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For more than 1 year after the December 2000 issuance of the
determination and the filing of the petition, petitioner did
nothing about seeking a private letter ruling. Moreover,
petitioner has alleged that he submitted his request for a ruling
about 8 days prior to the time of the scheduled trial of this
case (March 4, 2002).
OPINION
The question we consider is whether, under the circumstances
of this case, respondent abused his discretion by not allowing
petitioner additional time to seek a private letter ruling. The
obverse of that question is whether the amount of time respondent
afforded petitioner to seek collection alternatives was
reasonable.
Section 6330 provides that, upon request and in the
circumstances described therein, a taxpayer has a right to a
“fair hearing”. Sec. 6330(b). A “fair hearing” consists of the
following elements: (1) An impartial officer will conduct the
hearing; (2) the conducting officer will receive verification
from the Secretary that the requirements of applicable law and
administrative procedure have been met; (3) certain issues may be
heard such as spousal defenses and offers-in-compromise; and (4)
a challenge to the underlying liability may only be raised if the
taxpayer did not receive a statutory notice of deficiency or
receive an opportunity to dispute such liability. Sec. 6330(c).
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Last modified: May 25, 2011