§245-8 Records to be kept. (a) Every wholesaler and dealer shall keep a record of every sale or use of cigarettes and tobacco products by the wholesaler or dealer, the number and wholesale price of cigarettes, and the wholesale price of tobacco products, sold, possessed, or used, and of the taxes payable thereon, if any, in such form as the department of taxation may prescribe. The records shall be offered for inspection and examination at any time upon demand by the department and shall be preserved for a period of five years, except that the department, in writing, may consent to their destruction within the five-year period or may require that they be kept longer. The department, by rule, may require the licensee to keep such other records as it may deem necessary for the proper enforcement of this chapter.

(b) If any wholesaler or dealer fails to keep records from which a proper determination of the taxes due under this chapter may be made, the department may fix the amount of the taxes for any period from the best information obtainable by it and assess the taxes as provided in this chapter. [L 1939, c 220, §9; RL 1945, §5758; RL 1955, §125-8; am L Sp 1959 2d, c 1, §16; am L 1963, c 45, §8(a); HRS §245-8; gen ch 1985; am L 1993, c 220, §13; am L 1994, c 104, §4]