§37-4-116. Fees for inspection and supervision; payment.

(a) Each radio utility, as defined in this article, doing business in this state and subject to the control and jurisdiction of the commission with respect to its rates and service regulations, shall pay quarterly to the commission, beginning on November 1, 1988, and on each quarter thereafter, February 1, May 1, August 1, and November 1 of each year, a fee for the inspection and supervision of such business during the next preceding fiscal year. Such inspection and supervision fees shall be paid by such radio utilities in addition to any and all property, franchise, license, intangible and other taxes, fees and charges now or hereafter provided by law. No similar inspection and supervision fees shall be levied or assessed by any county or municipality of the state, and no part of such inspection and supervision fees shall be allowed to any county or municipality of this state. Such inspection and supervision fees shall be measured by the amount of the gross receipts of each such utility derived from the sale of air time for the fiscal year next preceding the dates herein fixed for the payment of the same, except that in case of such utilities engaged in interstate business the fee shall be measured by the gross receipts of such utilities from intrastate business only, for such preceding fiscal year, and not in any respect upon receipts derived wholly or in part from interstate business. Such fees shall be ascertained as follows: a fee of $2.85 per $1,000.00 for the first $100,000.00 or less of such gross receipts; a fee of $2.35 per $1,000.00 for each additional $1,000.00 of such gross receipts up to and including $1,000,000.00 thereof; and a fee of $1.85 per $1,000.00 for each additional $1,000.00 of such gross receipts over $1,000,000.00 thereof; but in no case shall said fee be less than $50.00, which shall be the minimum inspection and supervision fee to be paid by any radio utility, and this amount shall in any event be paid over on a quarterly basis beginning November 1, 1988, at which time the first amount due based upon the remainder of the fiscal year January 1, 1988, through September 30, 1988, is to be paid, and then to be paid on each quarter thereafter on February 1, May 1, August 1, and every year thereafter to be paid over on November 1, February 1, May 1, and August 1 for the preceding fiscal year. The commission shall keep a true record of all such amounts so paid to it, but said amounts when received by the commission shall be promptly paid over to the treasurer and shall be held in the commission's operating fund, and shall be paid out by the treasurer in payment of expenses incurred by the commission under this title, upon warrants drawn by the comptroller on the treasurer, and approved by said commission or a majority thereof. Subject to the provisions of the merit system, the commission shall have power to employ such assistants as may be found necessary to aid the commission in such regulation, and to make payment for any necessary traveling or incidental expenses incurred in connection with such regulation, which shall be paid out of said fund as aforesaid, so far as it may be available.

(b) Supervision and inspection fees provided for in this chapter shall be in default on or after the dates herein prescribed of each year, if not paid prior to that date. Any radio utility failing, in whole or in part, to pay any supervision or inspection fee, or part thereof, due by it within the time prescribed in this section for the payment of the same, shall be in default, and shall be liable to a penalty of not exceeding $5.00 per day, to be recovered by suit of the state, for every day it thereafter remains in default, and such penalty may be recovered together with the supervision and inspection fee, in default, in a single action. And the state shall have a lien upon all the property in this state of any radio utility for the payment of the supervision and inspection fees provided by this article, to be paid, and the penalties in this section provided for, which lien shall be superior to all other liens, except the lien for state, county and municipal taxes.

(c) Any radio utility may, at its own election, pay over the total fee due for the preceding fiscal year on November 1 of each year, such payment to be governed by the provisions of subsection (b).

(Acts 1971, No. 1595, p. 2733, §17; Acts 1989, No. 89-943, p. 1852, §3; Acts 1991, No. 91-586, p. 1075, §1.)