SCS/SB 1016 - This act requires a no tax due statement as a prerequisite for issuance of any state or local business license. A no tax due statement will also be required in order to receive payments from the state legal defense fund. The director of the Department of Revenue may enter into agreements, with state agencies responsible for issuing business and occupation licenses, in which such agencies may submit the names of applicants for business and occupation licenses to be verified by the department of revenue as having no tax due. Tax delinquencies may result in suspension of business licenses. The act grants the director of the Department of Revenue the authority to file a certificate of lien in circuit court to garnish wages, payments, and assets owed to a delinquent taxpayer. A copy of the order of garnishment must be mailed to the taxpayer notifying the taxpayer of the commencement of garnishment and the procedure available for appeal. The act provides penalties for failure to comply with a garnishment order. The act prohibits an employer from discharging or refusing to hire an employee as a result of a garnishment order.
The department may implement and operate a financial institution match system to identify and seize financial assets of delinquent taxpayers. Financial institutions will be paid a fee from delinquent taxpayer accounts which cannot exceed the actual cost of conducting data matches. The act requires that notice be provided to taxpayers and financial institutions and provides penalties for willful violations committed by financial institutions.
The act also permits the director of the Department of Revenue to place a lien upon a taxpayers workers' compensation benefits, distributive share of a decedent's estate, or any claims made by a taxpayer in law suits. The act requires the mailing of notice to such taxpayer within twenty days of filing a certificate of tax lien. The act provides a mechanism for the release of a lien upon satisfaction of the tax debt or in the case of an erroneous filing. The director of the Department of Revenue is required to establish and maintain records for all certificates of tax liens and lien releases.
The act also modifies the timeline for appealing income, corporate income, sales and use, and corporate franchise taxes and the timeline for the imposition of penalties and interest on outstanding liabilities for such taxes.
Criminal investigators of the Department of Revenue are authorized carry firearms at all times, if they have a conceal and carry endorsement.
JASON ZAMKUS