Chapter
7. Consumer Credit Counseling
§ 37-7-101.
Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Consumer" means consumer as defined in Section 37-1-301(10).
(2) "Credit counseling organization" means a person
providing or offering to provide to consumers credit counseling services for a
fee, compensation, or gain, or in the expectation of a fee, compensation, or
gain, including debt management plans.
(a) The business of credit counseling is conducted in this State if the credit counseling organization, its employees, or its agents are located in this State or if the credit counseling organization solicits or contracts with debtors located within this State.
(b) This term does not include the following when acting in the
regular course of their respective businesses and professions:
(i) attorneys at law;
(ii) banks, fiduciaries, credit
unions, savings and loan associations, and savings banks as duly authorized and
admitted to transact business in the State of
(iii) a certified public
accountant providing credit counseling advice pursuant to an accounting
practice;
(iv) title insurers and
abstract companies doing escrow business;
(v) judicial officers or others
acting pursuant to court order;
(vi) nonprofit faith-based
organizations;
(vii) counselors certified by
the South Carolina Housing Authority to the extent engaged in counseling
pursuant to Chapter 23, High-Cost and Consumer Home Loans. These counselors
must be certified by the Housing Authority pursuant to Section 37-23-40;
(viii) mortgage brokers, real
estate brokers, salesmen, and property managers licensed pursuant to Title 40;
and
(ix) consumer reporting agencies as defined by 15 U.S.C. Section 1681(a) (f) and any person or agency, or any affiliate or subsidiary of a consumer reporting agency, that obtains consumer reports from
the agency
under a certification pursuant to 15 U.S.C. Section 1681(e)(a) for the purpose of reselling the
report, or information contained in or derived from the report, to a consumer,
or monitoring information in the report on behalf of a consumer.
(3) "Credit counseling service" means:
(a) receiving or offering to receive funds from a consumer for the purpose of distributing the funds among the consumer's creditors in full or partial payment of the consumer's debts;
(b) improving or offering to improve a consumer's credit record,
history, or rating;
(c) negotiating or offering to
negotiate to defer or reduce a consumer's obligations with respect to credit
extended by others.
(4) "Credit counselor" means an employee or agent of a
credit counseling organization engaging in services described in subsection (3)
of this section.
(5) "Creditor"
means the person who grants credit in a consumer credit transaction or, except
as otherwise provided, an assignee of a creditor's right to payment, but the
term does not in itself impose on an assignee an obligation of his assignor. In
the case of credit granted pursuant to a credit card, the 'person who grants
credit' is the card issuer and not another person honoring the credit card.
(6) "Debt management plan" or "DMP" means a
program in which an organization agrees to engage in debt settlement or debt
pooling and distribution services on behalf of a consumer with the consumer's
creditors and under which the consumer gives money or control of his funds to
the organization for distribution to the consumer's creditors.
(7) "Debt settlement" means any action or negotiation
initiated or taken by or on behalf of a consumer with a creditor of the
consumer for the purpose of obtaining debt forgiveness of a portion of the
credit extended by the creditor to the consumer or a reduction of payments,
charges, or fees payable by the consumer.
(8) "Debtor" means the person or persons for whom the
credit counseling service is performed.
(9) "Department" means the South Carolina Department of
Consumer Affairs.
(10) "Licensee" means a person licensed pursuant to this
chapter.
(11) "Nonprofit organization" means a person exempt from
taxation pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(12) "Person" means any individual, corporation,
partnership, association, unincorporated organization, or other form of entity,
however organized, including a nonprofit organization.
§ 37-7-102. Licensing
requirement.
A person may not engage in credit counseling services in South
Carolina, whether or not the person has any office, facility, agent, or other
physical presence in South Carolina, unless the person obtains from the
department a license issued pursuant to this chapter.
§ 37-7-103. Surety
bonds.
(A) A credit counseling organization may not offer or agree to
offer credit counseling services in this State without first filing a surety
bond with the department. The amount of the surety bond must equal or exceed
the total amount of
(B) The surety bond must be:
(1) approved by the department;
(2) executed by a surety company authorized by the laws of this
State to transact business within this State;
(3) executed to the State of
(4) for the use of the State and any consumers with a cause of
action against the credit counseling organization; and
(5) maintained for three years after revocation, denial, or
failure to renew license.
§ 37-7-104. License
application as credit counseling organization and credit counselor; contents;
fee.
