Town overcharges on tax bills
Town Clerk and Receiver of Taxes Jill Simon Shapiro and Town Supervisor Barbara Gerard at press conference
April 25, 2008
by Ann Marie Fallon
Property owners in the Town of New Castle will receive a refund check from town hall in a couple of weeks.
As Town Supervisor Barbara Gerard explained at an April 22 press conference, the town recently found in an error its calculation of town assessables which had resulted in an increase in the tax rate for property located in New Castle. That incorrect increase was reflected in the tax bills already mailed to the owners.
Beginning the week of May 12, New Castle will begin mailing refund checks to property owners with a letter of explanation detailing the breakdown between town and county taxes. Property owners whose taxes are paid through escrow accounts will also have the checks mailed directly to them.
The error was discovered on April 15 after tax bills had been printed and mailed out, resulting in an over-collection of just under $1 million for town and county taxes. This error will cost New Castle approximately $10,500 for computer software work, the creation of a new tax roll and the printing and mailing of the letters and refund checks to all New Castle property owners.
For the owner of a home assessed at an average $185,000, the 3.2 percent overpayment equals approximately $170.
According to Town Clerk Jill Simon Shapiro, property owners who have not yet paid the taxes due April 30 should not recalculate their tax bills deducting the 3.2 percent. They should pay the amount listed and wait for the refund. If they submit a payment for less than the amount listed on their tax bill, the computer system will treat that as a partial payment. Simon- Shapiro acknowledged that this is an unfortunate error, but is working hard to have the checks to property owners within two weeks.
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