NWACC tax appeal denied by IRS (Updated)

NorthWest Arkansas Community College was hoping to avoid more penalties for the late filing of quarterly tax payments but their recent appeal was denied by the Internal Revenue Service, according to school officials.

Steven Hinds, executive director of public relations and marketing at NWACC, made the letter public today, (Aug. 16) saying the denial will be discussed at the next board of trustee meeting on Sept. 10.

The letter stated the IRS had thoroughly reviewed the college's request for penalty waiver but the reasons given for the late filing were not beyond the taxpayer's control.

"We understand that your failure to make a timely deposit was unintentional. However, removal of a penalty is based on circumstances that were beyond the taxpayer's control. The action you describe, an inadvertent error, was not beyond your control, and we cannot use it as reason to remove the penalty," the letter states.

The penalty incurred with interest charges through July 20 is $5,128.42, according to the letter.

The penalty stemmed from late filing fee incurred for the quarter ending March 31. This recent gaffe in filing comes on the heels of five other incidents of late payments dating back to 2009. Between 2009 and October 2011, the college was fined nearly $70,000 for late payments.

Three late tax payments to the IRS in 2011 resulted in a $26,760 fine, which the college paid in June of last year. The college paid another $2,375 penalty to the state for late withholding wage taxes due October 2010.

The community college has said it is working to set up controls to prevent future penalties related to late filings or tax deposits.