HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-06-17 Public Comment - T. Olson - Property TaxesHonorable Bozeman Commissioners,
I've just resolved an unfortunate situation that to the best of my knowledge affects a substantial
number of property owners in the city limits of Bozeman, including me and possibly some of you.
Problem: I received a late notice for my "special assessment" taxes that have been historically paid by
my mortgagor which results in the property being listed as having delinquent taxes. As a result of
delinquent taxes anyone can start the process of forcing the property to be sold out from under the
rightful owner without further notice. This is bad, right?
Discussion: I talked to Carol she informed that my mortgagor had send a check for the "special
assessment" tax and she had sent it back to the mortgagor along with "many" other mortgagor's
payments for other property owners. I then talked to my mortgagor and found that they had sent the
correct amount with the correct property information but it was sent late, post marked 12/2 or 12/3 or
there about (the check was written 12/1). I then asked the mortgagor for a comprehensive list of past
years and found that they payed within two weeks of the first of May and November respectively. I then
queried the county treasures records and found that all but the "special assessment" taxes were paid in
the first week of December and were credited appropriately. I called our county treasurer and discussed
the fact that all accredited taxes were paid late (this is county and city). She reminded me that county
tax notices were not sent until 11/15 with an extension of same for payment due to 12/15. I also
discussed where the mortgagor gets the information to pay the taxes including the "special
assessments". And guess what, the mortgagor takes the information from the county treasurers tax
summary which wasn't available until 11/15. This delay in posting by the county caused a delay in
payment for county, city and "special assessment".
Resolution: Make the due date for "special assessments" the same as the county. Weather we state on
the tax bill a change in due date or just accept the payments per the county due date isn't really
important, just that we accept the payments even if they are late per the city up to the same date that
county is accepting the payments. Again, per Carol's words "many" are in this boat. Sending the money
back? really?
Thanks for listening
Tom Olson