§ 143.241 RSMo — Employer's and corporate officer's liability for withheld taxes — sale of business, liabilities

1. Every employer required to deduct and withhold tax under sections 143.011 to 143.996 is hereby made liable for such tax. For purposes of assessment and collection, any amount required to be withheld and paid over to the director of revenue, and any penalties, interest, and additions to tax with respect thereto, shall be considered the tax of the employer. Any amount of tax actually deducted and withheld under sections 143.011 to 143.996 shall be a special fund in trust for the director of revenue. No employee shall have any right of action against his employer in respect to any money deducted and withheld from his wages and paid over to the director of revenue in compliance or in good faith compliance with sections 143.011 to 143.996 .

2. Any officer, director, or statutory trustee of any corporation, including administratively dissolved corporations, or foreign corporations that have had their certificate of authority revoked, subject to the provisions of sections 143.191 to 143.265 , who has the direct control, supervision or responsibility for filing returns and making payment of the amount of tax imposed in accordance with sections 143.191 to 143.265 , and who fails to file or pay such return with the director of revenue shall be personally assessed for such amounts, including interest, additions to tax and penalties thereon. This assessment shall be imposed only in the event that the assessment on the corporation is final, and such corporation fails to pay such amounts to the director of revenue. Notice shall be given of the director of revenue's intent to make the assessment against such officers, directors, statutory trustees or employees. The personal liability of such officers, directors, statutory trustees or employees as provided in this section shall survive the administrative dissolution of the corporation or, if a foreign corporation, the revocation of the corporation's certificate of authority.

3. If any employer required to withhold and remit tax under sections 143.191 to 143.265 or his successors shall sell all or substantially all of his or their business or shall quit the business, such employer or successor shall file a final return within fifteen days after the date of selling or quitting business.

4. If any employer required to withhold and remit tax under sections 143.191 to 143.265 or his successors shall contract to sell all or substantially all of his or their business, the seller shall request from the director of revenue a statement or certificate as provided in subsection 6 of this section. The seller shall present such statement or certificate to the purchaser prior to consummation of the sale and secure the purchaser's signature thereon as validation of receipt. Failure to comply with this provision shall result in the seller being liable for an additional penalty equal to twenty-five percent of the seller's delinquency at the time of the sale. The provisions of this section to the contrary notwithstanding, this additional penalty shall be the sole liability of the seller and shall not be a liability of the purchaser.

5. Except as provided in subsections 6, 7, and 8 of this section, all successors, if any, shall be required to withhold an amount of the purchase money sufficient to cover the taxes, interest, additions to tax or penalties due and unpaid until such time as the former owner or predecessor, whether immediate or not, shall produce a receipt from the director of revenue showing that the taxes have been paid, or a certificate stating that no taxes are due. If the purchaser of a business shall fail to withhold the purchase money as required by this section and remit at the time of purchase all amounts so withheld to the director to pay all unpaid taxes, interest, additions to tax and penalties due from the former owner or predecessor, the purchaser shall be personally liable for the payment of the taxes, interest, additions to tax and penalties accrued and unpaid by the former owner of the business.

6. The director of revenue shall, notwithstanding the provisions of section 32.057 , upon written request, furnish within fifteen days from the receipt of such a request by certified mail, return receipt requested, or such other methods as may be mutually agreed upon, to any owner, successor, secured creditor, purchaser, or in the case of a proposed purchaser, if joined in writing by the owner, a statement showing the amount of taxes, interest, additions to tax or penalties due and owing or a certificate showing that no taxes, interest, additions to tax or penalties are due under this chapter, including the date for the last payment for such taxes, interest, additions to tax or penalties as shown by the records of the director of revenue.

7. A secured creditor who shall enforce a lien against a business subject to the provisions of this chapter shall be entitled to obtain from the director of revenue a statement of employer withholding tax due and the status of the employer withholding tax payments from the director of revenue in accordance with subsection 6 of this section. If the director of revenue does not respond within fifteen days from the date of receipt of such request by the secured creditor seeking to enforce its lien, it shall be conclusively presumed that all such employer withholding tax has been paid as to the secured creditor or any successor of the secured creditor, whether such successor be immediate or not. Nothing in this section shall eliminate the liability of the owner of the business owing employer withholding tax from the liability to pay such employer withholding tax. Any purchaser who acquires the business as a result of an enforcement action by a creditor shall be exempt from the liability set forth in subsection 5 of this section, whether such purchaser be immediate or subsequent thereto.

8. Any such creditor who shall enforce a lien against a business subject to the provisions of this section shall be entitled to be paid the principal sums due, all accrued interest to the date of the payment, and the expenses of enforcing the lien of the secured creditor including attorney's fees. The balance, if any, shall be paid to the creditors having a priority interest thereto under the laws of the state of Missouri or the United States of America. Any balance then remaining, up to the amount of the tax, interest, additions to tax and penalties then due, shall be remitted to the director of revenue as provided by this section. Nothing in this section shall affect the priority of any lien filed by the director of revenue against the former owner or predecessor.

9. Mailing of notices or requests, by first class mail, postage prepaid, certified with return receipt requested, or such other methods as may be mutually agreed upon, shall be prima facie evidence that the party to whom it is addressed received the correspondence, notice or request.