.22 Late Fee Waiver or Suspension.

A. A charitable organization may request the Secretary of State to waive or suspend a late fee.

B. A request to waive or suspend a late fee must:

(1) Be in writing;

(2) Explain the cause or causes of the charitable organization’s late filing; and

(3) To the extent such late filing was reasonably preventable, explain what has been or will be done to prevent future late filings.

C. In addition to the written request submitted in accordance with §B of this regulation, the Secretary of State may consider, among other factors and without limitation, the following when determining whether to grant a request to waive or suspend some or all of a late fee:

(1) Whether the charitable organization has submitted all required outstanding annual reports to the Secretary of State;

(2) Whether the charitable organization’s registration history includes previous late filings;

(3) Whether the charitable organization already paid some of the late fee;

(4) Whether the charitable organization previously asked for and was granted a late fee waiver or suspension; and

(5) Whether the charitable organization has the ability to pay the late fee.

D. If the Secretary of State makes a determination to waive or suspend some of the late fee, the charitable organization must pay any remaining late fee within 30 days of notification of the Secretary’s decision.

E. Failure of a charitable organization to fully comply after being granted partial waiver or suspension of a late fee will result in revocation of the late fee waiver or suspension.

F. A partial or complete denial of a late fee waiver or suspension request is not an adverse action under COMAR 01.02.03.05.