374                              Laws of Maryland                      [Ch. 115

If the claimant earned 75 percent or more of his base period wages
from the principal base period employer, all regular benefits and one
half of any extended benefits paid to such individual shall be charged
against the experience-rating record of his principal base period
employer (as defined in paragraph (19) of this subsection). If the
claimant earned less than 75 percent of his base period wages from
the principal base period employer, all regular benefits and one half
of any extended benefits paid to such individual shall be charged
on a pro rata basis to all base period employers. The percentage of
the charge to each base period employer shall be in the same propor-
tion as the amount of wages paid to the claimant by each such
employer is to the total amount of wages received by the claimant
during the base period, and shall be computed as a whole number
without decimals.

(i) If the claimant's unemployment is caused by a shutdown by
his employer for the purpose of having employees take their vaca-
tions at the same time, all benefits paid to the claimant shall be
charged against the experience-rating record of the claimant's current
employer.

(3) (i) If an employer's experience-rating record has been charge-
able with benefits throughout the 36-consecutive-calendar-month
period ending on the computation date (as defined in paragraph (9)
of this subsection), and each of his annual payrolls, as defined herein,
during the three calendar years immediately preceding the computa-
tion date for that fiscal year equals or exceeds $200.00, the employer
shall be assigned an earned rate based upon his experience as pro-
vided herein; except that any employer who has not been subject
to the provisions of this article for a period of time sufficient to meet
the 36-consecutive-calendar-month requirement shall for each fiscal
year have his rate computed on the basis of his experience provided
his account has been chargeable with benefits throughout at least
the 12-consecutive-calendar-month period ending on the computation
date, and provided further that each of his annual payrolls, as de-
fined herein, during the two calendar years immediately preceding
the computation date for that fiscal year equalled or exceeded $200.00.
Provided, that if an employer has met all the other requirements of
the law to qualify for an experience rate, but does not have the re-
quired annual payrolls because he failed to pay contributions due and
payable, on or before the computation date, his contribution rate for
the following fiscal year shall be his earned rate or the standard rate,
whichever is the greater, provided further that if an employer has
failed to file reports due and/or has failed to pay all contributions due
and payable, as required by the provisions of this article and the reg-
ulations adopted thereunder, as of the beginning of any fiscal year, his
contribution rate shall be 4.2 percent beginning with the first day
of that fiscal year and thereafter until the first day of the calendar
quarter following the date on which he has filed all reports due
and has paid all contributions due, as required by this article and the
regulations promulgated pursuant thereto, at which time he shall
be granted his earned contribution rate.

(ii) Any nonprofit organization which elects to pay contributions
after having been covered under this article on a payment in lieu
of contributions basis will, for the purposes of paragraph (i) hereof,
be presumed to have had payrolls equalling or exceeding $200.00 in
each prior fiscal year in which the employer actually paid $200.00