(1) At any time after the commissioner of the employment security department finds that any premiums, interest, or penalties have become delinquent, the commissioner of the employment security department may issue an order and notice of assessment specifying the amount due. The order and notice of assessment shall be served upon the delinquent employer in the manner prescribed for the service of a summons in a civil action, or using a method by which the mailing can be tracked or the delivery can be confirmed. Failure of the employer to receive the notice or order, whether served or mailed, shall not release the employer from any tax, or any interest or penalties.
(2) If the commissioner of the employment security department has reason to believe that an employer is insolvent or if any reason exists why the collection of any premiums accrued will be jeopardized by delaying collection, the commissioner of the employment security department may make an immediate assessment of the premiums and may proceed to enforce collection immediately, but interest and penalties shall not begin to accrue upon any premiums until the date when such premiums would normally have become delinquent.
(3) If premiums are not paid on the date on which they are due and payable as prescribed by the commissioner of the employment security department, the whole or part thereof remaining unpaid shall bear interest at the rate of one percent per month or fraction thereof from and after such date until payment plus accrued interest is received by the commissioner of the employment security department. The date as of which payment of premiums, if mailed, is deemed to have been received may be determined by such regulations as the commissioner of the employment security department may prescribe. Interest collected pursuant to this section shall be paid into the account. Interest shall not accrue on premiums from any estate in the hands of a receiver, executor, administrator, trustee in bankruptcy, common law assignee, or other liquidating officer subsequent to the date when such receiver, executor, administrator, trustee in bankruptcy, common law assignee, or other liquidating officer qualifies as such, but premiums accruing with respect to employment of persons by any receiver, executor, administrator, trustee in bankruptcy, common law assignee, or other liquidating officer shall become due and shall draw interest in the same manner as premiums due from other employers. Where adequate information has been furnished to the employment security department and the employment security department has failed to act or has advised the employer of no liability or inability to decide the issue, interest may be waived.
(4)(a) If the amount of premiums, interest, or penalties assessed by the commissioner of the employment security department by order and notice of assessment provided in this chapter is not paid within 10 days after the service or mailing of the order and notice of assessment, the commissioner of the employment security department or a duly authorized representative may collect the amount stated in the assessment by the distraint, seizure, and sale of the property, goods, chattels, and effects of the delinquent employer. Goods and property that are exempt from execution under the laws of this state are exempt from distraint and sale under this section.
(b) The commissioner of the employment security department, upon making a distraint, shall seize the property and shall make an inventory of the distrained property, a copy of which shall be mailed to the owner of the property or personally delivered to the owner, and shall specify the time and place when the property shall be sold. A notice specifying the property to be sold and the time and place of sale shall be posted in at least two public places in the county in which the seizure has been made. The time of sale shall be not less than 10 nor more than 20 days from the date of posting of the notices. The sale may be adjourned from time to time at the discretion of the commissioner of the employment security department, but not for a time to exceed a total of 60 days. The sale shall be conducted by the commissioner of the employment security department or a representative who shall proceed to sell the property by parcel or by lot at a public auction, and who may set a minimum price to include the expenses of making a levy and of advertising the sale, and if the amount bid for such property at the sale is not equal to the minimum price so fixed, the commissioner of the employment security department or a representative may declare the property to be purchased by the employment security department for the minimum price. In such event the delinquent account shall be credited with the amount for which the property has been sold. Property acquired by the employment security department as prescribed in this subsection (4) may be sold by the commissioner of the employment security department or a representative at public or private sale, and the amount realized shall be placed in the account. In all cases of sale under this subsection (4), the commissioner of the employment security department shall issue a bill of sale or a deed to the purchaser and the bill of sale or deed shall be prima facie evidence of the right of the commissioner of the employment security department to make the sale and conclusive evidence of the regularity of the commissioner of the employment security department proceeding in making the sale, and shall transfer to the purchaser all right, title, and interest of the delinquent employer in the property. The proceeds of any sale under this subsection (4), except in those cases in which the property has been acquired by the employment security department, shall be first applied by the commissioner of the employment security department in satisfaction of the delinquent account, and out of any sum received in excess of the amount of delinquent premiums, interest, and penalties the account shall be reimbursed for the costs of distraint and sale. Any excess amounts held by the commissioner of the employment security department shall be refunded to the delinquent employer. Amounts held by the commissioner of the employment security department that are refundable to a delinquent employer may be subject to seizure or distraint by any other taxing authority of the state or its political subdivisions.