(A) A person required to be licensed as a credit counseling
organization must submit to the department an application for a license on
forms prescribed by the department. The applicant shall file an application
with the department in writing, under oath:
(1) the name and address of each owner, officer, director, member, or partner of the applicant;
(2) a description of the ownership interest of any officer,
director, member, partner, agent, or employee of the applicant in the affiliate
or subsidiary of the applicant or in another entity that provides a service to
the applicant or a consumer relating to the applicant's credit counseling
organization;
(3) a description of the applicant's consumer education program;
(4) financial statements for the applicant as of the most recent
fiscal year;
(5) a current copy of the applicant's standard debt management
plan;
(6) the surety bond required in Section 37-7-103;
(7) consent to a criminal
records check; and
(8) a list of all employees engaged in credit counseling services.
(B) Each application for a license as a credit counseling
organization must be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee of one hundred dollars for
each business location, an investigation fee of fifty dollars, and the actual
cost of obtaining criminal history record checks.
(C)(1) The application for a license as a credit counselor must
include:
(a) the name and address of the applicant;
(b) the name of the employer
credit counseling organization;
(c) consent to a criminal
records check; and
(d) description of the
applicant's general fitness and character.
(2) The nonrefundable fee for an application for licensing as a
credit counselor is forty dollars in addition to the actual cost of obtaining
criminal history checks.
§ 37-7-105. Continuing
professional education requirements.
(A) Licensees must complete at least twelve hours of continuing
professional education every two years. At least six of the twelve hours must
be earned in a live instructional setting as opposed to a correspondence course
or similar instructional method. If the organization is a sole proprietorship
or partnership, owners and partners must complete the required twelve hours of
continuing professional education every two years. If the organization is a
limited liability company or corporation, any member or president, chief
executive officer, or other officer who has ownership interest of twenty-five
percent or greater and who actively participates in the organization must
complete the required twelve hours of continuing professional education every
two years. The continuing professional education completed must be reported to
the department every two years on a form approved by its showing the date and title
of the courses taken, the teacher or sponsor of the course taken, and the hours
of continuing professional education claimed for the course. If the course is
taught in a classroom setting, fifty minutes of classroom contact equals one
hour of continuing professional education. Course sponsors must maintain
records of attendees for two years after the course.
(B) Documentation of attendance at the courses or correspondence
courses completed must be maintained by the licensee and consists of a certificate
of completion issued by the teacher or sponsor of the course showing the
recommended number of hours of continuing professional education. This
documentation is subject to inspection by the department for up to two years
after the date of the course.
(C) The department shall:
(1) offer continuing professional education courses to assist licensees in obtaining the continuing professional education required by this chapter; and
(2) appoint two credit counselors and one representative of the
department to a panel for two-year terms to approve courses offered by sponsors
other than the department as to their qualifications as continuing professional
education. The panel may conduct its meetings by way of a conference call. The
department shall develop a questionnaire to ascertain the interest and background of potential members of this panel.
(D) If a licensee fails to complete his continuing professional
education in a timely manner, the license expires and the licensee shall pay a
penalty not in excess of one hundred dollars to renew the license.
(E) A licensee may request an administrative hearing to appeal the
expiration of its license for failure to complete the continuing professional
education requirements. A license may be renewed without penalty within thirty
days after the expiration if the licensee completes the professional education
requirements.
§ 37-7-106. Grounds for
refusal to license, suspension, revocation or refusal to renew.
The department may refuse to license an applicant or suspend or
revoke a license or refuse to renew a license issued pursuant to this chapter
if it finds, after notice and a hearing pursuant to the Administrative
Procedures Act, that the applicant or his agent has:
(1) been convicted of a felony or of an offense involving fraud or dishonest dealing or moral turpitude within the past ten years;
(2) violated a provision of this chapter;
(3) used fraud or deceit in procuring the issuance of a license or
renewal pursuant to this chapter;
(4) indulged in a continuous
course of unfair conduct;
(5) been involved in
insolvency, bankruptcy, receivership, or assignment for the benefit of
creditors by a licensee; or
(6)
violated a reasonable rule or regulation made by the department pursuant to
this chapter.
§ 37-7-107. Issuance or
denial of license; contents and posting; renewal.
