§ 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 South Carolina ;
(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 South Carolina clients' funds in the applicant's or licensee's trust account
at the time of application for license or renewal, as determined by the
department, but the surety bond must be at least twenty-five thousand dollars.
The surety bond is conditioned upon the faithful accounting of all money
collected upon accounts entrusted to a credit counseling organization engaged in
the business of credit counseling or its employees and agents.
(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 South Carolina ;
(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. Individualized 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 South Carolina , a
licensee shall file a written report with the department describing the event
and its expected impact upon the licensee's business. The licensee shall advise
the department within thirty days of any settlement or the result of any
judgment entered.
(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 South
Carolina law; or
(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.
§ 37-7-121. Regulations.
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.