Section 48-9-16. Penalties and interest; untimely return; failure to pay; false or fraudulent returns; failure to file returns; dyed fuel oil violations

   (a) When any distributor or other person required to file a report as provided by this article fails to file the report within the time prescribed, he shall be subject to a penalty of $50.00 for each such failure.

(b) When any distributor fails to pay the tax or any part of the tax due under Code Section 48-9-3 or 48-9-14, the distributor shall be subject to a penalty of 10 percent of the amount of unpaid taxes due.

(c) In the case of a false or fraudulent return or of a failure to file a return, a specific penalty of 50 percent of the tax due shall be assessed.

(d) When any distributor fails to pay the tax or any part of the tax due under Code Section 48-9-3 or 48-9-14, the distributor shall pay interest on the unpaid tax at the rate specified in Code Section 48-2-40 from the time the tax became due until paid.

(e) When any person:

   (1) Sells or delivers any dyed fuel oil when such person knows or has reason to know that the fuel will be consumed in a highway use; or

   (2) Consumes any dyed fuel oil for a highway use when such consumer knows or has reason to know that the fuel oil was dyed,

such person shall be subject to a penalty of $1,000.00 or $10.00 per gallon of dyed fuel oil involved in such sale, delivery, or consumption, whichever amount is greater, and such amount shall be multiplied by the number of prior penalties imposed on such violator under this subsection and the resulting product shall be the penalty to be imposed.

(f) When any person sells or delivers any dyed fuel oil without the notices required under paragraph (5) of subsection (c) of Code Section 48-9-8, such person shall be subject to a penalty which shall be the greater of the following:

   (1) One hundred dollars per month for each month or part of a month in which such sale or delivery occurred; or

   (2) One dollar per gallon of dyed fuel oil involved in such sale or delivery.

Upon a showing of no highway use and reasonable cause, at the commissioner's discretion the penalty under this subsection may be reduced to 10 percent of the amount which ordinarily would have been due or payment of the tax may be accepted in lieu of such penalty.

Code 1933, § 92-1415, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 186, § 1; Code 1933, § 91A-5007, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 309, § 2; Code 1933, § 91A-5013, enacted by Ga. L. 1979, p. 5, § 102; Ga. L. 1980, p. 10, § 35; Ga. L. 1980, p. 1759, § 2; Ga. L. 1995, p. 359, § 5; Ga. L. 2002, p. 415, § 48; Ga. L. 2003, p. 355, § 7; Ga. L. 2003, p. 665, § 17; Ga. L. 2009, p. 8, § 48/SB 46.