71.77 (7) (c) When an election is made under s. 71.745 (9), with respect to assessments of a tax or an assessment to recover all or part of any tax credit under this chapter in any calendar year or corresponding fiscal year, if notice of assessment is given to pass-through members within one year from the date of the election.
262,9
Section
9. 71.775 (1) (intro.) and (a) of the statutes are consolidated, renumbered 71.775 (1) and amended to read:
71.775 (1) Definitions. In this section: (a) “Nonresident" “nonresident” includes an individual who is not domiciled in this state; a partnership, limited liability company, or corporation whose commercial domicile is outside the state; and an estate or a trust that is a nonresident under s. 71.14 (1) to (3m).
262,10
Section
10. 71.775 (1) (b) of the statutes is repealed.
262,11
Section
11. 71.78 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
71.78 (1) Divulging information. Except as provided in subs. (4), (4m) and, (10),
and (11), no person may divulge or circulate or offer to obtain, divulge, or circulate any information derived from an income, franchise, withholding, fiduciary, partnership, or limited liability company tax return or tax credit claim, including information which may be furnished by the department as provided in this section. This subsection does not prohibit publication by any newspaper of information lawfully derived from such returns or claims for purposes of argument or prohibit any public speaker from referring to such information in any address. This subsection does not prohibit the department from publishing statistics classified so as not to disclose the identity of particular returns, or claims or reports and the items thereof. This subsection does not prohibit employees or agents of the department of revenue from offering or submitting any return, including joint returns of a spouse or former spouse, separate returns of a spouse, individual returns of a spouse or former spouse, and combined individual income tax returns, or from offering or submitting any claim, schedule, exhibit, writing, or audit report or a copy of, and any information derived from, any of those documents as evidence into the record of any contested matter involving the department in proceedings or litigation on state tax matters if, in the department's judgment, that evidence has reasonable probative value.
262,12
Section
12. 71.78 (11) of the statutes is created to read:
71.78 (11) Pass-through entity audits. If the department audits a pass-through entity for income or franchise taxes of its pass-through members, including when an election is made under s. 71.21 (6) (a) or 71.365 (4m) (a) to pay tax at the entity level, the department may disclose the following:
(a) To a pass-through member that the pass-through entity is under audit or was audited, if the disclosure is necessary to explain any amounts assessed or refunded to the pass-through member or to obtain information necessary to determine the proper amount of adjustment to make at the pass-through entity level.
(b) To a pass-through entity, the identities of one or more pass-through members who have failed to report pass-through items originating with the entity on their Wisconsin returns, if the disclosure is necessary to explain any amounts assessed or refunded to the pass-through member or to obtain information about a pass-through member's return in order to determine the proper amount of adjustment to make at the pass-through entity level.
262,13
Section
13. 71.80 (26) of the statutes is created to read:
71.80 (26) Pass-through entity representative. (a) Each pass-through entity shall designate, in the manner prescribed by the department, a pass-through member or other person with substantial presence in the United States as the representative of the pass-through entity. In the case in which such designation is not in effect, the pass-through entity shall appoint a representative within 60 days following a written request by the department. If the pass-through entity fails to appoint a representative following a written request by the department, the department may designate a representative and notify the pass-through entity, or the beneficiaries in the case of a closed estate or trust, in writing of the designation. The pass-through entity may at any time provide a written statement to the department designating a new representative and the department shall accept the designation if the statement is signed by an authorized agent of the pass-through entity. The representative designated by a pass-through entity under this paragraph may be different than the pass-through entity's federal representative or authorized agent.
(b) The representative designated under par. (a) shall have the power and duty to do all of the following:
1. Act as the sole authority on behalf of the pass-through entity and its pass-through members with respect to a determination under s. 71.745.
2. Provide the department sufficient information to identify each pass-through member and the capital, profits, and loss interest of each pass-through member.
3. Enter into extension agreements on behalf of the pass-through entity under s. 71.77 (5).
4. Receive notices of pass-through entity adjustments under this chapter.
5. Notify all pass-through members of their share of corrections and adjustments made to pass-through items within 60 days after a determination under s. 71.745 becomes final or after receipt of notice of approval under s. 71.76 (2) (b).
