The notice of intention to set off must be given by mailing the notice, with postage prepaid, addressed to the debtor at the address provided to the claimant agency when the debt was incurred or at the debtor’s last known address. The giving of the notice by mail is complete upon the expiration of thirty days after deposit of the notice in the mail. A certification by the claimant agency that the notice has been sent is presumptive proof that the requirements as to notice are met, even if the notice actually has not been received by the debtor. The notice must include a statement of appeal procedures available to the debtor, substantially as follows:

"According to our records, you owe the (claimant agency) a debt in the amount of (amount of the debt), plus interest, if applicable, for (type of debt). You are hereby notified of the (claimant agency’s) intention to submit this debt to the South Carolina Department of Revenue to be set off against your individual income tax refunds until the debt is paid in full. Pursuant to the Setoff Debt Collection Act, this amount, plus all costs, will be deducted from your South Carolina individual income tax refunds unless you file a written protest within thirty days of the date of this notice. If you file a joint return with your spouse, this amount will be deducted from the total joint refunds without regard to which spouse incurred the debt or actually withheld the taxes. The protest must contain the following information:

(1) your name;
(2) your address;
(3) your social security number;
(4) the type of debt in dispute; and
(5) a detailed statement of all the reasons you disagree with or dispute the debt.
The original written protest must be mailed to the (claimant agency) at the following address:
(address of the entity requesting the setoff)".

Protest Procedures

SECTION 12-56-63. Protest procedure

(A) A debtor who protests the debt shall file a written protest with the claimant agency at the address provided in the claimant agency’s notification of intention to set off. The protest must be filed within thirty days of the date of the notice of intention to set off and must contain the debtor’s name, address, and tax identification number, identify the type of debt in dispute, and give a detailed statement of all the reasons that support the protest. The requirements of this section are jurisdictional.

Protested and Contested Case Hearings

SECTION 12-56-65. Protest and contested case hearings; refunds; erroneous retention or set off; time limit.

(A) Before submitting a debt to the department, the claimant agency shall appoint a hearing officer to hear a protest of a debtor. This hearing officer is vested with the authority to decide a protest in favor of either the debtor or the claimant agency. The claimant agency shall certify to the department, on a form prescribed by the department, that a hearing officer has been appointed and shall inform the department of the name, address, and telephone number of the hearing officer. If this hearing officer is unable to serve at any time, the claimant agency shall appoint another hearing officer.

(B) Upon receipt of a notice of protest, the claimant agency shall notify the department that a protest has been received and shall hold an informal hearing at which the debtor may present evidence, documents, and testimony to dispute the debt. The claimant agency shall notify the debtor of the date, time, and location of the informal hearing. At the conclusion of the informal hearing, the hearing officer shall render his determination. Upon receipt of a sworn certification from the hearing officer that he held an informal hearing and ruled in favor of the claimant agency, the department may proceed to collect the delinquent debt regardless of a subsequent appeal by the debtor.

(C) A debtor may seek relief from the hearing officer’s determination by requesting, within thirty days of the determination, a contested case hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division. A request for a hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division must be made in accordance with its rules.

(D) If a portion of the delinquent debt is collected by the department and the determination of the hearing officer in favor of the claimant agency is later reversed or the debtor prevails in a claim for refund, the claimant agency shall refund the appropriate amount to the taxpayer, including the appropriate amount of the fee. That portion of the refund reflecting the department’s fee must be paid from claimant agency funds. If the claimant agency is found to be entitled to a portion of an amount collected by set off, it is not required to refund the setoff fee retained by the department.

(E) If a refund is retained in error, the claimant agency shall pay to the taxpayer interest calculated as provided in Section 12-54-20 from the date provided by law after which interest is paid on refunds until the appeal is final, except that interest does not accrue when the claimant agency is the Office of Child Support Services of the South Carolina Department of Social Services.

(F) If the claimant agency determines that money has been erroneously or illegally collected, the claimant agency, in its discretion, may issue a refund, even if the debtor does not file a protest or file a claim for refund.

(G) A collection may not be contested more than one year after the date it was made. The date of collection must be conclusively determined by the department. This provision must be construed as a statute of repose and not as a statute of limitation.

(H) A debtor may make a claim for refund of an amount collected pursuant to this chapter within one year from the date the amount is collected, in the same manner as seeking relief from a hearing officer’s determination pursuant to Section 12-56-65 or 12-56-67.

Jury Trial Rights

SECTION 12-56-67. Jury trial rights.

This section does not create a right to jury trial where one does not already exist. Where a debtor otherwise is entitled to have a jury determine the issue of indebtedness, that right is preserved specifically. If a right to a jury trial already exists and the debtor wishes to exercise that right, the debtor is not required to request a contested case hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division but instead must file a summons and complaint in the Court of Common Pleas and serve the pleadings on the claimant agency within thirty days from the date of the hearing officer’s determination. The summons and complaint must name the claimant agency as a defendant and the allegations of the complaint must contest the debt and any potential setoff.