Senate Bill No. 627
(By Senator Craigo, Ross, Helmick, Sharpe, Ball, Dawson and Love)
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[Introduced February 21, 2000; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section seventeen, article five,
chapter twenty-one-a of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
allowing for the waiving of interest and penalties on
delinquent unemployment compensation contributions if they are
paid, or a payment agreement is entered into, by the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seventeen, article five, chapter twenty-one-a of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. EMPLOYER COVERAGE AND RESPONSIBILITY.
§21A-5-17. Interest and rate on past-due payments; penalties for
late payment and reporting; waiver of interest and
penalties.
(a) Payments, including penalties, unpaid on the date on which
due and payable, as prescribed by the commissioner, shall bear
interest at the rate of one percent per month until payment plus
accrued interest is received by the commissioner. Interest shall
be compounded quarterly until payment plus accrued interest is
received by the commissioner.
Interest collected pursuant to this section shall be paid into
the employment security special administration fund.
(b) Each employer who fails to timely pay, in whole or in
part, the contribution due with any report for any quarter
commencing on and after the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-six, shall pay a late payment penalty of the greater
of fifty dollars or ten percent of the contribution due, but not to
exceed five hundred dollars. Such The late penalty is due
immediately along with the payment of the outstanding amount of
contribution. Penalties collected pursuant to this section shall
be paid into the unemployment compensation trust fund.
(c)(1) The commissioner may waive the interest and penalties assessed on delinquent contributions incurred prior to the first
day of January, two thousand, if:
(A) All delinquent contributions, incurred through the date of
payment, are paid between the first day of July, two thousand, and
the thirty-first day of December, two thousand; and
(B) The employer has submitted all required wage reports due
as of the date of payment.
(2) An employer who owes delinquent contributions, interest or
penalties prior to the first day of January, two thousand, may
enter into an agreement with the commissioner before the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand, providing for the
payment of all delinquent contributions within twelve months of
entering into the agreement. If the employer complies with the
agreement the interest and penalties attributed to the delinquent
contributions shall be waived. The agreement must provide for an
initial payment, to be made at the time the agreement is entered
into, of at least ten percent of the delinquent contributions.
Interest continues to accrue on the delinquent contributions until
the delinquent contributions are paid in full.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide an amnesty period
for employers who owe delinquent unemployment compensation
contributions. If they pay the full amount of the delinquent
contributions, or enter into a payment agreement, by December 31,
2000, interest and penalties are waived.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.