§ 47–4101. Attempt to evade or defeat tax.

(a) A person who willfully attempts in any manner to evade or defeat a tax, or the payment thereof, imposed by this title shall, in addition to other penalties provided by law, be guilty of a felony if the tax evaded or attempted to be evaded exceeds $10,000, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than the amount set forth in [§ 22-3571.01] or twice the amount of the tax evaded or attempted to be evaded, whichever is greater, or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution.

(b) A person who willfully attempts in any manner to evade or defeat a tax, or the payment thereof, imposed by this title shall, in addition to other penalties provided by law, be guilty of a misdemeanor if the tax evaded or attempted to be evaded is $10,000 or less, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than the amount set forth in [§ 22-3571.01], or imprisoned not more than 180 days, or both, together with costs of prosecution. All prosecutions under this subsection shall be brought in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on information by the Attorney General for the District of Columbia in the name of the District. The amount of any taxes that were evaded or attempted to be evaded pursuant to a single scheme or systematic course of conduct in violation of this section may be aggregated to determine the grade of the offense and the sentence for the offense.

(Oct. 4, 2000, D.C. Law 13-204, § 2(b), 47 DCR 5799; Apr. 13, 2005, D.C. Law 15-354, § 73(n)(1), 52 DCR 2638; June 11, 2013, D.C. Law 19-317, §§ 111(c)(1), 286(bb), 60 DCR 2064.)

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 15-354 substituted “Attorney General for the District of Columbia” for “Corporation Counsel”.

The 2013 amendment by D.C. Law 19-317, in (a), substituted “not more than the amount set forth in [§ 22-3571.01]” for “not more than $10,000” and substituted “twice” for “3 times”; and substituted “not more than the amount set forth in [§ 22-3571.01]” for “not more than $5,000” in (b).

Emergency Legislation

For temporary (90 days) amendment of this section, see §§ 111(c)(1) and 286(bb) of the Criminal Fine Proportionality Emergency Amendment Act of 2013 (D.C. Act 20-45, April 1, 2013, 60 DCR 5400, 20 DCSTAT 1300).

Editor's Notes

Applicability of D.C. Law 19-317: Section 401 of D.C. Law 19-317 provided that the act shall apply only to offenses committed on or after June 11, 2013.