WORKSHOP of the Town Council held Wednesday, September 25, 2002 at 6:25 p.m. in the Council Chamber, Town Building, Harrisville for and within the Town of Burrillville.
MEMBERS PRESENT: Council President Wallace F. Lees, Councilors Jacqueline Zahn, William A. Andrews, Louis Bleiweis, Edward F. Bonczek, William E. Gonyea and Norman C. Mainville.
MEMBERS ABSENT: None
OTHERS PRESENT: John P. Mainville, Finance Director; James R. Drew, Tax Assessor; Mark A. Adams, Treasurer; Gail Reilly, Deputy Tax Collector.
Relative to discussing a uniform process to address the abatement of interest/taxes.
1. Comments/Input/Recommendation from the Administration (Finance Department, Town Manager, Solicitor)
Michael C. Wood, Town Manager, introduced the goals for the workshop. The purpose was to develop a policy for interest abatement that will have a minimal impact on the administration, to understand the Town Council’s outlook and to explain the existing laws and procedures. He discussed that the Town Council has the prerogative of abating interest, but cannot, by law, abate taxes. Mr. Wood discussed the collection fees and asked that, if interest is abated, these fees are not. There was considerable discussion of these fees.
John P. Mainville briefly mentioned established process for the tax abatements that are presented to council for adoption quarterly. Michael C. Wood, Town Manager, pointed out that the finance department corrects mistakes; those are the quarterly abatements adopted by the Town Council.
He turned the discussion to James R. Drew, Tax Assessor, who reviewed the process for tax abatements, the timeframe involved and distributed a memo that explained the procedure. A copy of the memo is on file with the record of the workshop.
Walter J. Kane, Town Solicitor, concurred with Mr. Drew’s evaluation. He pointed out that this process is separate from a situation where the Town Council may accept a settlement in litigation.
Councilor William A. Andrews suggested that a taxpayer who applies for abatement should be provided with a document that explains the process, similar to the memo submitted at the workshop. James R. Drew, who explained the notification process, agreed that a simple document might be of help.
Councilor Edward F. Bonzcek stated his perception that it is the interest, not the taxes, that seem to create the major problem. Residents appear to be willing to pay taxes, but balk at paying interest. The vast majority of cases, he said, are people who sell their property, believe their taxes are settled, and then discover that taxes are due.
John P. Mainville, Finance Director, stated that the vast majority of cases involve motor vehicle taxes. He briefly described the Municipal Lien Certificate issued when real property is transferred, which refers to motor vehicle taxes, although the Town cannot require payment at that time. Mr. Mainville outlined the steps that the tax collector’s office takes to collect on delinquent accounts.
· The tax bill is mailed, containing all information relative to payment.
· The tax bills are remailed if the Town is notified of a change of address. Interest accrues based on the date of the second mailing.
· The payment schedule is advertised in the Woonsocket Call and the Bargain Buyer at least three times each quarter.
· Press releases are sent to the Woonsocket Call and the Providence Journal.
· The process is described in The Burrillville Bugle and on the Town website.
· A statement of delinquency is mailed.
· Preliminary tax sales notices are sent.
· In each publication, residents who have a problem are encouraged to schedule a meeting with the collector’s office to arrange a payment schedule.
· Payment agreements are drawn to help the taxpayer correct the situation; i.e., monthly or weekly payments have been arranged.
· Additionally, the office sends tax sale letters, additional advertisements and registration stops.
Only after these steps, the account will go to a third party for collection. The collection agency will locate the taxpayer, who may ignore two or three notices, until there is the threat of litigation.
There was a suggestion that the Town Council should adopt a policy on this matter to provide additional guidance. Walter J. Kane, Town Solicitor, stated his opinion that the Town Council sets the policy every year when they adopt the budget. The tax rate, payment schedule, interest rate, etc., are adopted with the budget and it was his belief that the Town Council legally cannot give any other direction.
2. Town Council Members Comments/Input:
Council President Wallace F. Lees thanked the finance department for the information, stating that he did not realize how much work the staff puts into collections.
Councilor William A. Andrews suggested that all real estate taxes should be paid at the closing, and asked by the previous owner might get a tax bill for property that has already been sold. John P. Mainville explained that transactions that occur at the beginning of the calendar year present this problem because tax bills, by law, are sent to the owner of record as of December 31. Since the taxes were prorated at the closing, he said, the previous owner no longer has the obligation and should forward the tax bill to the new owner or return it to the town. There was considerable discussing of this situation.
Councilor Norman C. Mainville mentioned that many of the problems would be eliminated when car taxes are eliminated. He stressed that the town is a business and needs to operate as such
Councilor Edward F. Bonczek stated that the Town Council is allowed to make the decision on interest abatements and that as they receive these requests they should continue to review the details of each situation. He pointed out that the Town Council rarely abates interest.
Councilor Jacqueline Zahn stated that she was aware of the process, but did not realize the extent to which the collector’s office went in notifying taxpayers of their obligation. She stated that the Town Council needs to trust that the work has been done when making these decisions.
3. VOTED to close the public hearing 7:18 p.m.
Motion by Councilor Jacqueline Zahn. Seconded by Councilor Norman C. Mainville. The vote was unanimous. Voting in favor of the motion were Council President Wallace F. Lees, Councilors Jacqueline Zahn, William A. Andrews, Louis Bleiweis, Edward F. Bonczek, William E. Gonyea and Norman C. Mainville.
4. VOTED to adjourn at 7:18 p.m.
Information relating to the workshop is on file with the record of the minutes. The meeting was taped and the tape is on file with the record of the minutes.
Recorded by
Louise R. Phaneuf, Town Clerk
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