Bill Text: MS SB2879 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Restrictions, prohibitions and civil remedies against officers of the IRS for actions against Mississippi citizens; provide.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2023-01-31 - Died In Committee [SB2879 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2023-SB2879-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Judiciary, Division A
By: Senator(s) McDaniel
Senate Bill 2879
AN ACT TO PROVIDE CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS, PROHIBITIONS AND CIVIL REMEDIES AGAINST AGENTS, EMPLOYEES AND CONTRACTORS OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE RELATIVE TO CITIZENS OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI AND TO PROVIDE THAT SAID PROVISIONS ARE INTERPOSED IN PLACE OF ANY FEDERAL LAW OR REGULATION AUTHORIZING SUCH ACTION AGAINST CITIZENS OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI; TO DIRECT THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION TO DEVELOP QUARTERLY REPORTS, A TRANSPARENCY WEBSITE AND AN ANNUAL REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE LISTING THE NUMBER OF INQUIRIES, REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION OR RECORDS, SUMMONS, SUBPOENAS ISSUED BY THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE CONCERNING MISSISSIPPI RESIDENTS; TO ESTABLISH IN INTERNAL REVENUE CIVIL LIABILITY TRUST FUND ADMINISTERED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION TO PROVIDE REIMBURSEMENT FOR RETALIATORY ACTION AGAINST MISSISSIPPI BUSINESS BY THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE IN TAX COURT; TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN ACTION BY DEBT COLLECTORS OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE AND PROVIDE FOR LICENSURE DISCIPLINARY ACTION; TO ESTABLISH A CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE AGENTS FOR DISCRIMINATORY ACTION AGAINST MISSISSIPPI TAXPAYERS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. (1) All federal acts, laws, orders, rules and regulations, whether past, present or future, which authorize agents, employees or contractors of the Internal Revenue Service to take action against citizens of the State of Mississippi which is prohibited under this act shall be invalid in this state, shall not be recognized by this state, shall be specifically rejected by this state and have no effect in this state.
(2) It shall be the duty of the courts and law enforcement agencies of this state to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens of the State of Mississippi and to refuse to enforce the applicable orders of agents, employees or contractors of the Internal Revenue Service in violation of this act.
SECTION 2. (1) Each state financial institution, subsidiary or service corporation shall submit a quarterly report to the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration listing the number of inquiries, requests, summons, subpoenas or other requests for information or records received from the Internal Revenue Service concerning its Mississippi-domiciled account holder(s).
(2) The Department of Finance and Administration shall develop a transparency website accessible to the public and submit an annual report thereon combining the information from the quarterly reports by January 30 annually to the Governor and the Legislature.
SECTION 3. (1) The Internal Revenue Civil Liability Trust Fund is hereby created in the State Treasury to be administered by the Department of Finance and Administration.
(2) Funds shall be credited to the trust fund from legislative appropriations and interest earnings.
(3) The trust fund shall be maintained and utilized solely for the purpose of providing reimbursements for reasonable attorney's fees and costs incurred by a small business domiciled in this state as a result of retaliatory proceedings initiated by the Internal Revenue Service in United States Tax Court.
(4) Any balance in the trust fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the trust fund and shall be available for carrying out the purpose of the trust fund.
(5) As used in this section, the term:
(a) "Department" means the Department of Finance and Administration.
(b) "Domiciled in this state" means authorized to do business in this state and located in this state.
(c) "IRS" means the Internal Revenue Service.
(d) "Retaliatory" means a proceeding initiated, at least in part, in retaliation for the taxpayer's political affiliation, ideology or beliefs, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(e) "Small business" means a business, regardless of corporate structure, domiciled in this state which employees twenty-five (25) or fewer people and generated average annual gross revenues of One Million Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($1,500,000.00) or less per year for the preceding two (2) years. For purposes of this part, the identity of a small business is not affected by name changes or changes in personnel.
(f) "Tax court" means the United States Tax Court, which hears and resolves disputes between taxpayers and the Internal Revenue Service.
(6) Any small business against which the IRS has initiated proceedings in tax court may submit a completed application to the department seeking reimbursement of reasonable attorney's fees incurred necessarily incurred in defending itself in that proceeding provided that:
(a) The small business prevailed in the proceedings before the tax court;
(b) Counsel representing the small business certifies, in writing, that there is a good-faith basis to believe that proceedings initiated by the IRS were retaliatory;
(c) The application is accompanied by the attorney's retainer agreement and fee or billing statements for the entire period of representation in the tax court proceedings;
(d) Such application is submitted within ninety (90) days of receipt of a final order or other pleading concluding the proceedings in tax court; and
(e) The small business was not previously awarded attorney's fees related to the proceedings in tax court.
(7) The department shall establish the amount to be awarded and shall certify the amount of the award and the name of the claimant to the State Fiscal Officer, who shall pay the award from the fund.
(8) The department may adopt rules to govern the claims process, implement the provisions of this section, and carry out the duties of the department under this section.
SECTION 4. No agent, employee or contractor of the federal Internal Revenue Service may:
(a) Simulate in any manner a law enforcement officer or a representative of any governmental agency.
(b) Use or threaten force or violence.
(c) Tell a debtor who disputes a consumer debt that she or he or any person employing her or him will disclose to another, orally or in writing, directly or indirectly, information affecting the debtor's reputation for credit worthiness without also informing the debtor that the existence of the dispute will also be disclosed as required by paragraph (f) of this section.
