
It has been more than 60 years since the Supreme Court held that, under 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a)(1), taxpayers seeking to file federal tax claims against the government in federal court must pay the full amount of tax prior to filing suit. See Flora v. U.S., 362 U.S. 145, 177 (1960). As a result, many taxpayers with large tax assessments often find it more difficult to obtain judicial review of IRS actions, particularly where important procedural rights are lost due to inaction.
But, by its own terms, 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a)(1) only applies to “internal-revenue taxes” and claims related to “internal-revenue laws.” Clearly, federal income taxes and penalties within Title 26 of the United States Code (i.e., the “I.R.C.”) may fall within these definitions. However, do other statutory provisions outside the I.R.C. also fall within the purview of 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a)(1) and the Flora rule?