(A) Upon the filing of a complete application for a license,
accompanied by the fee required, if the department finds that the financial
responsibility and condition, character, qualifications, and general fitness of
the applicant, and of the members if the applicant is a co-partnership,
association, or limited liability company, and of the officers and directors if
the applicant is a corporation, are such as to command the confidence of the
community and to warrant belief that the business may be operated honestly,
fairly, and in accordance with all applicable state and federal laws, it shall
license the applicant and issue a license. If the department does not so find,
it shall refuse to license the applicant and shall notify him of the denial.
(B) Upon the receipt of the license, a licensee may engage in the
business for which the license is issued. The issued license is nontransferable
and nonassignable.
(C) Each license issued to a licensee must state the address or
addresses at which the business is to be conducted and must state fully the
name of the licensee and the date of the license. A copy of the license must be
posted prominently in each place of business of the licensee.
(D) A license issued pursuant to this section expires on December
thirty-first of each year. A license must be renewed by filing with the
department, at least thirty days before the expiration of the license, a
complete renewal application, containing the information the department
requires to determine the existence and effect of any material changes from the
information contained in the applicant's original application, annual reports,
or previous renewal application. Each credit counseling organization renewal
application must be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee of one hundred dollars
for each business location. Each credit counselor renewal application must be
accompanied by a nonrefundable fee of forty dollars.
§ 37-7-108.
Requirements for engaging in credit counseling services or debt management
plans; preparation and contents of budget analysis; notice regarding services.
A credit counseling organization, through its credit counselors,
may not engage in credit counseling services or a debt management plan unless:
(1) the licensee provides the consumer with a credit education program designed to improve the financial literacy of the consumer;
(2) a thorough and written
budget analysis is compiled and a copy delivered to the debtor. A licensee may
not accept an account unless a written and thorough budget analysis indicates
that the services are suitable for the debtor and that the debtor can
reasonably meet the requirements of the budget analysis. The budget analysis
must contain all of the following information about the debtor:
(a) name and address;
(b) marital status and number
of dependents;
(c) amount and source of all
employment compensation, payments from government programs,
child support and alimony payments, and other income;
(d) number of exemptions
claimed in the debtor's most recent federal income tax return;
(e) gross income for each pay period,
type and amount of all payroll deductions, and net income for pay period;
(f) monthly home mortgage or
rental payment. If the home mortgage payment does not include an escrow for
real estate taxes, the budget analysis must contain the amount and due dates of
the real estate taxes on the property;
(g) type and amount of all
other fixed periodic payments;
(h) type and amount of food,
clothing, utility, vehicle, insurance, and all other living expenses;
(i) a list of each creditor the
licensee reasonably expects to participate in the plan and a list of each
creditor the licensee reasonably expects not to participate in the plan;
(j) a list of DMPs the debtor
is currently participating in with a party exempt pursuant to Section 37-7-101(2)(b), if applicable;
(k) if the debtor is currently
participating in a debt management plan with a party exempted pursuant to Section 37-7-101(2)(b), written documentation of all the
DMPs;
(l) a description of and amount
owed for garnishments and judgments; and
(m)
periodic amount available for payment toward a debt management plan;
(3) the organization provides a
written document to the consumer in a form the consumer may keep that clearly
and conspicuously contains the following statements and nothing else:
(a) that credit counseling
services are not suitable for all consumers and that consumers may request
information about other ways, including bankruptcy, to deal with indebtedness;
and
(b) that the credit counseling
services offered by the provider do not include secured debt, including a brief
description of the most common type of secured debt such as mortgages and car
loans, unless that service is offered.
§ 37-7-109. Debt
management plan; fee; form for consent of creditors; notice of plan to
creditors; presumed consent.
(A) Upon establishing a debt management plan for a debtor, a
licensee may charge and receive a setup fee as established by the department by
regulation. If, within forty-five days of establishing the debt management
plan, the lack of consent from the debtor's creditors causes the DMP to be no
longer suitable for the debtor, the fee must be returned to the debtor and the
debtor's account closed.
(B) Consent from the debtor's creditors must be recorded on a
separate form to be kept in the debtor's file. The form must contain:
(1) a list of all the creditors;
(2) the manner in which consent was sought;
(3) the date of each contact;
(4) the name of the person contacted, if available;
(5) the response obtained from
the person contacted;
(6) revised or special conditions or arrangements that condition
the consent; and
(7) the date on which the required consent was secured.
(C) The consent of a creditor may be sought by sending a notice of
a debt management plan to a creditor by appropriate means, including by
telephone, facsimile, electronic mail, or first class mail. If the creditor
does not respond within fourteen days after the sending of the notice, it is
presumed that the creditor has given consent.
