditor utilized the 2002 number for 2001, the final year of the audit period. She calculated the ratio of actual 2002 purchases to reported 2001 purchases (6.3251).
3. This ratio was then applied to reported purchases for three earlier years of the audit period. The resulting adjusted purchase figures were further adjusted to reflect approximately 15 percent annual growth between 1998 and 2001. Final adjusted purchases were as follows: 1998: $83,408; 1999: $95,369; 2000; 107,234; 2001:$126,452.
4. By comparison of sales with purchases for the 2002 month for which actual purchases were determinable, the auditor calculated a markon ratio of approximately 3.1613 of sales to purchases. This markon ratio was applied to the adjusted purchase figures for each year calculated in the previous step to produce adjusted gross sales as follows: 1998: $263,680; 1999: $301,494; 2000: $339,002; 2001: $399,758; Totaling: $1,303,934.
5. The total was reduced for Sales Tax purposes by $25,600 representing exempt sales to schools.
6. Six percent Sales Tax due on the resulting taxable sales figure ($1,278,334) was calculated to be $76,700.04. After an allowance for tax actually remitted, an assessment was made for the remainder in the amount of $59,343.66.
7. On the basis of the adjusted gross sales figures calculated in the audit, the auditor determined the balance due for CBT to be $47,186 and for Litter Tax to be $262.78. Gross Income Tax withholding due was calculated at $1,872.00.
[373]*3738. Tho total assessment before applicable penalties and interest was $108,664.44. With penalties and interest to the assessment date, the total assessment was $151,050.34.

Taxpayer’s submissions in opposition to the Division’s motion consist of two certifications of the corporation’s president, each shorter than one page. Essentially, the certifications maintain that the revenues from the business were less than the auditor’s reconstruction. The first certification, accompanied by a letter the president had written to counsel for the Division, characterizes the auditor’s calculations as incorrect and generally disputes the treatment of spoilage, sales volumes and the fluctuating costs of cheese.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
24 N.J. Tax 369, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/coliseum-pizzeria-inc-v-director-division-of-taxation-njtaxct-2008.