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Because the total unpaid tax exceeds $50,000, but the tax for any
single year in issue is less than $50,000, we ordered the parties
to file responses to the question of whether this case could be
decided as a small tax case pursuant to section 7463. Respondent
and petitioners both took the position that it was appropriate to
proceed pursuant to section 7463 because the unpaid tax for any
single year was less than $50,000.2 Nevertheless, because this
issue concerns the Court’s authority to proceed under section
7463 and is in the nature of a jurisdictional question,3 we will
2 Respondent’s response filed Jan. 16, 2007, states:
“Respondent’s National Office has approved the position taken in
this Statement.” Shortly after the trial, the Court became aware
of a motion that the Commissioner had filed in an unrelated case,
docket No. 17199-06S, where he took the position that a
collection case brought pursuant to sec. 6330(d) could not
proceed under the small tax case procedures of sec. 7463 because
the total unpaid tax for the years in issue exceeds $50,000 even
though the unpaid tax for each separate year was less than
$50,000. The Commissioner has recently withdrawn the motion in
that case.
3 We have previously referred to the dollar limits in sec.
7463 as “the jurisdictional maximum for a small tax case”.
Kallich v. Commissioner, 89 T.C. 676, 681 (1987); Page v.
Commissioner, 86 T.C. 1, 13 (1986). While there is no question
that we have jurisdiction to decide whether the proposed sec.
6330 collection action is appropriate, there is a question
whether we can proceed to decide this matter as a small tax case
under sec. 7463. Sec. 7463(c), Limitation of Jurisdiction,
prohibits decisions in excess of the prescribed amounts. Sec.
7463(d), Discontinuance of Proceedings, provides for
discontinuance of proceedings under sec. 7463 where the amount
placed in dispute “exceeds the applicable jurisdictional amount”.
Appellate court jurisdiction is also affected because a decision
in a case decided under the sec. 7463 procedures is final and may
not be reviewed by a Court of Appeals. Sec. 7463(b).
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Last modified: May 25, 2011