(a) An employer's account may not be relieved of charges relating to a payment that was made erroneously from the unemployment trust fund account (AS 23.20.135(a)) if the department determines that
(1) the erroneous payment was made because the employer or an agent of the employer was at fault for failing to respond timely or adequately to a documented request from the department for information relating to the claim for unemployment compensation; and
(2) the employer or an agent of the employer has established a pattern of failing to respond timely or adequately to requests under (1) of this subsection.
(b) In this section,
(1) “erroneous payment” means a payment that, but for the failure by the employer or an agent of the employer with respect to the claim for unemployment compensation, would not have been made;
(2) “pattern of failing” means repeated documented failure by the employer or the agent of the employer to respond, taking into consideration the number of instances of failure in relation to the total volume of requests; however, an employer or an agent of the employer that fails to respond as described in (a)(2) of this section may not be determined to have engaged in a pattern of failure if the number of failures during the year before the request is made is fewer than two or the percentage of failures is less than two percent.