On: July 29, 2022

 

California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Experienced Tax Expert Pasadena

 

The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (sometimes hereinafter referred to as “CDTFA”) is one of the major tax authorities in California.

As with any tax authority, taxpayers will sometimes have disagreements with CDTFA.

These disagreements often arise from tax audits initiated by CDTFA.

What can you do if you are having a tax disagreement with CDTFA?

If you are in Pasadena and having a tax disagreement with CDTFA, you need representation from a CDTFA experienced tax expert in Pasadena.

 

California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Tax Audits – Cannabis Excise Tax Example

CDTFA is responsible for over 30 different taxes and fees.  As each of these taxes and fees has its own specific tax base, CDTFA tax audits will differ based on the tax or fee being audited.  In particular, the records that a CDTFA auditor will need to review and the information that a CDFTA auditor will need to determine will vary based on the tax or fee being audited.

For example, for purposes of the cannabis excise tax, the CDTFA auditor will review the following records:

• Copies of returns filed with CDTFA and the worksheets and supporting schedules used to prepare the electronic Cannabis Tax Returns;
• Worksheets used to calculate the average market price of the cannabis or cannabis products;
• Books of account, including the taxpayer’s income statements, balance sheets, general ledger, and other summary records of the taxpayer’s business operations;
• Original documents that support the entries to the taxpayer’s books of account, including sales invoices, purchase invoices, purchase orders, bills of lading, cannabis manifests, credit memos for returned product, bank statements, cancelled checks, cash distribution records, credit card statements, and any other documents resulting from the taxpayer’s business operations;
• All electronic Point of Sale records that include transactional data;
• Records that support the cultivation tax returned to the cultivator, or cannabis excise tax returned to the retailer;
• Records that support any credits taken for excess cannabis excise tax collected, remitted to CDTFA, and subsequently returned to the retailer;
• Records that support any transactions where the cultivation tax or the cannabis excise tax was not collected or remitted;
• Records that support any volume of destroyed cannabis or cannabis products;
• Inventory records of all cannabis or cannabis products purchased and distributed;
• Copies of contracts or documents that support any business agreements the taxpayer may have with other cannabis licensees;
• Copies of contracts or documents that support the taxpayer’s other commercial cannabis business activities that the taxpayer may have, under the same license or under multiple cannabis licenses; and
• Copies of the taxpayer’s commercial cannabis license(s) and the application(s) the taxpayer submitted to the applicable state licensing agency.

In addition, for purposes of the cannabis excise tax, the CDTFA auditor generally will need to determine the following information:

• Did the taxpayer properly calculate the average market price of the cannabis and cannabis products?;
• Did the taxpayer report the average market price of all cannabis and cannabis products that the taxpayer supplied to a retailer during the reporting period?;
• Did the taxpayer properly report any excess cannabis excise tax collected from a retailer?;
• Did the taxpayer properly report any credits for excess cannabis excise tax collected, remitted to CDTFA, and subsequently returned to the retailer?;
• Did the taxpayer report all cannabis that entered the commercial market during the reporting period?;
• Did the taxpayer report all cannabis that entered the commercial market in the correct category?; and
• Did the taxpayer report in ounces properly?

If you are audited for the alcoholic beverage tax, the cigarette and tobacco products tax, the motor vehicle fuel tax, or any other of the many CDTFA taxes or fees, you will be required to produce different records and provide different information than in a cannabis excise tax audit.

 

California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Tax Audits – Appeals

If you do not agree with the conclusion reached by the CDTFA auditor in the CDTFA tax audit, you have certain appeal rights.

A CDTFA tax audit that finds that you owe additional CDTFA liability will result in you receiving a billing notice, usually called a Notice of Determination.

An appeal of a Notice of Determination is called a petition for redetermination (“petition”).  You generally have 30 days from the date the Notice of Determination was mailed to you to file a petition.

Your petition should be in writing and include:

• Your tax or fee program account number;
• The amount assessed by the Notice of Determination that you wish to dispute; and
• The specific grounds or reasons you believe you do not owe the tax or fee on the Notice of Determination.

In your petition, you may include a request for an appeals conference, which, if necessary, would be held by CDTFA’s Appeals Bureau.

If you miss the general 30-day filing deadline for the petition, you also could proceed by paying the tax or fee on the Notice of Determination and then filing a claim for refund.

California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Tax Audits – Hire a California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Experienced Tax Expert

If you want to achieve a favorable outcome whenever you have a disagreement with CDTFA, you need to hire a knowledgeable and experienced CDTFA tax expert.  A knowledgeable and experienced CDTFA tax expert can provide you with critical assistance on each of the following issues described above:

• Advising you on what records to deliver, and what records not to deliver, to CDTFA in response to a CDTFA tax audit;
• Advising you on how to most effectively disclose information (including how to most effectively answer questions) in response to a CDTFA tax audit;
• If you do not agree with the findings of the CDTFA tax audit, helping you decide whether to file an appeal of the Notice of Determination; and
• If you decide to file an appeal of the Notice of Determination, helping you draft the petition (or claim for refund, if applicable).

A knowledgeable and experienced CDTFA tax expert will be able to handle each of these issues in a superior manner than if you try to complete these issues on your own.

Leading Tax Group – The Best California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Experienced Tax Expert in Pasadena

If you are in Pasadena and have a disagreement with CDTFA, you should retain representation by Leading Tax Group.

Leading Tax Group has wide knowledge of the various CDTFA taxes and fees.  This knowledge can be invaluable in any CDTFA tax audit or appeal.

In addition, Leading Tax Group has years of experience in successfully helping other taxpayers attain favorable results when they have had disagreements with CDTFA.  Leading Tax Group will use this extensive expensive to understand how to also reach a successful result in your dispute with CDTFA.

With this wide knowledge and extensive experience, Leading Tax Group is the best CDTFA experienced tax expert (their experienced team consists of a former IRS tax attorney, an experienced payroll tax and sales tax attorney, a retired IRS auditor (of 40+ years), and their own in-house accounting team!) in Pasadena to help you successfully resolve your disagreement with CDTFA.

Leading Tax Group has a conveniently accessible office in Pasadena at 225 S Lake Avenue, 3rd Floor.

If you have a disagreement with CDTFA, you need the aggressive CDTFA experienced tax experts (their experienced team consists of a former IRS tax attorney, an experienced payroll tax and sales tax attorney, a retired IRS auditor (of 40+ years), and their own in-house accounting team!) from Leading Tax Group.

For the best CDTFA experienced tax experts (their experienced team consists of a former IRS tax attorney, an experienced payroll tax and sales tax attorney, a retired IRS auditor (of 40+ years), and their own in-house accounting team!) in Pasadena, contact Leading Tax Group now at (800) 900-4250 and schedule your free consultation today!