Barrow County Chief Appraiser Cecil Whitehead said last week that the slowing economy could hit the county’s tax digest during 2008.
Whitehead told members of the Barrow County Board of Commissioners Friday that residential lots are not selling well and that would affect the growth of this year’s tax digest. He said he hopes the increase in commercial properties will offset any devaluation in lot values.
“I can’t see the digest going up,” he said.
Whitehead was among county officials who participated in a BOC retreat last week in Commerce. He told the BOC that a primary concern now is getting the digest completed on time.
The tax digest is a list of all property and property values in the county and is the basis on which property tax is calculated.
Whitehead said residential growth in the past few years had made it difficult to get the digest prepared. The late completion of last year’s digest caused a delay in the mailing of tax bills, which in turn led to delayed revenue for the county and the school system.
Dr. Ron Saunders, Barrow County Superintendent of Schools, said the school system was forced to pay some vendors over 90 days late due to the delay in receiving school tax income from the county.
Whitehead said the problem could be addressed with an additional employee in the tax assessor’s office. An additional employee would not only facilitate the timely completion of the digest, but would also assist in resolving appeals, he said.
SLOW PAYING TAXES
Tax Commissioner Malinda Williams said that her office is experiencing a slower payment rate due to the economy. Currently, the collection rate is approximately 90 percent. Williams said the rate at this point last year was 98.2 percent.
Williams told the BOC there were 75 properties up for tax sale a few weeks ago, but that the number has been reduced to three. After receiving the delinquency notices, most people are making their payments, she said.
“Times are hard and people are just a lot slower paying [taxes],” said Williams.
