(1) Each employer shall pay premiums equal to five and one half percent (5.5%) of wages paid by the employer during each calendar year with respect to employment, except as provided in § 50-7-403.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (a), effective on and after July 1, 1982, any governmental employer referred to in § 50-7-207(b)(3)(A) and (B), who chooses to be a taxpaying, premium paying, employer, as opposed to one who elects to make payments in lieu of premiums, will pay premiums equal to one and one half percent (1.5%) of wages paid by the employer during each calendar year with respect to employment, except as provided in § 50-7-403.