Anyone Deal with South Carolina and Penalties?

[Richcpaman]

I have a client that received a notice from South Carolina about a problem with the return. 

 

Yep, I screwed up.

 

Client sent a letter asking for abatement, and they replied, that they are still applying the penalty.

 

Taxpayer no longer lives in SC.  Owns no property.

 

But I would like to retry the abatement request.  Any thoughts?  Or where to address it?

 

Rich

[JohnH]

This is strictly anecdotal, and may or may not be relevant to your situation. I have a couple of clients who are more or less chronic late filers or late payers of South Carolina business taxes. They're otherwise very good clients and only do a small amount of business in SC, which is the source of the problem.

Up until abut a year ago, I could usually get some relief by making a phone call or writing a simple letter. But beginning around early 2013, everything seemed to change. My last couple of phone calls have been rebuffed with a simple & terse "There's nothing to be done about this." It appears that SC has begun taking a harder line on penalties as a revenue source.

If I were you, I'd still begin with a phone call. Maybe you'll find a sympathetic ear, or at least get some info on how best to proceed. You have nothing to lose, and that's about as positive as it gets from my perspective.