2023 South Carolina Code of Laws › Title 12 - Taxation › Chapter 54 - Uniform Method Of Collection And Enforcement Of Taxes Levied And Assessed By South Carolina Department Of Revenue › Section 12-54-240. Disclosure of records of and reports and returns filed with Department of Revenue by employees and agents of department and state auditor's office prohibited; penalties.

(A) Except in accordance with proper judicial order or as otherwise provided by law, it is unlawful for a person to divulge or make known in any manner any particulars set forth or disclosed in any report or return required under Chapters 6, 8, 11, 13, 16, 20, or 36 or Article 17, Chapter 21 of this title. A person violating the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both. If the offender is an officer or an employee of the State, he must be dismissed from office and is disqualified from holding any public office in this State for a period of five years thereafter. If the offender is an officer or employee of a company retained by the State on an independent contract basis under subsection (B)(3) of this section or Section 12-4-350, the contract is immediately terminated and the company is not eligible to contract with the State for this purpose for a period of five years thereafter.
(B) Nothing in this section prohibits the:
(1) publication of statistics classified to prevent the identification of particular reports or returns and the items included on them, or the inspection by the Attorney General or other legal representative of the State of the report or return of a taxpayer (a) who brings an action to set aside or review the tax based on the report or return or against whom an action or proceeding has been instituted to recover a tax or a penalty imposed by this chapter, or (b) who has applied for review of an adjustment proposed by the department, or (c) filing a petition for redetermination of a deficiency assessed by the department. Reports and returns must be preserved for six years and after until the department orders them to be destroyed;
(2) examination of records, returns, and reports held by the department by persons employed by the State Auditor's Office annually to examine the books, accounts, receipts, disbursements, vouchers, and records of the department as required by Section 11-7-20;
(3) examination of records, returns, and reports held by the department by persons retained on an independent contract basis by the State Auditor's Office exclusively for the purpose of auditing statewide financial statements, or by persons retained on an independent contract basis by the department to collect delinquent taxes;
(4) transfer of funds and the submission of taxpayer home addresses and corrected social security numbers to the Department of Social Services Child Support Enforcement Division in accordance with Section 12-56-30;
(5) inspection of returns by officials of other jurisdictions in accordance with Section 12-54-220;
(6) disclosure of a deficiency assessment to a probate court or to an attorney conducting a closing, the filing of a tax lien for uncollected taxes, and the issuance of a notice of levy;
(7) submission of taxpayer names, home addresses, and social security numbers to the State Election department and Department of Motor Vehicles to effect the purposes of Section 14-7-130;
(8) exchange of information pursuant to Section 12-54-260 between the department and the collecting agency necessary to implement that section;
(9) disclosure of information pursuant to Section 12-4-310(5) to county and municipal officials;
(10) verification of information to the Retirement Systems Division of the Public Employee Benefit Authority pursuant to Section 12-4-360;
(11) disclosure of information contained on a return to the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, Department of Revenue, or to the Department of the Treasury, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau;
(12)(a) disclosure to a state agency, county auditor, or county assessor of whether a resident or nonresident tax return was filed by a particular taxpayer, whether the return is joint or individual, the name of a taxpayer filing jointly with the taxpayer, the taxpayer's address as shown on the return, and what county code of residence is contained on the return;
(b) disclosure to a county auditor or county assessor of whether the four percent assessment pursuant to Section 12-43-220(c)(1) has been claimed by a taxpayer in a county;
(13) disclosure and data sharing as provided pursuant to Article 8, Chapter 1, Title 6, the Fairness in Lodging Act;
(14) disclosure and presentation of documents and other information in a bankruptcy proceeding relating to a claim or potential claim, including submission of the claim; disclosure of documents and information to the Trustee and U. S. Trustee; and disclosure of documents and information to the debtor in bankruptcy and the debtor's attorney;
(15) disclosure of information in accordance with the provisions of Article 5, Chapter 55, Title 38, the 'Omnibus Insurance Fraud and Reporting Immunity Act';
(16) disclosure of information pursuant to Section 31-3-50. The public housing authority making this request is responsible for reimbursing the department for actual costs incurred in supplying the information. This information must be provided in the most useful and economical format possible;
(17) disclosure of information to the Secretary of State about a taxpayer who filed an initial or final corporate return or failed to pay a tax or fee or file a return, where the Secretary of State has the power to dissolve administratively the taxpayer or to revoke the taxpayer's authority to transact business in this State for failure to pay taxes or fees or file returns.
