R861-1A-12. Policies and Procedures Regarding Public Disclosure Pursuant to Utah Code Ann. Sections 41-3-209, 59-1-210, 59-1-403, and 59-1-405

(1) Hearings.

(a) Except as provided under Subsection (1)(b), and pursuant to Section 59-1-405, hearings related to appeals filed with the commission are confidential tax matters and not subject to Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act.

(b) Hearings related to the enforcement of Title 41, Chapter 3, Motor Vehicle Business Regulation, are open to the public.

(2) Orders.

(a) Except as provided in Subsections (2)(b) through (e), written orders signed by the commission will be mailed to the named parties in accordance with commission procedures. Copies of these orders or information about them will not be provided to any person other than the named parties except under the following circumstances:

(i) the parties have affirmatively waived any claims to confidentiality; or

(ii) the orders may be effectively sanitized through the deletion of references to the parties, specific tax amounts, witnesses, geographic information, or any other information that might identify a particular person.

(b) Property tax orders signed by the commission that do not contain commercial information will be mailed to the named parties in accordance with commission procedures. Copies of these orders or information about them will not be provided to any person other than the named parties except under the following circumstances:

(i) the parties have affirmatively waived any claims to confidentiality;

(ii) the orders may be effectively sanitized through the deletion of reference to the parties, specific tax amounts, witnesses, geographic information, or any other information that might identify any private party to the appeal; or

(iii) the disclosure is required or allowed under state law.

(c)(i) Property tax orders signed by the commission that contain commercial information will be mailed to the appropriate persons in accordance with Section 59-1-404 and rule R861-1A-37, Provisions Relating to Disclosure of Commercial Information.

(ii) Copies of property tax orders described in Subsection (2)(c)(i), or information about them, will be made available to persons other than the persons described in Section 59-1-404 and rule R861-1A-37 under the following circumstances:

(A) the parties have affirmatively waived any claims to confidentiality;

(B) the orders may be effectively sanitized through the deletion of reference to the parties, specific tax amounts, commercial information, witnesses, geographic information, or any other information that might identify any private party to the appeal; or

(C) the disclosure is required or allowed under state law.

(d) Orders resulting from a hearing related to the enforcement of Title 41, Chapter 1a, Motor Vehicle Act, will be mailed to the named parties in accordance with commission procedures. Copies of these orders or information about them will not be provided to any person other than the named parties except under the following circumstances:

(i) the parties have affirmatively waived any claims to confidentiality;

(ii) the orders may be effectively sanitized through the deletion of reference to the parties, specific tax amounts, witnesses, geographic information, or any other information that might identify any private party to the appeal; or

(iii) the disclosure is required under state law.

(e) Orders resulting from a hearing related to the enforcement of Title 41, Chapter 3, Motor Vehicle Business Regulation, are public information and may be publicized.

(3) Commission Notes and Workpapers.

(a) All workpapers, notes, and other material prepared by the commissioners, as well as staff and employees of the commission, are protected, and access to the specific material is restricted to employees of the commission and its legal counsel only.

(b) Examples of this restricted material include audit workpapers and notes, ad valorem appraisal worksheets, and notes taken during hearings and deliberations. In the case of information prepared as part of an audit, the auditing division will, upon request, provide summary information of the findings to the taxpayer. These items will not be available to any person or party by discovery carried out pursuant to these rules or the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure.

(4) Reciprocal Agreements.

(a) The commission may enter into individual reciprocal agreements to share specific tax information with authorized representatives of the United States Internal Revenue Service or the revenue service of any other state.

(b) For all taxes other than individual income tax and corporate franchise tax, the commission may share information gathered from returns and other written statements with the federal government, other states, and political subdivisions within and without the state if the political subdivision, state, or federal government grant substantially similar privileges to this state.

(5) Statistical Information. The commission authorizes the preparation and publication of statistical information regarding the payment and collection of state taxes. The information will be made available after review and approval of the commission.

(6) Publication of Delinquent Taxpayer Information.

(a) For purposes of this Subsection (6), "delinquent taxpayer" does not include a person subject to a tax under:

(i) Title 59, Chapter 7, Corporate Franchise and Income Taxes;

(ii) Title 59, Chapter 10, Part 1, Determination and Reporting of Tax Liability and Information;

(iii) Title 59, Chapter 10, Part 2, Trusts and Estates; or

(iv) Title 59, Chapter 10, Part 14, Pass-Through Entities and Pass-Through Entity Taxpayers Act.

(b) The commission may publicize the following information relating to a delinquent taxpayer:

(i) name;

(ii) address;

(iii) the amount of money owed by tax type; and

(iv) any legal action taken by the commission, including charges filed and property seized.