Secretary of State Handel Announces the Dissolution of Corporate Entities that Failed to Pay Annual Fees

Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel announced today that 158,777 corporations registered with the Secretary of State’s Corporations Division were administratively dissolved for failure to pay late renewal fines by the December 7, 2007 deadline.

A registration filings audit ordered by Secretary Handel in June, 2007 found entities owing Annual Registration fees for one year or more comprised over 40 percent of all corporate entities registered in Georgia. On October 1, 2007 the Corporations Division mailed approximately 280,000 dissolution notices to business entities that had not paid their required annual registration fees.

To date, 66,698 business entities paying late registration fees have created a positive revenue impact for Georgia taxpayers of approximately $3 million.

“If you’re going to do business as a corporate entity in Georgia, you have to pay your registration fees,” Handel said. “We’re instilling a new culture of customer service and accountability to better assist Georgia’s corporations and consumers.”

According to Corporations Division Director Chauncey R. Newsome, most states perform an annual registration audit and administrative dissolution process. Newsome said, “Conducting an annual audit ensures that the most accurate information about business entities is available in our databases, and makes it easier for customers to search our database.”

Over 584,250 corporate entities are registered with the Corporations Division, including over 532,364 in-state and 51,886 out-of-state corporations.

For more information please contact the Corporations Division at 404-656-2817 or visit www.georgiacorporations.org.