LAKE COUNTY— The 2022-23 Civil Grand Jury Report found that the modernization of software and processing systems in Treasurer-Tax Collector’s office is “long overdue,” among other findings and recommended that the Treasurer-Tax Collector and Assessor-Recorder’s offices answer taxpayers’ calls promptly and that upon finding an error in payments, they contact taxpayers immediately to resolve problems.
The Grand Jury interviewed both the current Treasurer-Tax Collector ad the Assessor-Recorder to understand the reasons for backlogs and staffing problems and plans for improving services. The Grand Jury monitored several Lake County Social media sites expressing concerns regarding these issues. The watchdog organization also spoke with various property owners.
The Grand Jury noted in their report that when first elected, the current Assessor-Recorder declared that it would take 10 years to clear the backlog of assessments for property owners. They noted that it can take up to two years for an individual assessment. The Assessor-Recorder also stated that his office is on track to meet the 10-year goal.
County employees in this office, according to the report, have indicated major changes are in process. Among these are software upgrades. Over 62,000 tax bills are sent out to property owners in mid-September. Lake County currently uses an outdated system for processing payments, resulting in only a few thousand bills being processed during a normal work week. Some taxpayers may not see their checks cashed for may weeks, or even months.
The Grand Jury found that a check sent by a property owner in early November may not be processed until late winter or early spring. This results in frustrated taxpayers calling or visiting the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s office inquiring about the delay. The Grand Jury monitored several county social media sites expressing concerns regarding these issues and also interviewed both the current Treasurer-Tax Collector and the Assessor-Recorder to understand some of the reasons behind the backlogs and staffing problems and in doing so found out about plans for improving services.
The watchdog organization also discovered that often, phones go unanswered in these offices. Additionally, taxpayers choosing to pay by credit cards are charged a 2.3 percent fee, which is the amount charged to the county. Any small payment error found in a taxpayer’s paperwork results in the process to be interrupted, to be dealt with at a later time.
Additionally, in regards to staffing, the Grand Jury noted in their report that both offices were understaffed by 20 to 30 percent. However, they were informed that checks will soon be electronically transferred, and that an outside agency may soon help expedite processing in the Treasurer/Tax Collector’s office. Staff members are undergoing cross-training to perform tasks which are most urgent. These changes are expected to reduce processing times to one or two weeks.
Other recommendations made by the Grand Jury are that the Treasurer-Tax Collector, upon detecting an error in the tax payments, contact taxpayers immediately to resolve the problem, and that the Treasurer-Tax Collector absorb the credit-card payment fee. According to Penal Code 933.05 (a)(b)(c), responses by both county offices reviewed and written about in this part of the report are required within 60 days.
