(a) Subject to appropriation, the Department is authorized to initiate a certified audit pilot project to further enhance tax compliance reviews performed by qualified practitioners and to encourage taxpayers to hire qualified practitioners at their own expense to review and report on their sales tax and use tax compliance. The nature of the certified audit work performed by qualified practitioners shall be agreed-upon procedures in which the Department is the specified user of the resulting report.
     (b) As an incentive for taxpayers to incur the costs of a certified audit, the Department shall abate penalties and interest due on any tax liabilities revealed by a certified audit, except that this authority to abate penalties or interest shall not apply to any liability for taxes that were collected by the participating taxpayer but not remitted to the Department nor shall the Department have the authority to abate fraud penalties.

Terms Used In Illinois Compiled Statutes 20 ILCS 2510/2510-10

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Department: means the Illinois Department of Revenue. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 20 ILCS 2510/2510-5
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
  • Participating taxpayer: means any person subject to the revenue laws administered by the Department who enters into an engagement with a qualified practitioner for tax compliance review and who is approved by the Department under the certified audit project. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 20 ILCS 2510/2510-5

     (c) The certified audit pilot project shall apply only to occupation and use taxes administered and collected by the Department.
     (d) The certified audit pilot project shall not extend beyond July 1, 2004.