The Oklahoma Supreme Court reversed a decision by the Oklahoma Tax Commission ordering it to make a more than $321,000 refund to defense contractor Raytheon because of a mistaken tax overpayment.
The decision stems from Raytheon’s 2012 tax payments of $626,965 due on March 15, 2013. Raytheon discovered an accounting error in an overpayment of more than twice the amount of Oklahoma tax actually owed and in 2016 requested a return of $321,444.
The Tax Commission in that same year denied the claim for a refund claiming the amended return was not filed within the allowed time of three years from the date the tax was paid. It led to a tax protest filed by Raytheon which an administrative law judge for the Commission denied.
Raytheon filed an appeal and this week the Supreme Court reversed the decision. The court found there was no dispute that Raytheon overpaid its tax and the question revolved around the 3-year period.
The justices found Raytheon filed its 2012 return on September 27, 2013 and a timely claim for a refund was submitted on September 27, 2016. The Court found that under state laws, the Oklahoma Tax Commission erred when it determined Raytheon’s refund claim time barred.
Click here for opinion
