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6015(f) petitions--to have had a deficiency asserted against
them. But Congress amended section 6015(e) after we released
Billings I to insert “or in the case of an individual who
requests equitable relief under section 6015(f)” into section
6015(e). The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 (TRHCA),
Pub. L. 109-432, div. C, sec. 408(a), 120 Stat. 2922, 3061. The
opening line of section 6015(e) now reads:
SEC. 6015(e). Petition for Review by Tax Court.
(1) In general.--In the case of an
individual against whom a deficiency has been
asserted and who elects to have subsection
(b) or (c) apply, or in the case of an
individual who requests equitable relief
under subsection (f)--
The amendment is effective for liabilities remaining unpaid
on December 20, 2006. TRHCA sec. 408(c), 120 Stat. 3062. No
suspense here: The parties’ stipulation that David’s 1999 tax
liability remains unpaid assures us that we do have jurisdiction
to review the Commissioner’s decision to deny him relief.
We are mindful that our review of that decision is for abuse
of discretion. See Butler v. Commissioner, 114 T.C. 276, 287-92
(2000). This standard does not ask us to decide whether in our
own opinion we should grant relief, but whether the Commissioner,
in refusing to do so, exercised his discretion “arbitrarily,
capriciously, or without sound basis in fact.” Jonson v.
Commissioner, 118 T.C. 106, 125 (2002), affd. 353 F.3d 1181 (10th
Cir. 2003). When deciding whether to grant 6015(f) relief, the
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Last modified: November 10, 2007