6. File appeals of notices of pass-through entity adjustments under this chapter.
7. Enter into settlement agreements and bind pass-through members to adjustments relating to pass-through items.
(c) The representative designated under par. (a) may delegate the powers and duties under par. (b) to an authorized agent of the pass-through entity.
262,14
Section
14. 71.83 (1) (a) 12. of the statutes is created to read:
71.83 (1) (a) 12. `Incomplete or incorrect pass-through entity return' If any pass-through entity, as defined in s. 71.738 (3d), required to file a return under this chapter files an incomplete or incorrect return, the department, upon a showing by the department under s. 73.16 (4), may assess the pass-through entity an amount equal to 25 percent of the amount of the tax assessed under s. 71.745. The amount shall be assessed, levied, and collected in the same manner as additional normal income or franchise taxes.
262,15
Section
15. 71.88 of the statutes is amended to read:
71.88 Time for filing an appeal.
(1) Appeal to the department of revenue. (a) Contested assessments and claims for refund. Except for refunds set off under s. 71.93 in respect to which appeal is to the agency to which the debt is owed, except for refunds set off under s. 71.935 in respect to which an appeal is held under procedures that the department of revenue establishes and except for refunds set off under s. 49.855 in respect to which a hearing is held before the circuit court, and except as provided in s. 71.745 (6), any person feeling aggrieved by a notice of additional assessment, refund, or notice of denial of refund may, within 60 days after receipt of the notice, petition the department of revenue for redetermination. A petition or an appeal by one spouse is a petition or an appeal by both spouses. The department shall make a redetermination on the petition within 6 months after it is filed.
(b) Contested adjustments to credits. Any Except as provided in s. 71.745 (6), any person feeling aggrieved by the determination made by the department to adjust a credit claimed under s. 71.07, 71.28 or 71.47 or subch. VIII or IX may, within 60 days after receipt, petition the department for redetermination. The department shall make a redetermination on the petition within 6 months after it is filed and notify the claimant under s. 71.74 (11). If no timely petition for redetermination is filed with the department, its determination shall be final and conclusive.
(2) Appeal to the Wisconsin tax appeals commission. (a) Appeal of the department's redetermination of assessments and claims for refund. A person feeling aggrieved by the department's redetermination, including a pass-through entity that has been issued a redetermination under s. 71.745 (6) (b), may appeal to the tax appeals commission by filing a petition with the clerk of the commission as provided by law and the rules of practice promulgated by the commission. If a petition is not filed with the commission within the time provided in s. 73.01 or, except as provided in s. 71.75 (5), if no petition for redetermination is made within the time provided the assessment, refund, or denial of refund shall be final and conclusive.
(b) Appeal of department's redetermination of credits. Any person aggrieved by the department of revenue's redetermination, including a pass-through entity that has been issued a redetermination under s. 71.745 (6) (b), of a credit under s. 71.07 (3m), (6), or (9e), 71.28 (1) or (2m) or 71.47 (1) or (2m) or subch. VIII or IX, except when the denial is based upon late filing of claim for credit or is based upon a redetermination under s. 71.55 (8) of rent constituting property taxes accrued as at arm's length, may appeal the redetermination to the tax appeals commission by filing a petition with the commission within 60 days after the redetermination, as provided under s. 73.01 (5) with respect to income or franchise tax cases, and review of the commission's decision may be had under s. 73.015. For appeals brought under this paragraph, the filing fee required under s. 73.01 (5) (a) does not apply.
262,16
Section
16. 73.16 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:
73.16 (4) Negligence determinations. The department shall not impose a penalty on a taxpayer under ss. 71.09 (11) (d), 71.83 (1) (a) 1. to 4. and 12. and (3) (a), 76.05 (2), 76.14, 76.28 (6) (b), 76.39 (3), 76.645 (2), 77.60 (2) (intro.), (3), and (4), 78.68 (3) and (4), and 139.25 (3) and (4), unless the department shows that the taxpayer's action or inaction was due to the taxpayer's willful neglect and not to reasonable cause.