Washington Appeals Board Affirms Excise Tax Evasion Penalty Against Used Car Dealership

The Washington Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) Oct. 28 denied Taxpayer’s petition for review of an initial excise tax decision. During an audit, the Department of Revenue (DOR) determined that Taxpayer, a used car dealership, failed to report and remit the excise tax for 1,211 vehicle sales transactions. The DOR assessed an evasion penalty. The DOR affirmed the assessment during an internal review. Taxpayer appealed, contending it didn’t have either knowledge of the tax liability or an intent to evade the tax. The BTA noted: 1) Taxpayer’s failure to remit taxes on 28 percent of its retail vehicle sales to ...