(d) Communicate or threaten to communicate with a debtor's employer before obtaining final judgment against the debtor, unless the debtor gives her or his permission in writing to contact her or his employer or acknowledges in writing the existence of the debt after the debt has been placed for collection. However, this does not prohibit a person from telling the debtor that her or his employer will be contacted if a final judgment is obtained.
(e) Disclose to a person other than the debtor or her or his family information affecting the debtor's reputation, whether or not for credit worthiness, with knowledge or reason to know that the other person does not have a legitimate business need for the information or that the information is false.
(f) Disclose information concerning the existence of a debt known to be reasonably disputed by the debtor without disclosing that fact. If a disclosure is made before such dispute has been asserted and written notice is received from the debtor that any part of the debt is disputed, and if such dispute is reasonable, the person who made the original disclosure must reveal upon the request of the debtor within thirty (30) days the details of the dispute to each person to whom disclosure of the debt without notice of the dispute was made within the preceding ninety (90) days.
(g) Willfully communicate with the debtor or any member of her or his family with such frequency as can reasonably be expected to harass the debtor or her or his family, or willfully engage in other conduct which can reasonably be expected to abuse or harass the debtor or any member of her or his family.
(h) Use profane, obscene, vulgar or willfully abusive language in communicating with the debtor or any member of her or his family.
(i) Claim, attempt or threaten to enforce a debt when such person knows that the debt is not legitimate, or assert the existence of some other legal right when such person knows that the right does not exist.
(j) Use a communication that simulates in any manner legal or judicial process or that gives the appearance of being authorized, issued or approved by a government, governmental agency, or attorney at law, when it is not.
(k) Communicate with a debtor under the guise of an attorney by using the stationery of an attorney or forms or instruments that only attorneys are authorized to prepare.
(l) Orally communicate with a debtor in a manner that gives the false impression or appearance that such person is or is associated with an attorney.
(m) Advertise or threaten to advertise for sale any debt as a means to enforce payment except under court order or when acting as an assignee for the benefit of a creditor.
(n) Publish or post, threaten to publish or post, or cause to be published or posted before the general public individual names or any list of names of debtors, commonly known as a deadbeat list, for the purpose of enforcing or attempting to enforce collection of consumer debts.
(o) Refuse to provide adequate identification of herself or himself or her or his employer or other entity whom she or he represents if requested to do so by a debtor from whom she or he is collecting or attempting to collect a consumer debt.
(p) Mail any communication to a debtor in an envelope or postcard with words typed, written or printed on the outside of the envelope or postcard calculated to embarrass the debtor. An example of this would be an envelope addressed to "Deadbeat, Jane Doe" or "Deadbeat, John Doe."
(q) Communicate with the debtor between the hours of 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. in the debtor's time zone without the prior consent of the debtor.
(i) The person may presume that the time a telephone call is received conforms to the local time zone assigned to the area code of the number called, unless the person reasonably believes that the debtor's telephone is located in a different time zone.
(ii) If, such as with toll-free numbers, an area code is not assigned to a specific geographic area, the person may presume that the time a telephone call is received conforms to the local time zone of the debtor's last known place of residence, unless the person reasonably believes that the debtor's telephone is located in a different time zone.
(r) Communicate with a debtor if the person knows that the debtor is represented by an attorney with respect to such debt and has knowledge of, or can readily ascertain, such attorney's name and address, unless the debtor's attorney fails to respond within thirty (30) days to a communication from the person, unless the debtor's attorney consents to a direct communication with the debtor, or unless the debtor initiates the communication.
(s) Cause a debtor to be charged for communications by concealing the true purpose of the communication, including collect telephone calls and telegram fees.
(t) Discriminate against, or target, any debtor on the basis of his or her political affiliation, ideology, viewpoint or conduct.
SECTION 5. (1) If, in connection with any collection of federal tax concerning a taxpayer, any officer or employee of, or contractor working for, the Internal Revenue Service recklessly or intentionally, or by reason of negligence, disregards any of the following provisions, such taxpayer may bring a civil suit in a court of competent jurisdiction for damages against the officer, employee or contractor:
(a) Any civil right established under Title VI or VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; or
(b) U.S. Code Title 26 or Department of Treasury regulations.
(2) In any action brought under subsection (1) of this section, upon a finding of liability on the part of the defendant, the defendant may be liable for:
(a) Actual damages sustained by the taxpayer, which, but for the actions of the defendant, would not have been sustained; and
(b) Attorney's fees and costs.
(3) If, in connection with any collection of federal tax concerning a taxpayer, any officer or employee of, or contractor working for, the Internal Revenue Service recklessly or intentionally, or by reason of negligence, disregards any provisions of the First, Fourth or Fifth Amendments of the Constitution of the United States, such taxpayer may bring a civil suit in a court of competent jurisdiction for damages against that officer, employee or contractor.
(4) In any action brought under subsection (3) of this section, upon a finding of liability on the part of the defendant, the defendant may be liable for:
(a) Actual damages sustained by the taxpayer, which, but for the actions of the defendant, would not have been sustained;
(b) Punitive damages, if the taxpayer can demonstrate, by clear and convincing evidence, that the defendant is guilty of intentional misconduct or gross negligence; and
(c) Attorney's fees and costs.
(5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action under subsection (1) of this section may be brought within two (2) years after the date the right of action accrues.
SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.