(5) The commissioner of the employment security department may issue to any person, firm, corporation, political subdivision, or department of the state, a notice and order to withhold and deliver property of any kind when the commissioner of the employment security department has reason to believe that there is in the possession of such person, firm, corporation, political subdivision, or department, property which is due, owing, or belonging to any person, firm, or corporation upon whom the employment security department has served a notice and order of assessment for premiums, interest, or penalties. The effect of a notice to withhold and deliver shall be continuous from the date the notice and order to withhold and deliver is first made until the liability is satisfied or becomes unenforceable because of a lapse of time. The notice and order to withhold and deliver shall be served by the sheriff or the sheriff's deputy of the county in which the service is made, using a method by which the mailing can be tracked or the delivery can be confirmed, or by any duly authorized representative of the commissioner of the employment security department. Any person, firm, corporation, political subdivision, or department upon whom service has been made must answer the notice within 20 days exclusive of the day of service, under oath and in writing, and must truthfully answer the matters inquired of in the notice. In the event there is in the possession of any such person, firm, corporation, political subdivision, or department, any property which may be subject to the claim of the employment security department of the state, the property must be delivered immediately to the commissioner of the employment security department or a representative upon demand to be held in trust by the commissioner of the employment security department for application on the indebtedness involved or for return, without interest, in accordance with final determination of liability or nonliability, or in the alternative, a good and sufficient bond satisfactory to the commissioner of the employment security department must be provided conditioned upon final determination of liability. If any person, firm, or corporation fails to answer an order to withhold and deliver within the time prescribed in this subsection (5), it shall be lawful for the court, after the time to answer the order has expired, to render judgment by default against such person, firm, or corporation for the full amount claimed by the commissioner in the notice to withhold and deliver, together with costs.
(6) Whenever any order and notice of assessment or jeopardy assessment has become final in accordance with the provisions of this chapter the commissioner of the employment security department may file with the clerk of any county within the state a warrant in the amount of the notice of assessment plus interest, penalties, and a filing fee under RCW 36.18.012 (10). The clerk of the county in which the warrant is filed shall immediately designate a superior court cause number for the warrant, and the clerk shall cause to be entered in the judgment docket under the superior court cause number assigned to the warrant, the name of the employer mentioned in the warrant, the amount of the tax, interest, penalties, and filing fee and the date when such warrant was filed. The aggregate amount of the warrant as docketed shall become a lien upon the title to, and interest in all real and personal property of the employer against whom the warrant is issued, the same as a judgment in a civil case duly docketed in the office of such clerk. The warrant so docketed shall be sufficient to support the issuance of writs of execution and writs of garnishment in favor of the state in the manner provided by law in the case of civil judgment, wholly or partially unsatisfied. The clerk of the court shall be entitled to a filing fee under RCW 36.18.012 (10), which shall be added to the amount of the warrant, and charged by the commissioner of the employment security department to the employer. A copy of the warrant shall be mailed to the employer using a method by which the mailing can be tracked or the delivery can be confirmed within five days of filing with the clerk.
(7) The claim of the employment security department for any premiums, interest, or penalties not paid when due, shall be a lien prior to all other liens or claims and on a parity with prior tax liens against all property and rights to property, whether real or personal, belonging to the employer. In order to avail itself of the lien hereby created, the employment security department shall file with any county auditor where property of the employer is located a statement and claim of lien specifying the amount of delinquent premiums, interest, and penalties claimed by the employment security department. From the time of filing for record, the amount required to be paid shall constitute a lien upon all property and rights to property, whether real or personal, in the county, owned by the employer or acquired by the employer. The lien shall not be valid against any purchaser, holder of a security interest, mechanic's lien, or judgment lien creditor until notice thereof has been filed with the county auditor. This lien shall be separate and apart from, and in addition to, any other lien or claim created by, or provided for in, this chapter. When any such notice of lien has been so filed, the commissioner of the employment security department may release the lien by filing a certificate of release when it appears that the amount of delinquent premiums, interest, and penalties have been paid, or when the assurance of payment shall be made as the commissioner of the employment security department may deem to be adequate. Fees for filing and releasing the lien provided herein may be charged to the employer and may be collected from the employer utilizing the remedies provided in this chapter for the collection of premiums.
