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Section 6320 provides that a taxpayer shall be notified in
writing by the Secretary of the filing of a notice of Federal tax
lien and provided with an opportunity for an administrative
hearing. If timely requested, the Office of Appeals conducts an
administrative hearing under section 6320 in accordance with the
procedural requirements of section 6330.3 Sec. 6320(c). At the
administrative hearing, a taxpayer is entitled to raise any
relevant issue relating to the unpaid tax, including a spousal
defense or collection alternatives such as an offer-in-compromise
or an installment agreement. Sec. 6330(c)(2); sec. 301.6330-
1(e)(1), Proced. & Admin. Regs. A taxpayer also may challenge
the existence or amount of the underlying tax liability,
3 Sec. 6330(b)(3) ensures a measure of impartiality by
requiring that, unless the taxpayer waives the requirement, the
sec. 6330 hearing be conducted by an AO who has had no prior
involvement with the unpaid tax at issue in the hearing. Murphy
v. Commissioner, 125 T.C. 301, 324-325 (2005), affd. 469 F.3d 27
(1st Cir. 2006). Respondent filed the notice of Federal tax lien
on Mar. 17, 2005, and assigned the administrative appeal of the
OIC to an AO on Mar. 18, 2005. Respondent sent petitioner a
Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing and Your Right to a Hearing
Under IRC 6320 dated Mar. 24, 2005. Respondent initially
assigned petitioner’s request for a sec. 6320 hearing, submitted
Apr. 28, 2005, to a different AO. On Sept. 15, 2005, the OIC AO
consulted with petitioner, took responsibility for both the OIC
appeal and the sec. 6320 hearing, and scheduled a face-to-face
hearing for Oct. 5, 2005. Sec. 6330(c)(2)(A)(III) requires the
AO to consider collection alternatives raised by the taxpayer,
which, in this case, include the reconsideration of the rejected
OIC. Petitioner has not claimed that the AO’s assignment to both
the OIC appeal and the sec. 6320 hearing violated sec.
6330(b)(3). In any event, we conclude that it did not, because
the OIC appeal and the sec. 6320 hearing were conducted
simultaneously by an AO with no prior involvement with the unpaid
taxes at issue.
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