3032 - Civil damages for failure to release a lien.
§ 3032. Civil damages for failure to release a lien. (a) In general. A taxpayer may bring a civil action for damages against the state in the court of claims if any officer or employee of the department knowingly, or by reason of negligence, fails to release a lien on property of such taxpayer within forty days after the day on which (1) the commissioner finds that the liability for the amount assessed or determined, together with all interest in respect thereof, has been fully satisfied or has become legally unenforceable, or (2) there is furnished to the commissioner a surety bond issued by a surety company approved by the superintendent of insurance as to solvency or responsibility and authorized to transact business in this state, or other security acceptable to the commissioner, that is conditioned upon the payment of the amount assessed or determined, together with all interest in respect thereof, within the time prescribed by law (including any extension of such time) and is in accordance with such requirements relating to terms, conditions, and form of the bond or other acceptable security, as may be specified by regulation. (b) Damages. In any action brought under subdivision (a) of this section, upon a finding of liability on the part of the defendant, the defendant shall be liable to the plaintiff in an amount equal to the sum of (1) actual, direct economic damages sustained by the plaintiff which, but for the actions of the defendant, would not have been sustained, plus (2) the costs of the action. (c) Limitations. (1) Exhaustion of administrative remedies. The amount of damages awarded under subdivision (b) of this section may be reduced if the court determines that the plaintiff has not exhausted the administrative remedies available to such plaintiff within the department which have been established pursuant to the commissioner's authority to compromise civil liability provided in subdivision eighteenth-a of section one hundred seventy-one of this chapter. In establishing administrative review procedures regarding claims for damages under this section, the commissioner is authorized to enter into contracts with private dispute resolution entities for the purpose of providing review of such claims and suggested compromises by independent third parties. (2) Mitigation of damages. The amount of damages awarded under paragraph one of subdivision (b) of this section shall be reduced by the amount of such damages which could have reasonably been mitigated by the plaintiff. (d) Notice of failure to release lien. The commissioner shall by regulation prescribe reasonable procedures for a taxpayer to notify the commissioner of the failure to release a lien on the property of the taxpayer.