Vermont Statutes Title 32 Sec. 5935
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 32 Sec. 5935
- Claimant agency: means any unit of State government, including agencies, departments, boards, commissions, authorities, or public corporations, including the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation and a collection agency under contract with the Court Administrator pursuant to 4 V. See
- Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Taxes appointed under section 3101 of this title or any officer or employee of the Department authorized by the Commissioner (directly or indirectly by one or more redelegations of authority) to perform the functions mentioned or described in this chapter. See
- Debtor: means any individual owing a debt to a claimant agency or owing any support debt that may be collected by the Department for Children and Families. See
- Department: means the Vermont Department of Taxes. See
- Nondebtor spouse: means any individual who is not a debtor, but has filed a joint income tax return or claim under chapter 154 of this title with a debtor. See
- Refund: means any individual's State income tax refund under chapter 151 of this title and any payment due a claimant under chapter 154 of this title. See
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States may apply to the District of Columbia and any territory and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. See
- Taxpayer: means a person obligated to file a return with or pay or remit any amount to this State under this chapter. See
- Tenancy by the entirety: A type of joint tenancy between husband and wife that is recognized in some States. Neither party can sever the joint tenancy relationship; when a spouse dies, the survivor acquires full title to the property.
§ 5935. Joint returns
(a) With respect to State income tax refunds under chapter 151 of this title and renter credit payments due a claimant under chapter 154 of this title, when the Department transfers funds payable on a joint return to a claimant agency and only one of the spouses filing the return is identified as a debtor of the claimant agency, the nondebtor spouse may, within 30 days after the date of mailing of the notice to the taxpayer described in subsection 5934(c) of this subchapter, petition the Department in writing for a return of that portion of the refund attributable to the income of the nondebtor spouse. The Commissioner shall thereafter conduct a hearing at which the nondebtor spouse shall bear the burden of establishing what portion of a refund transferred to a claimant agency, if any, is attributable to the nondebtor’s income.
(b) With respect to payments due a claimant under chapter 154 of this title based on property ownership, when the Department transfers funds payable on a claim filed with a joint return to a claimant agency and only one of the spouses filing the return is identified as a debtor of the claimant agency, the nondebtor spouse may, within 30 days of the date of mailing of the notice to the taxpayer described in subsection 5934(c) of this title, petition the Department in writing for a return of that portion of the claim equal to the ownership share that the nondebtor spouse holds in the property upon which the claim is based. If the property is held as tenancy by the entirety, the claim shall be divided equally. The Commissioner shall thereafter conduct a hearing at which the nondebtor spouse shall bear the burden of establishing his or her ownership interest in the property.
(c) The final determination of the Commissioner regarding the amount of a refund attributable to the income of a nondebtor spouse or the ownership interest of a nondebtor spouse may be appealed in the same manner as income tax appeals under subsection 5885(b) of this title.
(d) Upon receipt of a petition under this section, the Department shall notify each claimant agency to which funds payable on a joint return or claim have been transferred that the petition is pending. If it is established that any amount of a refund or claim transferred to a claimant agency is attributable to the income or ownership interest of a nondebtor spouse, that amount shall be refunded to the nondebtor spouse. (Added 1981, No. 228 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 4, 1982; amended 2003, No. 70 (Adj. Sess.), § 45, eff. March 1, 2004; 2021, No. 105 (Adj. Sess.), § 549, eff. July 1, 2022; 2023, No. 6, § 383, eff. July 1, 2023.)