- 17 - Issue 5. Michael Friscia’s Section 6651 Addition to Tax Respondent determined an addition to tax under section 6651(a)(1) for Michael Friscia’s 1995 taxable year, asserting that Michael Friscia failed to file a timely return. In order to avoid this addition to tax, Michael Friscia must prove that the failure was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect. See sec. 6651(a)(1); Rule 142(a); United States v. Boyle, 469 U.S. 241, 245 (1985); Harris v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1998-332. Michael Friscia received an extension of time to file his 1995 tax return, which extended the due date for filing his 1995 tax return to October 15, 1996. He did not file his 1995 tax return until December 9, 1996. There is no evidence in the record with respect to why Michael Friscia's 1995 tax return was filed late or whether reasonable cause existed. Michael Friscia argues on brief that the loss of his business records in the 1996 flood caused the delay in filing his 1995 return. Implicit in Michael Friscia’s argument is that he needed the extra time to reconstruct the lost records. However, the Friscias made no attempt to reconstruct any of the lost records at that time. Thus, the same records that were available to Michael Friscia on October 15, 1996, when his return was due, were available to him on December 9, 1996, when he filed his return. Moreover, we have held that the loss of records in an involuntaryPage: Previous 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011