(18) disclosure of specific information to a United States Senator from South Carolina, a United States Representative from South Carolina, a South Carolina Constitutional Officer, or a member of the South Carolina General Assembly in connection with a taxpayer's written inquiry for assistance to the elected official, who has then referred the taxpayer to the South Carolina Department of Revenue for assistance;
(19) disclosure of information to the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee pursuant to Section 12-4-380;
(20) submission of taxpayer names and home addresses to the director of the South Carolina Retirement System to effectuate the provisions of Section 9-1-1650 relating to the disposition of inactive accounts;
(21) disclosure of information, including statistics classified to prevent their identification to certain items on reports or returns, filed in a return pursuant to Chapter 36, Title 12, for accommodations taxes imposed pursuant to Section 12-36-920 and sales and use taxes collected by and reported to the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism including, but not limited to, statistics reflecting tourism activity;
(22) disclosure of information contained in a return filed pursuant to Article 17, Chapter 21, Title 12, for the purpose of complying with the Tourism Infrastructure Admissions Tax Act;
(23) disclosure of any information on any return that has been filed with the Department of Revenue to the Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of verifying Medicaid eligibility;
(24) disclosure of information pursuant to a subpoena issued by the State Grand Jury of South Carolina;
(25) exchange of information between the department and the Department of Commerce pursuant to Section 12-6-3375;
(26) disclosure of information referred to in Section 12-60-3312;
(27) disclosure of information to the State Treasurer necessary for the administration and enforcement of the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act;
(28) exchange of information between the department, the Department of Commerce and its agency, the Venture Capital Authority, and the Department of Insurance for the purpose of registering and verifying the existence, possession, transfer, and use of tax credits pursuant to Chapter 45, Title 11;
(29) exchange between the Department of Revenue and the Secretary of State of any information that assists the Department of Revenue or the Secretary of State in determining or verifying information concerning whether a business is a qualified business pursuant to Section 11-44-60;
(30) verification that the federal Schedule E filed with the department is the same as the Schedule E required by the assessor pursuant to Section 12-43-220(c).
(C) The department shall provide guidelines to persons receiving information pursuant to subsection (B) of this section and shall monitor compliance with this section.
HISTORY: 1988 Act No. 658, Part II, Section 32; 1989 Act No. 106, Section 2; 1991 Act No. 50, Section 4; 1991 Act No. 171, Part II, Section 43B; 1992 Act No. 361, Sections 8(C), 28; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 237; 1994 Act No. 516, Section 19; 1995 Act No. 60, Section 2E; 1995 Act No. 76, Section 16; 1995 Act No. 98, Section 2; 1996 Act No. 343, Section 4; 1996 Act No. 459, Section 24; 1997 Act No. 84, Section 1; 1997 Act No. 89, Sections 1, 2; 1997 Act No. 155, Part II, Section 43B; 1999 Act No. 93, Section 10; 1999 Act No. 111, Section 2; 1999 Act No. 114, Section 4; 2000 Act No. 399, Section 3(L), eff August 17, 2000; 2001 Act No. 89, Section 37, eff July 20, 2001; 2002 Act No. 356, Section 1, Pt X.B, eff July 1, 2002; 2003 Act No. 69, Sections 3.AA, 3.BB, eff June 18, 2003; 2005 Act No. 145, Sections 36.A, 36.B, 54 eff June 7, 2005; 2006 Act No. 386, Section 10.B, eff June 14, 2006, applicable to tax years beginning after December 31, 2004; 2007 Act No. 110, Sections 30, 31.A, 44, eff June 21, 2007; 2007 Act No. 116, Sections 36, 37.A, 49, eff June 28, 2007; 2013 Act No. 80, Section 2, eff June 14, 2013; 2013 Act No. 90, Section 1, eff June 13, 2013; 2014 Act No. 259 (S.437), Section 2, eff June 9, 2014; 2014 Act No. 261 (S.985), Section 3, eff June 9, 2014.
Code Commissioner's Note
At the direction of the Code Commissioner, references in this section to the offices of the former State Budget and Control Board, Office of the Governor, or other agencies, were changed to reflect the transfer of them to the Department of Administration or other entities, pursuant to the directive of the South Carolina Restructuring Act, 2014 Act No. 121, Section 5(D)(1).
Editor's Note
2007 Act No. 110, Section 31.B and 2007 Act No. 116, Section 37.B provide as follows:
"This section takes effect upon approval by the Governor and applies to all tax decisions and associated information filed whether the decision was issued before or after that date."
Effect of Amendment
The 2013 amendment, by 2013 Act No. 90, Section 1, in subsection (B)(17), inserted "filed an initial or final corporate return or".
The 2013 amendment, by 2013 Act No. 80, Section 2, added subsection (B)(29) relating to Section 11-44-60.
2014 Act No. 259, Section 2, added subsection (B)(30), relating to verification of federal Schedule E.
2014 Act No. 261, Section 3, added subsection (B)(13), which had been reserved, relating to the Fairness in Lodging Act.