Grimm v. Iowa Department of Revenue

The issues in this case involve exhaustion of administrative remedies and the jurisdiction of district court to review a decision of the Iowa Department of Revenue (department).

Ninety-five percent of petitioner Betty Grimm’s business was the sale of novelty items to carnival operators. The department levied an assessment for unpaid sales tax on her total sales because she could not prove what portion of her sales were wholesale. Grimm filed a protest that resulted in a contested case hearing.

June 30,1980, the hearing officer filed an order sustaining the assessment except for the penalty and…