Smith v. Internal Revenue Service (In Re Smith)

165 B.R. 398, 1993 Bankr. LEXIS 1794, 73 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 646, 1993 WL 616703
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedNovember 24, 1993
DocketBankruptcy No. 1-91-02135. Adv. No. 1-92-0292
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 165 B.R. 398 (Smith v. Internal Revenue Service (In Re Smith)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Smith v. Internal Revenue Service (In Re Smith), 165 B.R. 398, 1993 Bankr. LEXIS 1794, 73 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 646, 1993 WL 616703 (Pa. 1993).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

ROBERT J. WOODSIDE, Chief Judge.

Procedural history

Debtor initially filed a petition for relief under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code on August 28, 1989. Debtor elected to withdraw this petition, and, on June 14, 1991, I issued an Order dismissing the case. On September 3, 1991, Debtor filed a second petition for relief, this time under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code. The ease was administered as a no asset ease, and Debtor received a discharge on April 7, 1992.

On August 11, 1992, Debtor filed the instant complaint, seeking a determination that certain debt owed to the IRS is dischargea-ble. I conducted a trial on October 20, 1992, *399 and the parties subsequently submitted multiple letter briefs.

Factual findings

1. For the 1985 tax year, Debtor filed his federal tax return in March or April, 1986. On or about December 1, 1988, Debtor entered into an agreement whereby he allowed this three year period to be extended until September 12, 1990, and subsequently entered into a waiver granting the IRS until September 9, 1992, to make an assessment. The IRS made an assessment with respect to the 1985 return on August 19, 1991.

2. For the 1986 tax year, Debtor filed his federal tax return on April 15, 1987. Debtor subsequently signed waiver forms allowing the IRS an extension to make assessments against him until September 9, 1992. The IRS assessed a deficiency against Debtor relating to his 1986 taxes on August 19, 1991.

3. Debtor filed his 1987 federal tax return on April 15, 1988. On or about September 4, 1991, Debtor signed a waiver extending the assessment period until April 2, 1993.

4. Debtor filed his 1988 tax return on or about April 15, 1989. On or about September 4, 1991, Debtor signed a waiver to extend the date for making assessments until April 2, 1994.

5. Deficiencies with respect to Debtor’s 1985 through 1988 tax debt total approximately $7,000.00, which debt was scheduled by Debtor in connection with his Chapter 7 petition.

Discussion

Pursuant to Section 523(a)(1)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code, debts to taxing authorities including the IRS are not dischargeable if they are of a kind and for the period specified, inter alia, in Section 507(a)(7) of the Bankruptcy Code. Section 507(a)(7) covers, inter alia, claims for federal income tax:

(i) for a taxable year ending on or before the date of the filing of the petition for •which a return, if required, is last due, including extensions, after three years before the date of the filing of the petition;
(ii) assessed within 240 days, plus any time plus 30 days during which an offer of compromise with respect to such tax that was made within 240 days after such assessment was pending, before the date of the filing of the petition; or
(iii)other than a tax of a kind specified in section 523(a)(1)(B) or 523(a)(1)(C) of this title, not assessed before, but assessable, under applicable law or by agreement, after, the commencement of the case.

Before discussing whether IRS’s claims relating to the tax years at issue are of a kind specified in Section 507(a)(7), I must resolve various factual and legal issues raised by the parties. First, on February 25, 1993, the IRS filed a letter brief that included an affidavit and documentary evidence. Debtor objected to the consideration of such evidence, because it was not presented at trial. Because IRS has offered no authority or reason to support the late submission, Debtor’s objection will be sustained. Compare In re Boch, 154 B.R. 647, 653 (Bankr.M.D.Pa.1993); In re Cook, 146 B.R. 934, 939-40 (Bankr.E.D.Pa.1992) (noting the impropriety of attempts to submit evidence into the record by attaching documents to post-trial submissions).

Second, Debtor raises an issue as to whether IRS’s introduction of evidence of Forms 4340 constitutes presumptive evidence that Debtor signed valid waivers 'extending the period during which IRS could make assessments against Debtor. Generally, the courts have found that the introduction into evidence of Forms 4340 constitutes presumptive evidence that valid assessments have been made and that notice of such assessments has been provided to the debtor. See United States v. McCallum, 970 F.2d 66, 71 (5th Cir.1992); Hughes v. United States, 953 F.2d 531, 535 (9th Cir.1992). In In re Garm, 114 B.R. 414 (Bankr.M.D.Pa.1990), Judge Gibbons, relying upon the nature of the Forms 4340 as government records, found that Forms 4340 also constitute presumptive evidence that the debtor has made a valid waiver of his right to contest a deficiency. Id. at 417. I agree with Judge Gibbons and extend the logic to apply to waivers allowing additional time for the IRS to make an assessment. Notably, Debtor does not dis *400 agree with Judge Gibbons’ determination, but rather seeks to distinguish the instant ease by asserting that Debtor has overcome the presumption that valid waivers were effectuated. See Debtor’s letter brief dated Nov. 15, 1992, at 2.

This brings me to the third issue as to whether Debtor has overcome the presumption that valid waivers were effectuated. At trial, Debtor testified that he could not identify which if any of several signatures on various documents presented to him were his, and he did not recall whether or not he had signed waivers documents with respect to his tax liability. Indeed, Debtor stated that he might have signed such documents with respect to the tax years in question. The IRS presented actual waiver forms for the 1984 and 1985 tax year bearing a signature purporting to be Debtor’s. Debtor’s testimony was equivocal and is insufficient to overcome the presumption created by the Forms 4340, which presumption is supported by the IRS’s additional proffer of a signed waiver form for one of the tax years in question. Compare Garm, 114 B.R. at 417 (finding debtor’s testimony that he never signed a waiver of his right to contest a deficiency insufficient to constitute countervailing proof of the presumption of correctness afforded government documents). Therefore, I find valid and effective waivers to have been effectuated as identified on the IRS’s Form 4340.

Debtor also makes a legal argument that the limitations period for making an assessment continued to run through the pendency of Debtor’s dismissed Chapter 13 case, arguing that suspension periods in superseded cases should not be effective to suspend the limitation period for assessment. Under Section 6501(a), 26 U.S.C.,

The running of the period of limitations ... on the making of assessments ..., in respect of any deficiency, ..., shall be suspended for the period during which the Secretary is prohibited from making the assessment ..., and for 60 days thereafter.

Pursuant to Section 6503(h), 26 U.S.C.,

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Bluebook (online)
165 B.R. 398, 1993 Bankr. LEXIS 1794, 73 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 646, 1993 WL 616703, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/smith-v-internal-revenue-service-in-re-smith-pamb-1993.