(a) State agencies shall pay applicable penalties, without requiring that the claimant submit an additional invoice for these amounts, whenever the state agency fails to submit a correct claim to the Controller by the required payment approval date and payment is not issued within 45 calendar days from the state agency receipt of an undisputed invoice. The penalty shall cease to accrue on the date the state agency submits the claim to the Controller for payment or pays the claimant directly, and shall be paid for out of the state agency’s support appropriation. If the claimant is a certified small business, a nonprofit organization, a nonprofit public benefit corporation, or a small business or nonprofit organization that provides services or equipment under the Medi-Cal program, the state agency shall pay to the claimant a penalty at a rate of 10 percent above the United States Prime Rate on June 30 of the prior fiscal year. However, a nonprofit organization shall only be eligible to receive a penalty payment if it has been awarded a contract or grant in an amount less than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000). If the amount of the penalty is ten dollars ($10) or less, the penalty shall be waived and not paid by the state agency.
(b) For all other businesses, the state agency shall pay a penalty at a rate of 1 percent above the Pooled Money Investment Account daily rate on June 30 of the prior fiscal year, not to exceed a rate of 15 percent. If the amount of the penalty is one hundred dollars ($100) or less, the penalty shall be waived and not paid by the state agency. On an exception basis, state agencies may avoid payment of penalties for failure to submit a correct claim to the Controller by the required payment approval date by paying the claimant directly from the state agency’s revolving fund within 45 calendar days following the date upon which an undisputed invoice is received by the state agency.
(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 29, Sec. 83. (SB 82) Effective June 27, 2019.)