Gloria J. Spurlock - Page 22

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          bears the burden of production and must come forward with                   
          sufficient evidence to show that the additions to tax and the               
          penalty are appropriate.  Higbee v. Commissioner, 116 T.C. 438,             
          446 (2001).  However, respondent does not bear the burden of                
          proof as to the additions to tax and the penalty, and once he               
          meets his initial burden of production, petitioner must come                
          forward with evidence sufficient to persuade us that those                  
          additions to tax and the penalty do not apply.  Id. at 447.                 
               Section 6651(a)(1) provides for an addition to tax in the              
          case of a failure to file a required return on the prescribed due           
          date.  Once the Commissioner meets his initial burden of                    
          production with respect to this addition to tax, the taxpayer               
          bears the “heavy burden” of proving that the failure to file the            
          required return did not result from willful neglect and that the            
          failure was due to reasonable cause.  United States v. Boyle, 469           
          U.S. 241, 245 (1985); Higbee v. Commissioner, supra at 447.                 
               Petitioner did not file Federal income tax returns for her             
          1995, 1996, and 1997 tax years, and respondent has presented                
          evidence that petitioner received taxable income in amounts                 
          sufficient to require her to file returns for those years.  Thus,           
          we find that respondent has met his burden of production as to              
          the section 6651(a)(1) additions to tax.  Petitioner presented no           
          evidence at trial, and she did not testify regarding her failure            
          to file returns.  She asserts only that she did not have taxable            






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