Q: Does California release the names of corporations audited by the state tax collector and the time period audited? Do you have any information on the positions taken by other states?
A: As far as I am aware, there is no exemption to the Public Records Act that specifically addresses the disclosability of records that reveal the identity of corporations that have been audited and the time period covered by the audit. However, for a definitive opinion that would consider all aspects of the state Taxation and Revenue Code.
Please note that as a general matter, the Public Records Act only requires an agency to provide access to or copies of existing records. It does not generally require an agency to either answer questions or to create records that do not already exist. Therefore, you would want to request “All records that indicate the identity of corporations audited and the time period of each audit” rather than just asking “Which corporations were audited and when?” That being said, if the records are in an electronic format such as a database, the Public Records act does require that the requested information be compiled and extracted from the electronic resource. Govt. Code section 6253.9. The agency may however charge the requester for the costs associated with such compilation and extraction.
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