The topic of tax procedure can be about as exciting as waiting in line at the grocery store. Yet, every once in a while an issue is raised that is so significant that we question our knowledge of the most fundamental topics. The case of Verizon Business Purchasing, LLC v. Florida Department of Revenue, Case No.: 2011-CA-1498, raises just such an issue. The crux of the dispute in Verizon relates to the legal significance of Form DR-831 – "Notice of Proposed Assessment". Specifically, the issue in dispute in Verizon is whether a "Notice of Proposed Assessment" is an "assessment" for statute of limitations purposes.

As a general rule, the Florida Department of Revenue (the "Department") must issue an assessment to a taxpayer within three years from the later of the date a tax return is due or filed. But, under Florida tax law, what actually is an "assessment"? Astonishingly, Florida law does not expressly define the meaning of the term "assessment" for statute of limitations purposes. Despite this lack of guidance, it has long been assumed by both taxpayers and the Department that a Notice of Proposed Assessment was an "assessment". In Verizon, the taxpayer argues that a Notice of Proposed Assessment is just what it says it is – a proposal. After all, Verizon argues, the form language on the face of the Notice of Proposed Assessment provides that it does not become a "final assessment" until sixty days from the issue date and, since a taxpayer is free to appeal the Notice of Proposed Assessment within the sixty days, the deficiency reflected on the Notice of Proposed Assessment lacks the finality of an "assessment".