Offering forgiveness of tax penalties to collect property taxes from delinquent taxpayers is a great way to offer a single chance to make good before properties are subject to tax sales.
Lake County Treasurer John Petalas outlined the property tax amnesty program he has pushed for for five years. The Indiana General Assembly finally approved it this spring. It starts on July 1.
The county will waive all late fees against anyone who has failed to pay taxes under two conditions:
- Arrangements must be made with the county treasurer's office to pay the old taxes and special assessments in full, as well as all taxes due this year and next spring.
- Payments must be made in full by July 1, 2013.
Counties have until July 1 to opt into this program. Porter County has yet to do so, but Porter County Council President Dan Whitten told Times staff writer Bill Dolan that he expects spirited debate on it.
"I can't speak for everyone, but from my perspective, I have a real problem with one guy paying his property taxes on time and his neighbor not paying and then we forgive and waive all penalties and interest," Whitten told Dolan. "That doesn't seem fair to the guy who is paying on time."
No, it isn't fair. But this is about offering a one-time assist, not eliminating late fees and interest charges going forward. The idea behind the amnesty is to help people who could pay the taxes, but not the extra fees.
The longstanding remedy for this situation has been to put those properties up for sale, taking them from the delinquent taxpayers and giving that property to someone who will, hopefully, pay the taxes due each year.
That might satisfy the county's need for taxes, but it doesn't show concern for the residents and business owners whose property is being seized.
The goal ought to be to keep people in their homes and businesses in operation while getting them to pay the amount they should have paid, rather than to use the penalties as a way of forcing them out of their homes and businesses. Amnesty cannot happen often, lest the penalties lose their power of deterrence, but use amnesty now to help clear up troubles before they snowball.
Porter County officials ought to opt in to this amnesty program. It's different from the one the county attempted for a specific class of properties with improper homestead credits. This one will work.
Taxpayers should take advantage of this amnesty, too, if it applies to their situation. The taxpayers win by getting up to date, and the county wins by recouping the taxes, which is what the county really wanted in the first place. It's a good deal for both.
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/editorial-amnesty-is-good-for-county-taxpayers/article_c272f31c-dc0c-5970-91ec-19dc206a2c3a.html
