South Carolina National Bank v. South Carolina Tax Commission

Finney, Justice:

South Carolina National Bank (SCN), the successor in interest by way of merger to First National Bank of South Carolina (FNB), instituted this action to recover $166,921.22 in taxes, penalties and interest assessed pursuant to a ruling by the South Carolina Tax Commission (Commission) that S. C. Code Ann. § 12-54-80(2) (Cum. Supp. 1986) should be retroactively applied. The Circuit Court upheld the Commission’s ruling. We reverse.

A Commission audit of FNB tax returns for the quarters ending December 31,1979 through December 31,1984, found that FNB had underpaid its sales and…