(8) In the event of any distribution of an employer's assets pursuant to an order of any court, including any receivership, probate, legal dissolution, or similar proceeding, or in case of any assignment for the benefit of creditors, composition, or similar proceeding, premiums, interest, or penalties due shall be a lien upon all the assets of such employer. The lien is prior to all other liens or claims except prior tax liens, other liens provided by this chapter, and claims for remuneration for services of not more than $250 to each claimant earned within six months of the commencement of the proceeding. The mere existence of a condition of insolvency or the institution of any judicial proceeding for legal dissolution or of any proceeding for distribution of assets shall cause such a lien to attach without action on behalf of the commissioner of the employment security department or the state. In the event of an employer's adjudication in bankruptcy, judicially confirmed extension proposal, or composition, under the federal bankruptcy act of 1898, as amended, premiums, interest, or penalties due shall be entitled to such priority as provided in that act, as amended.
(9)(a) If after due notice, any employer defaults in any payment of premiums, interest, or penalties, the amount due may be collected by civil action in the name of the state, and the employer adjudged in default shall pay the cost of such action. Any lien created by this chapter may be foreclosed by decree of the court in any such action. Civil actions brought under this chapter to collect premiums, interest, or penalties from an employer shall be heard by the court at the earliest possible date and shall be entitled to preference upon the calendar of the court over all other civil actions except petitions for judicial review under this chapter, cases arising under the unemployment compensation laws of this state, and cases arising under the industrial insurance laws of this state.
(b) Any employer that is not a resident of this state and that exercises the privilege of having one or more individuals perform service for it within this state, and any resident employer that exercises that privilege and thereafter removes from this state, shall be deemed thereby to appoint the secretary of state as its agent and attorney for the acceptance of process in any action under this chapter. In instituting such an action against any such employer the commissioner of the employment security department shall cause process or notice to be filed with the secretary of state and the service shall be sufficient service upon the employer, and shall be of the same force and validity as if served upon it personally within this state: PROVIDED, That the commissioner of the employment security department shall immediately send notice of the service of the process or notice, together with a copy thereof, by registered mail, return receipt requested, to such employer at its last known address and the return receipt, the commissioner's affidavit of compliance with the provisions of this section, and a copy of the notice of service shall be appended to the original of the process filed in the court in which such action is pending.
(10) Any employer who is delinquent in the payment of premiums, interest, or penalties may be enjoined upon the suit of the state of Washington from continuing in business in this state or employing persons herein until the delinquent premiums, interest, and penalties have been paid, or until the employer has furnished a good and sufficient bond in a sum equal to double the amount of premiums, interest, and penalties already delinquent, plus further sums as the court deems adequate to protect the employment security department in the collection of premiums, interest, and penalties which will become due from the employer during the next ensuing calendar year, the bond to be conditioned upon payment of all premiums, interest, and penalties due and owing within thirty days after the expiration of the next ensuing calendar year or at an earlier date as the court may fix. Action under this section may be instituted in the superior court of any county of the state in which the employer resides, has its principal place of business, or where it has anyone performing services for it, whether or not those services constitute employment.
(11) The commissioner of the employment security department may compromise any claim for premiums, interest, or penalties due and owing from an employer in any case in which collection of the full amount due and owing, whether reduced to judgment or otherwise, would be against equity and good conscience. Whenever a compromise is made by the commissioner of the employment security department in the case of a claim for premiums, interest, or penalties, whether reduced to judgment or otherwise, the employment security department shall file a statement of the amount of premiums, interest, and penalties imposed by law and claimed due, attorneys' fees and costs, if any, a complete record of the compromise agreement, and the amount actually paid in accordance with the terms of the compromise agreement. If any such compromise is accepted by the commissioner of the employment security department, within the time stated in the compromise or agreed to, that compromise shall be final and conclusive and except upon showing of fraud or malfeasance or misrepresentation of a material fact the case shall not be reopened as to the agreed upon matters. In any suit, action, or proceeding, such agreement or any determination, collection, payment, adjustment, refund, or credit made in accordance therewith shall not be annulled, modified, set aside, or disregarded.
(12) The commissioner of the employment security department may charge off as uncollectible and no longer an asset of the account, any delinquent premiums, interest, penalties, or credits, if the commissioner of the employment security department is satisfied that there are no cost-effective means of collecting the premiums, interest, penalties, or credits.
Effective date — 2025 c 380 ss 12-14: See note following RCW 50B.04.100 .