(D) If a payment under the debt management plan is sent to a
creditor, acceptance of the payment or plan is presumed seven days after
sending the payment.
§ 37-7-110. Written
contract; contents; required disclosures; cancellation of plan.
(A) A written contract is required. A service that requires any
payment, fee, or other consideration may not be provided by a credit counseling
organization for a consumer unless a written and dated contract for the
purchase of those services, which meets the requirements of subsections (B) and
(C), has been signed by the consumer. This section does not apply to the setup
fee described in Section 37-7-109(A).
(B) A contract referred to in subsection (A) does not meet the
requirements of this subsection unless it includes in writing:
(1) the name, address, and phone number of the consumer and licensee;
(2) a reasonable estimate of all payments and fees to be made by
the consumer to the credit counseling organization over the term of the
contract, including a maximum amount;
(3) a schedule of payments,
including the amount and due date of each payment, that the consumer shall make
to the licensee for disbursement to the consumer's creditors, and the terms
applicable to any late payment of, or default on, the amount;
(4) full and detailed description of the services to be performed
by the credit counseling organization including all guarantees of performance
and an estimate of the date by which the performance of the services to be
performed by the organization are to be completed or the length of the period
necessary to perform those services. This period must not exceed five years
from the original date of entering the contract;
(5) a list of each participating creditor of the consumer to which
payments are to be made by the licensee under the debt management plan. At the
time of execution of the DMP, a licensee shall have a good faith belief that
the creditors listed in the DMP are to participate in the DMP. A licensee shall
advise the consumer of changes by the creditor in accepting payments under the
DMP within two business days upon learning of the changes. The listing must
include the:
(a) amount owed to each
creditor;
(b) amount of each payment;
(c) date on which each payment
is to be made; and
(d)
anticipated payoff date for each creditor;
(6) a list of each creditor not participating in the DMP; and
(7) a conspicuous statement in bold-face type, in immediate
proximity to the space reserved for consumer's signature on the contract, that
reads as follows: 'You may cancel this contract without penalty or obligation
for any reason and at any time by giving ten days' written notice of rescission
to the licensee. Once your services are canceled, you are entitled to a refund
of all unexpended funds you have paid to the credit counseling organization'.
(C) The written contract must also contain a disclosure that the:
(1) licensee also may receive compensation from the consumer's creditors for providing credit counseling services to the consumer;
(2) licensee may not require, as a condition of entering into a
DMP, a consumer to purchase any other product or service, or solicit or offer
to sell any other product or service to the consumer during the term of the
DMP;
(3) licensee may not require a voluntary contribution from a
consumer for a service provided by the licensee to the consumer; and
(4) consumer may contact the department if the consumer has
complaints about the credit counseling services received. The current phone
number for the department must be included in the
contract.
(D) The licensee must cancel a debt management agreement upon consumer
request at any time for any reason. A consumer must give at least ten days'
notice to the licensee of a request to cancel. A consumer who cancels a debt
management agreement is entitled to a full refund of all unexpended funds that
the consumer has paid to the licensee.
§ 37-7-111. Funds paid
to licensee for distribution to creditors; trust accounts; duties and
responsibilities.
(A) Funds paid to the licensee by or on behalf of a consumer for
disbursement to the consumer's creditors must be deposited in a trust account
established by the licensee for the benefit of debtors.
(B) A credit counseling organization shall:
(1) maintain separate records of account for each debtor to whom the licensee provides credit counseling services;
(2) deposit a payment from a debtor not later than one business
day after receipt of the payment;
(3) disburse funds paid by or on behalf of a debtor to the
debtor's creditors within five business days after receipt of the funds;
(4) correct misdirected payments resulting from an error by the
licensee;
(5) upon request, give a debtor signed, dated receipts for funds
received from a debtor under a DMP, or provide a means by
which the consumer may view the status of the account electronically;
(6) keep all debtor funds separate and apart at all times from
funds belonging to the licensee or any of its officers, employees, or agents
and use debtor funds for no purpose other than paying bills, invoices, or
accounts of the debtor;
(7) reconcile the trust account
at least once a month. The reconciliation must ascertain the actual cash
balance in the account and compare it with the sum of the escrow balances in
each debtor's account. If the licensee has more than one trust account, each
account must be scheduled and reconciled individually; and
(8) render an accounting to the
debtor at least once every three months which must itemize the total amount
received from the debtor, the total amount paid each creditor, the total amount
each creditor has agreed to accept as payment in full on any debt owed by the
debtor, the amount of charges deducted, and any amount held in the trust
account on behalf of the debtor. A licensee also shall provide an accounting to
a debtor within seven days after written demand, but no more than three times
for each six-month period.
