§ 144.118 RSMo — Retail sales tax license, administrative penalty for failure to obtain — burden of proof required by the department

1. Any business or individual engaged in the business of selling of tangible personal property within the state without a valid Missouri retail sales tax license shall be assessed a penalty in the amount of up to five hundred dollars for the first day and one hundred dollars for each day thereafter, not to exceed ten thousand dollars, in addition to any other penalties or interest as prescribed in chapter 144 . For the first twenty days this penalty shall not apply to persons opening a business in the state of Missouri for the first time.

2. The department of revenue must show by a preponderance of evidence that the business or individual did, in fact, operate without a valid Missouri retail sales tax license before final assessment of the penalties as prescribed in subsection 1 of this section can be made.