§ 512 — Penalties and interest

§ 512. Penalties and interest. 1. (a) Any person failing to file a\nreturn or to pay any tax within the time required by or pursuant to this\narticle (determined with regard to any extension of time for filing or\npaying) shall be subject to a penalty of ten per centum of the amount of\ntax determined to be due as provided in this article plus one per centum\nof such amount for each month or fraction thereof during which such\nfailure continues after the expiration of the first month after such\nreturn was required to be filed or such tax became due, not exceeding\nthirty per centum in the aggregate. Provided, however, that any person\nwho fails to file any return required by this article within sixty days\nof the date prescribed for filing of such return (determined with regard\nto any extension of time for filing) shall be subject to a penalty which\nshall not be less than the lesser of one hundred dollars or one hundred\nper centum of the amount required to be shown as tax on such return. For\nthe purpose of the preceding sentence, the amount of tax required to be\nshown on the return shall be reduced by the amount of any part of the\ntax which is paid on or before the date prescribed for payment of the\ntax and by the amount of any credit against the tax which may be claimed\nupon the return.\n (b) If any amount of tax is not paid on or before the last date\nprescribed in this article for payment, interest on such amount at the\nunderpayment rate set by the commissioner of taxation and finance\npursuant to subdivision twenty-sixth of section one hundred seventy-one\nof this chapter shall be paid for the period from such last date to the\ndate paid, whether or not any extension of time for payment was granted.\nInterest under this paragraph shall not be paid if the amount thereof is\nless than one dollar.\n (c) If the tax commission determines that such failure or delay was\ndue to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect, it shall remit\nall or part of such penalty. The tax commission shall promulgate rules\nand regulations as to what constitutes reasonable cause.\n (d) If the failure to pay any tax within the time required by or\npursuant to this article is due to fraud, in lieu of the penalties and\ninterest provided for in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision,\nthere shall be added to the tax (i) a penalty of two times the amount of\ntax due, plus (ii) interest on such unpaid tax at the underpayment rate\nset by the commissioner of taxation and finance pursuant to subdivision\ntwenty-sixth of section one hundred seventy-one of this chapter for the\nperiod beginning on the last day prescribed by this article for the\npayment of such tax (determined without regard to any extension of time\nfor paying) and ending on the day on which such tax is paid.\n (e) In addition to any other penalty imposed by this chapter, any\nperson who fails to obtain a certificate of registration or decal as\nrequired under this article shall, after due notice and an opportunity\nfor a hearing, for a first violation be liable for a civil fine not less\nthan five hundred dollars but not to exceed two thousand dollars and for\na second or subsequent violation within three years following a prior\nfinding of violation be liable for a civil fine not less than one\nthousand dollars but not to exceed three thousand five hundred dollars.\n (f) The penalties and interest imposed by this subdivision shall be\nassessed, collected and paid in the same manner as the taxes imposed by\nthis article. Interest under this subdivision shall be compounded daily.\n 2. For purposes of this chapter the failure to do any act required by\nor under the provisions of this article shall be deemed an act committed\nin part at the office of the department of taxation and finance in\nAlbany. For purposes of this chapter, the certificate of the tax\ncommission to the effect that a tax has not been paid, that a return has\nnot been filed, or that information has not been supplied, as required\nby or under the provisions of this article, or that a claim for refund\nhas been filed, shall be prima facie evidence that such tax has not been\npaid, that such return has not been filed, that such information has not\nbeen supplied, or that such claim has been filed.\n 3. Violations of this article may be prosecuted by the attorney\ngeneral in the name of the people of the state, in which case the\nattorney general shall exercise all the powers and perform all the\nduties which the district attorney would otherwise be authorized to\nexercise or to perform therein.\n 4. Cross-reference: For criminal penalties and other offenses, see\narticle thirty-seven of this chapter.\n