§ 37-7-112. Fees.
A licensee may not charge a consumer a fee except as established
by the department by regulation.
§ 37-7-113.
Individualzed counseling and education session.
A licensee shall provide the consumer with an individualized
counseling and education session that at a minimum addresses the following topics:
managing household finances, managing credit and debt, budgeting, and personal
savings strategies.
§ 37-7-114. Records;
maintenance and preservation.
(A) Each credit counseling organization shall maintain and
preserve in its licensed offices complete and accurate books, accounts, and
records as the department may reasonably require to determine if the credit
counseling organization is complying with the provisions of this chapter and
rules and regulations adopted in furtherance of the provisions of this chapter.
The books, accounts, and records must be maintained apart and separate from
another business in which the organization is involved and must be retained for
at least three years after the DMP is terminated.
(B) The records must contain all consumer information including, but
not limited to, the debt management plan and extensions to it, payments,
disbursements, charges, and correspondence.
(C) If the credit counseling organization's records are located
outside the State, it shall provide the records to the
department within three business days or, at the department's discretion, pay
reasonable and necessary expenses for the department to examine them at the
place where they are maintained.
§ 37-7-115. Annual
reports; occurrences triggering other reports.
(A) Each credit counseling organization licensed pursuant to this
chapter annually, on or before April fifteenth, shall file a written report
with the department relating to the credit counseling organization business
conducted during the preceding calendar year. The report shall be made under
oath and shall be on a form prescribed by the department.
(B) Within ten business days after the occurrence of any of the
following events a licensee shall file a written report with the department
describing the event and its expected impact upon the licensee's business:
(1) the filing of bankruptcy, reorganization, or receivership proceedings by or against the licensee;
(2) the institution of a revocation, suspension, or other
proceeding against the licensee by a governmental authority which is related to
the licensee's credit counseling organization in any state;
(3) felony indictments or
convictions of the licensee or any of its members, partners, directors,
officers, trustees, beneficiaries, or principles, if known;
(4) any action taken by the
Internal Revenue Service against a nonprofit licensee, its officers, directors,
employees, agents, or other disqualified persons with respect to the
organization within the meaning of Section 4958 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as amended,
including the imposition of penalties or excise taxes or the change, suspension,
or revocation of the organization's tax exempt status;
(5) opening a new business
location within this State; and
(6) other events the department
may prescribe by regulation.
(C) A credit counselor licensed pursuant to this chapter shall
file a report with the department within ten days of the occurrence of:
(1) felony indictments or convictions involving breach of trust, moral turpitude, fraud, or dishonest dealing; and
(2) other events the department may prescribe by regulation.
(D) Within thirty days of judgment against the licensee in a civil
action relating to the DMP of a consumer who is a resident
of
(E) If a licensee fails to make a report required by this section,
the department may require the licensee to pay a late penalty of fifty dollars
for each day the report is overdue.
§ 37-7-116. Prohibited
acts.
(A) A licensee may not:
(1) obtain an agreement from a consumer waiving a right the consumer has pursuant to this chapter;
(2) charge a fee to a consumer
if the consumer enters into a debt management plan with the licensee to rescind
a DMP contract;
(3) advertise in a statement or
representation with regard to the rates, terms, or conditions of credit
counseling service in a manner that is false, misleading, or deceptive;
(4) require as a part of the
agreement between the licensee and consumer the purchase of stock, insurance,
commodity, service, or other property or interest in them;
(5) directly or indirectly
accept payment or other consideration from a person for referring applicants to
that organization;
(6) offer to pay or give any
cash, fee, gift, bonus, premiums, reward, or other compensation to a person for
referring a prospective customer to the licensee;
(7)
unreasonably disclose information to third parties regarding the amounts owed
by a consumer;
(8) make a fraudulent,
deceptive, or misleading representation to obtain information about a consumer,
to solicit business with a consumer, or otherwise in connection with providing
services for or on behalf of any consumer;
(9) "use
unconscionable" means to obtain a contract with a consumer or collect or
attempt to collect a debt owed to the seller;
(10) engage in any unfair or
deceptive act or practice in connection with a credit counseling service
provided to a consumer, offering or establishing a term or condition in a
contract with a consumer for providing the service, or any advertisement, or
solicitation relating to the service;
(11) collect a payment from a
consumer before the payment being earned as specifically defined in the
contract between the licensee and the consumer;
(12) operate another business
at the licensed location without authorization from the department;
(13) execute a contract or
agreement to be signed by the consumer unless the contract or agreement is
fully and completely filled in and finished;
(14) make loans to debtors;
(15) issue credit cards or act
as an agent in procuring customers for a credit card company or a financial
institution;
(16)
purchase any debt or obligation of a consumer;
(17) receive or charge a fee in
the form of a promissory note or other negotiable instrument other than check
or a draft;
(18) represent that it is
authorized or competent to furnish legal advice or perform legal services
unless supervised by an attorney as required by
(19) compensate its employees
on the basis of a formula that incorporates the number of consumers the
employee signs to a debt management plan.
