NASHVILLE – Former Tennessee Revenue Commissioner Reagan Farr said today he is “confident tax investigations were handled appropriately” during his tenure, despite a TBI investigation into those investigations.
He said he worries, though, that public discussion of “confidential matters” could have a “chilling effect” on future enforcement.
“Tax investigations are complex undertakings and [the Revenue Department’s] investigative unit is staffed by dedicated, veteran enforcement personnel,” Farr said in an e-mail today. “Ultimately, the head of the department must use his or her knowledge and experiences to make the decision as to whether evidence in a case is strong enough to warrant a criminal or civil prosecution or a negotiated settlement.”
Farr was responding to a report in the Times Free Press today in which the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation confirmed it was acting on a request by District Attorney Torry Johnson of the 20th Judicial District (Nashville) “to investigate circumstances relating to state sales tax investigations and subsequent negotiations and settlements on the part of the Department of Revenue on businesses in the state.”
For complete details, see tomorrow’s Times Free Press.