This section discusses the aspects of the law that apply to service charges.

Section 213.055

Subsection (b) of the law allows the commission to charge an employer for reasonable expenses in investigating a situation:

COMMENT: Reasonable expenses include the portion of an examiner's salary attributed to the time used in traveling to an employer’s place of business, the amount of time to return from that business, and the time required to examine his records and prepare quarterly reports. It also includes travel expenses. If traveling out-of-state to audit the employer's records, reasonable expenses include food and lodging. In some cases, it may be reasonable and equitable to prorate expenses. Assessment of service charges is left to the discretion of the accounts examiner but, as a matter of policy, this additional penalty should be assessed in cases of repeated failure and neglect or refusal to file reports. Service charges will not be assessed against employing units unless they have qualified as liable employers.

Only one remittance is necessary to cover the service charge plus any other item that may be collected. If the service charge is not paid by the employer, it may be collected by the commission in the same manner prescribed for collection of delinquent taxes and penalties.

This section discusses the aspects of the law that apply to signatures on agency reports.

Rule Number 815.108:

The provisions of 815.108 were adopted to be effective November 6, 2000, replacing section 815.8

COMMENT: A written authorization form (C-42) that is properly prepared and filed with the agency authorizes a specified person to represent the grantor in business with the agency. Once approved, the written authorization remained in effect until filing an appropriate revocation form with the agency revokes it.

Employers subject to TUCA may appoint an agent (an individual or service company) to represent that taxpayer in all matters before the agency, to include signature on reports or forms. This change to the rules concerning service agent agreements provides that once an employer has given a third party written authority (C-42 Written Authorization) to conduct business with the agency on their behalf, either the employer or the third party may revoke the agreement (C-43 Revocation of Written Authorization). Previously, only the employer could revoke the written authority.

This section discusses the aspects of the law that apply to the admissibility of reports in court.

Under Section 213.003:

In a civil or criminal proceeding brought under this subtitle, a certified copy of a document from commission records is admissible as evidence instead of the original document.

COMMENT: Even though an employing unit submits a report, which is later found to be incorrect. The report as submitted is the employer's statement and may, at a later date, be introduced as evidence in court. The value of the report as evidence is destroyed or greatly endangered by the presence of changes, corrections, or deletions unless the employer has initialed alterations.

However if a report is sent by an employer and an error or omission is identified the examiner should make the necessary corrections as outlined in the procedures manual. See Procedures Manual Chapter 1 - Changes to a Status Report or Chapter Two - Alterations of C-3/C-4's.

Under Section 213.004:

COMMENT: The words 'prima facie evidence' may be defined in general terms as evidence presumed to present true facts unless and until the evidence is rebutted by the employer. An employer may rebut evidence by introducing counter-evidence. The truth then becomes a question of fact to be resolved or determined by the court or jury and, as a general rule, the burden of proof is on the commission.