(B) A violation of this section renders an agreement between the
licensee and the consumer void.
§ 37-7-117. Violations
and penalties; civil action by consumer; limitations.
(A) A person who violates this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor
and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than five hundred dollars or
imprisoned not more than six months, or both. If it is determined by a court of
competent jurisdiction that a violation is wilful, the court may impose a fine
of not less than five hundred fifty dollars for each violation.
(B) A consumer injured or damaged by an act in violation of this
chapter or regulation promulgated pursuant to it, whether or not there is a
criminal conviction for the violation, may file a civil action to recover
damages based on the violation with the following available remedies:
(1) actual damages;
(2) punitive damages; and
(3) the costs of the action,
including reasonable attorney's fees.
(C) An action brought pursuant to this chapter must be commenced
within three years from the latest of the:
(1) consumer's last transmission of funds to the credit counseling organization;
(2) credit counseling
organization's last disbursement to the consumer's creditors;
(3) credit counseling
organization's last accounting to the consumer; or
(4) date on which the consumer
reasonably discovered or reasonably should have discovered the facts giving
rise to the consumer's claim.
§ 37-7-118. Violation
of Unfair Trade Practices Act.
A violation of a provision of this chapter is considered a
violation of Section 39-5-20 of the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act. A remedy pursuant to Section 39-5-20 of the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act is cumulative of and in
addition to those available pursuant to this chapter.
§ 37-7-119. Cease and
desist orders; penalties for noncompliance; revocation of license; increase of
bond.
(A) Upon the finding that an action of a licensee may be in
violation of this chapter, or of a law or regulation of this State or of the
federal government or an agency of them, the department, after reasonable
notice to the licensee and an opportunity for the licensee to be heard, shall
order it to cease and desist from the action.
(B) If the licensee fails to appeal the cease and desist order of
the department in accordance with Section 37-7-120 and continues to engage in the action in violation of the department's order,
he is subject to a penalty of not less than one thousand nor more than two
thousand five hundred dollars, in the discretion of the department, for each
action he takes in violation of the department's order. The penalty provision
of this section is in addition to and not instead of other provisions of law
applicable to a licensee for the licensee's failure to comply with an order of
the department.
(C) The department, upon the finding that a credit counseling
organization has engaged intentionally or repeatedly in a course of conduct in
violation of this chapter, may revoke the license temporarily or permanently,
in its discretion, after reasonable notice to the organization and an
opportunity for it to be heard and may increase a credit counseling
organization's bond by a maximum of twenty-five thousand dollars to ensure that
the public is protected adequately. The department also may impose upon persons
violating the provisions of this chapter administrative fines of not more than
five hundred dollars for each offense or not more than five thousand dollars
for the same set of transactions or occurrences. Each violation constitutes a
separate offense. The department, if it determines that the required bond must
be increased, shall state in writing the reasons for the increase and
immediately serve it upon the licensee. The credit counseling organization
shall provide the new bond within thirty days or the department shall revoke
the license of the credit counseling organization.
§ 37-7-120. Appeals.
Within thirty days after the final decision of the department and
by written notice to the department, an aggrieved party may appeal the decision
pursuant to Article 3, Chapter 23 of Title 1, the Administrative Procedures
Act.
The department may promulgate regulations necessary to effectuate
the purposes of this chapter.
§ 37-7-122. Use of
application and renewal fees.
All application and renewal
fees collected by the department may be retained by the department and used to
implement the provision of this chapter.
Case Law
I identified no significant cases construing the Act.