Section 437. Returns to be secret

1. Except in accordance with proper
  judicial order or as in this section or otherwise provided  by  law,  it
  shall  be  unlawful  for  the  tax commission, any tax commissioner, any
  officer or employee of the department of taxation and  finance,  or  any
  officer or person who, pursuant to this section, is permitted to inspect
  any  return or report or to whom a copy, an abstract or a portion of any
  return or report is furnished, or to whom any information  contained  in
  any  return or report is furnished, or any person engaged or retained by
  such department on an independent contract basis, or any person  who  in
  any  manner  may acquire knowledge of the contents of a return or report
  filed pursuant to this article to divulge or make known  in  any  manner
  the  contents  or  any  other  information relating to the business of a
  distributor, owner or other person contained in  any  return  or  report
  required  under  this  article. The officers charged with the custody of
  such returns or reports shall not be required to produce any of them  or
  evidence  of  anything  contained in them in any action or proceeding in
  any court, except on behalf of the state, the  state  liquor  authority,
  any county alcoholic beverage control board, the New York city alcoholic
  beverage  control board or the tax commission in an action or proceeding
  under  the  provisions  of  this  chapter  or  chapter  three-b  of  the
  consolidated  laws,  or  on behalf of the state or the tax commission in
  any other action or proceeding involving the collection  of  a  tax  due
  under  this  chapter to which the state or the tax commission is a party
  or a claimant or on behalf of any party  to  any  action  or  proceeding
  under  the  provisions  of  this  article  or  chapter  three-b  of  the
  consolidated laws, when the returns or the reports or  the  facts  shown
  thereby  are  directly  involved  in such action or proceeding, or in an
  action or proceeding relating to the regulation or taxation of alcoholic
  beverages on behalf of officers to  whom  information  shall  have  been
  supplied as provided in subdivision two of this section, in any of which
  events  the  court  may  require  the  production  of,  and may admit in
  evidence so much of said returns  or  reports  or  of  the  facts  shown
  thereby  as  are  pertinent to the action or proceeding and no more. The
  tax commission may, nevertheless, publish a copy or  a  summary  of  any
  decision  rendered after the formal hearing provided for in section four
  hundred thirty of this chapter.  Nothing herein shall  be  construed  to
  prohibit  the  tax  commission,  in  its  discretion,  from allowing the
  inspection or delivery of a certified copy of any return or report filed
  under this article or of any information contained in any such return or
  report by or to a duly authorized  officer  or  employee  of  the  state
  liquor  authority  or  of  the  New York city alcoholic beverage control
  board or of any county alcoholic beverage control board; or by or to the
  attorney-general or other legal representatives of  the  state  when  an
  action shall have been recommended or commenced pursuant to this chapter
  or  chapter  three-b  of  the consolidated laws in which such returns or
  reports or the  facts  shown  thereby  are  directly  involved;  or  the
  inspection  of the returns or reports required under this article by the
  comptroller  or  duly  designated  officer  or  employee  of  the  state
  department  of  audit and control, for purposes of the audit of a refund
  of any tax paid by a distributor or other person under this article; nor
  to prohibit the delivery to a distributor, owner or other person,  or  a
  duly  authorized  representative  of  such  distributor,  owner or other
  person of a certified copy  of  any  return  or  report  filed  by  such
  distributor,  owner  or  other  person  pursuant to this article, nor to
  prohibit the publication of statistics so classified as to  prevent  the
  identification  of  particular returns or reports and the items thereof.
  Returns and reports shall be preserved for three  years  and  thereafter
  until the tax commission orders them to be destroyed.

    2.  The  tax  commission, in its discretion and pursuant to such rules
  and regulations as it may adopt, may permit the commissioner of internal
  revenue of the United States, or the appropriate officers of  any  other
  state  which  regulates  or  taxes  alcoholic  beverages,  or  the  duly
  authorized representatives of such commissioner or of any such officers,
  to  inspect  returns  or  reports  made pursuant to this article, or may
  furnish to such commissioner  or  other  officers,  or  duly  authorized
  representatives,  a  copy of any such return or report or an abstract of
  the information therein contained, or any portion thereof, or may supply
  such commissioner or any such  officers  or  such  representatives  with
  information  relating  to  the business of a distributor, owner or other
  person making returns or  reports  hereunder.  The  tax  commission  may
  refuse  to  supply  information  pursuant  to  this  subdivision  to the
  commissioner of internal revenue of the United States or to the officers
  of any other state if the statutes of the United States, or of the state
  represented  by  such  officers,  do  not  grant  substantially  similar
  privileges  to  the tax commission of this state, but such refusal shall
  not be mandatory. Information shall not be supplied to the  commissioner
  of  internal revenue of the United States or the appropriate officers of
  any other state which regulates or taxes  alcoholic  beverages,  or  the
  duly  authorized  representatives of such commissioner or of any of such
  officers, unless such commissioner,  officer  or  other  representatives
  shall  agree  not to divulge or make known in any manner the information
  so supplied, but such officers may transmit such  information  to  their
  employees  or legal representatives when necessary, who in turn shall be
  subject to the same restrictions  as  those  hereby  imposed  upon  such
  commissioner, officer or other representatives.
    3. (a) Any officer or employee of the state who willfully violates the
  provisions  of subdivision one or two of this section shall be dismissed
  from office and be incapable of holding any public office in this  state
  for a period of five years thereafter.
    (b)  Cross-reference: For criminal penalties, see article thirty-seven
  of this chapter.
    4. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one of this  section,
  the  tax commission, in its discretion, may require or permit any or all
  persons, distributors or owners liable  for  any  tax  imposed  by  this
  article  to  make  payment  of  any  tax,  penalty or interest to banks,
  banking houses or trust companies designated by the tax  commission  and
  to  file  returns  and  reports with such banks, banking houses or trust
  companies as agents of the tax commission, in lieu of  making  any  such
  payment  directly  to  the  tax  commission. However, the tax commission
  shall designate only such banks, banking houses or  trust  companies  as
  are  or  shall be designated by the comptroller as depositories pursuant
  to section four hundred thirty-five.