Pignanelli gets strong nod for tax commissioner

A Senate committee has unanimously approved the nomination of a new Democratic tax commissioner.

D'Arcy Dixon Pignanelli, the outgoing state executive director of administrative services and a member of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s Cabinet, received strong endorsements from both Republican and Democratic members of the Senate Tax and Revenue Committee Tuesday, with nearly every member pointing to her work ethic and experience as keys to their support.

Pignanelli was nominated to replace Palmer DePaulis on the Utah Tax Commission. He is retiring from the commission to serve as the executive director of the Department of Community and Culture. Both appointments, which were announced by Huntsman last week, need to be confirmed by the Senate.

Pignanelli said that although she is not a certified public accountant or tax attorney, she does have experience with tax laws and processes after years of experience with local and state government. She plans to use that experience as a tax commissioner to ensure fairness.

"Tax law is not about the numbers, it is about the relationship between government entities and between the individual and government," she said. "As a tax commissioner, I do not make the laws. I only interpret them and apply them."