South Carolina § 41-31-630 - Method of making payments; appeal from department's determination of amount due; interest and penalties.

§ 41-31-630. Method of making payments; appeal from department's determination of amount due; interest and penalties.

Payments in lieu of contributions shall be made in accordance with the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section.

(1) At the end of each calendar quarter the department shall bill each nonprofit organization (or group of such organizations) which has elected to make payments in lieu of contributions for an amount equal to the full amount of regular benefits plus one-half of the amount of extended benefits paid during such quarter, and effective January 1, 1979, with respect to the State or any political subdivision or any instrumentality thereof as defined in Section 41-27-230(2)(b) the full amount of regular and extended benefits attributable to services performed in its employ.

(2) Each nonprofit organization that has elected payment of benefits in lieu of contributions shall further elect for the same period to make such payments in accordance with one of the following two methods:

(a) payment of any bill rendered under subsection (1) of this section in accordance with subsection (3) of this section; or

(b) payment of two percent of the quarterly taxable payroll of the nonprofit organization to the department within thirty days after the close of each such calendar quarter. The department shall apply such funds to the payment of bills rendered to the nonprofit organization under subsection (1) of this section. At the end of each calendar year, the department shall determine whether the total of payments for such year made by the nonprofit organization is less than, or in excess of, the total amount of regular benefits plus one-half of the amount of extended benefits paid to individuals during such calendar year, and effective January 1, 1979, with respect to the State or any political subdivision or any instrumentality thereof as defined in Section 41-27-230(2)(b) the full amount of all regular and extended benefits paid to individuals during such calendar year based on wages attributable to service in its employment. Each nonprofit organization whose total payments for such year are less than the amount so determined shall be liable for payment of the unpaid balance to the fund in accordance with subsection (3) of this section. If the total payments exceed the amount so determined for the calendar year, all or a part of the excess may, at the discretion of the department, be refunded from the fund or retained in the fund as part of the payments which may be required for the next calendar year.

(3) Payment of any bill rendered under either subsection (2)(a) or subsection (2)(b) of this section shall be made not later than thirty days after such bill is mailed to the last known address of the nonprofit organization or is otherwise delivered to it, unless there has been an application for review and redetermination in accordance with subsection (5) of this section.

(4) Payments made by any nonprofit organization under the provisions of this section shall not be deducted or deductible, in whole or in part, from the remuneration of individuals in the employ of the organization.

(5) The amount due specified in any bill from the department shall be conclusive on the organization unless, not later than fifteen days after the bill was mailed to its last known address or otherwise delivered to it, the organization files an application for redetermination by the department setting forth the grounds for the application. After affording the organization a reasonable opportunity for a fair hearing consonant with the provisions of Section 41-35-720, the department shall by its decision make findings of fact and conclusion of law and upon the basis thereof affirm, modify, or reverse its original ruling with respect to the amount originally specified in the bill. Within fifteen days after the date upon which the decision is issued the organization may procure judicial review of the decision by commencing an action in the court of common pleas in any county in which the organization has a place of business against the department for the review of its decision. In such action a petition, which need not be verified, but which shall state the grounds upon which a review is sought, shall be served upon a member of the department or upon a person as the department shall designate. With its answer the department shall certify and file with the court all evidence and a transcript of all testimony taken in the matter together with its findings of fact and decision therein. In any judicial proceeding under this section the decision of the court shall be based upon the evidence introduced and the testimony received at the hearing before the department. An appeal may be taken from the decision of the court of common pleas in the manner provided by the South Carolina Appellate Court Rules. A petition for judicial review shall act as a supersedeas or stay of any action by the department directed toward the collection of the amount involved in the controversy or the imposition of any penalty or forfeiture by reason of the nonpayment thereof.

(6) Past due payments of amounts in lieu of contributions shall be subject to the same interest and penalties that, pursuant to Section 41-31-370, apply to past due contributions.

(7) All of the provisions of Section 41-31-360, applicable to the adjustment or refund of contributions and interest paid or collected, and not inconsistent with the provisions of this section, shall be applicable to payments in lieu of contributions and interest erroneously paid by a nonprofit organization.

(8) All of the remedies, powers, and means available to the department under the provisions of Sections 41-31-380, 41-31-390, 41-31-400, 41-31-410, and 41-31-420 to enforce the payment of contributions, interest, penalties, and costs are applicable to the enforcement of payments in lieu of contributions and interest due under the provisions of this section, and for the purposes of this item the term "contributions" which appears in any such sections means "payment in lieu of contributions" in all particulars.

(9) In the event any governmental entity which is a covered employer under the terms of this chapter and Article 5, Chapter 35 becomes delinquent in payments due under this chapter and Article 5, Chapter 35, upon due notice, and upon certification of the delinquency by the department to the State Treasurer or any other department or agency of the State holding funds that may be payable to the delinquent governmental entity, the amount of such delinquency shall be deducted from any such funds in the hands of the State Treasurer or other department or agency and paid to the department in satisfaction of such delinquency. This remedy shall be in addition to any other collection remedies in this chapter and Article 5, Chapter 35 or otherwise provided by law.

HISTORY: 1962 Code SECTION 68-222; 1971 (57) 950; 1973 (58) 248; 1977 Act No. 161, SECTIONS 18, 19; 1999 Act No. 55, SECTION 42; 2010 Act No. 234, SECTION 1, eff January 1, 2011.

Effect of Amendment

The 2010 amendment substituted "department" for "Commission" and "subsection" for "paragraph" throughout, and in subsection (9) substituted "department" for "South Carolina Employment Security Commission".