Hawaii Administrative Rules
Title 18 - DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION
Chapter 231 - ADMINISTRATION OF TAXES
Section 18-231-3-14.23 - Microfilm, microfiche, and similar records
Current through February, 2024
Records, including general books of account, such as cash books, journals, voucher registers, ledgers, and like documents may be maintained by microfilm, microfiche, computer imaging, or another method approved by the department in writing, if the following requirements are satisfied:
(1) Appropriate facilities shall be provided for preservation of the films or media for the periods required;
(2) Microfilm rolls, fiche, or other approved media shall be systematically filed, indexed, cross-referenced and labeled to show beginning and ending numbers or to show beginning and ending alphabetical listing of documents included;
(3) Taxpayer shall make available upon request of the department, at the examination site or other mutually agreeable location, facilities for the ready inspection and location of particular records, such as a reader, printer, projector, or terminal in good working order for viewing and copying the records;
(4) Taxpayer shall set forth in writing the procedures governing the establishment of its data storage and retrieval system and the individuals who are responsible for maintaining and operating the system with appropriate authorization from the corporate board of directors, general partners, or owners;
(5) The data storage and retrieval system shall be complete and shall be used consistently in the regular conduct of the business;
(6) Taxpayer shall establish procedures with appropriate documentation so that an original document can be traced through the data storage and retrieval system;
(7) Taxpayer shall establish internal procedures for inspection and quality assurance of the data storage and retrieval system;
(8) Taxpayers shall be responsible for the effective identification, processing, storage, and preservation of microfilm, microfiche, or other approved media, making the media readily available for inspection or testing by the department as long as the contents may become material in the administration of any state tax law;
(9) Taxpayer shall keep a record identifying where, when, by whom, and on what equipment the microfilm, microfiche, or other approved media was produced;
(10) The material displayed, or reproduced on paper, by the data retrieval equipment shall exhibit a high degree of legibility and readability, where legible means the quality of a letter or numeral that enables the observer to identify it positively and quickly to the exclusion of all other letters or numerals, and readability means the quality of a group of letters or numerals being recognizable as words or complete numbers; and
(11) The data storage and retrieval system, including processing duplication, quality control, storage, identification, and inspection shall meet industry standards as set forth by the American National Standards Institute, National Micrographics Association, or National Bureau of Standards.
