15-37-109. False or erroneous statements -- investigation. (1) Should the director of the department of revenue have reason to believe that any statement and return is false or erroneous in any particular, he may require the person or, if made by a corporation, association, or company, the officers thereof and the employees of any such person, corporation, association, or company to appear before the director of revenue or his agent and testify concerning the same and any statement contained therein and may examine all books, records, papers, and documents of such person pertaining to such business, upon giving 5 days' written notice to such persons or officers or employees thereof having custody of such books, records, papers, and documents. Any person failing, refusing, or neglecting to so appear or refusing to be sworn or to testify or refusing to answer any material question propounded by the director or any of his employees or refusing to permit the director or his employees to examine such books, records, papers, or documents or any thereof pertaining to such business shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 6 months or by both such fine and imprisonment. If the director, after hearing such evidence and after such examination of the books, papers, documents, and records of such person, shall find and determine that such statement and return are erroneous or false in any material matter, the director shall change and correct the same so as to show the true gross value of product and shall reassess the amount of the license tax due from such person and may add thereto a penalty of not exceeding 50% and shall thereupon immediately mail to such person a written notice of the corrections and changes made in such statement and return and the amount of the license tax and penalty due and payable.
     (2) The department shall collect such license tax with penalty added, and if the same has become delinquent, it shall also collect interest thereon from the date of delinquency until paid, at the rate of 1% per month or fraction thereof. In order to verify such statement and return, the department may require any person engaged in the business of smelting, milling, reduction, or treatment in any manner of ores extracted or produced from any mine or mining property in the state of Montana to appear before the director of revenue and testify concerning the gross mineral content of any such ore or at the request of said director to furnish sworn statements showing the gross yield of such ores, mineral products, or deposits in constituents of commercial value, that is to say, the number of ounces of gold or silver, pounds of copper, lead, or zinc, or other commercially valuable constituents of said ores or mineral products or deposits, measured by standard units of measurement, during the period covered by such statement, without any deductions whatsoever for smelting, milling, reduction, or treatment of such ores or mineral product.
     (3) The books, records, papers, and documents of such person engaged in the business of smelting, milling, reduction, or treatment in any manner of ores extracted or produced by any mine or mining property in the state shall be open to inspection and examination by the director of revenue or his employees at any time or place that the director may designate.
     (4) If any person required by this part to make or file any statement or to verify, under oath, any statement shall make such statement false in any material respect or shall verify, under oath, any statement false in any respect or shall fail, neglect, or refuse to file any statement required by said department or shall refuse to appear before the director of revenue to testify concerning the gross mineral content of any such ore or shall refuse to allow the director or his employees at any time or place to inspect or examine the books, records, papers, and documents of such person engaged in the business of smelting, milling, reduction, or treatment in any manner of ores extracted or produced by any mine or mining property in the state of Montana shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not exceeding $1,000 or by imprisonment in the county jail for not exceeding 6 months or by both such fine and imprisonment.

     History: En. Sec. 9, Initiative No. 28, 1925; re-en. Sec. 2344.9, R.C.M. 1935; amd. Sec. 72, Ch. 405, L. 1973; amd. Sec. 7, Ch. 126, L. 1975; R.C.M. 1947, 84-2009.