Tax News

CCH (cch.taxgroup.com) reports:

  The government was enjoined from proceeding with a collection action against an individual during the pendency of the individual's refund proceeding and its request for a stay with respect to the refund proceedings was denied. The individual filed a refund action to recover trust fund recovery penalty taxes he had paid; subsequently, the government brought suit in a different district court to collect the unpaid portion of the trust fund recovery penalty from the individual and another responsible person. Code Sec. 6331(i)(4)(A) prohibits the government from filing a collection action against a refund claimant for any unpaid divisible tax while a refund suit is pending with respect to that individual and that tax. The government could not rely on the exception to Code Sec. 6331(i)(4)(A), which states that the statute does not apply to any "proceeding relating to" the refund proceeding. A collection action will always have some connection, relation and reference to a refund proceeding involving the same taxes and taxpayer; however, taking into consideration the language of the statute, its legislative history and subsequent decisions, the exception was not meant to apply in a collection action against the same taxpayer to recover the same tax at issue in the refund proceeding.

J.D. Nickell, Sr., DC Tex., 2009-2 USTC ¶50,491

Other References:

 
Code Sec. 6331

  CCH Reference - 2009FED ¶38,187.024

  CCH Reference - 2009FED ¶38,187.37

 
Code Sec. 6672

  CCH Reference - 2009FED ¶39,780.74

  Tax Research Consultant

  CCH Reference - TRC IRS: 51,054.25