Lake County residents will see for the first time how much their new local income tax will reduce their property taxes.
Lake County Treasurer John Petalas said the 2014 first installment of tax bills will be due May 12.
Lake County Commissioner Mike Repay said the bills, which are arriving by mail, will indicate in box 4B how much of the property taxes were reduced by Lake's new 1.5 percent personal income tax.
Lake officials passed the income tax last May under a state law that reduced local government revenues until local officials passed the income tax as a form of property tax relief.
Repay said the reduction could amount to as much as 13 percent for residents who don't live in Gary, Hammond, East Chicago and Lake Station. Tax rates there already are so high residents enjoy tax relief under the circuit breaker system capping the total amount of taxes the county can extract from any single property.
Petalas said the bills can be paid from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays at his offices at 2293 N. Main St., Crown Point; 232 Russell St., Hammond; and 11 E. 4th Ave., Gary. He said his offices will have extended hours from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. May 12.
He said anyone who doesn't have questions or problems with their bills can pay at the branch offices of these banks: Fifth Third Bank, American Savings FSB, Centier Bank, Chase Bank, DeMotte State Bank, First Federal Savings and Loan, First Financial Bank, First Midwest Bank, Dyer Bank & Trust, BMO Harris Bank, Horizon Bank, Lake Federal Bank, Main Source Bank, People's Bank and the Indiana branches of Tech Federal Credit Union.
Petalas said property owners also can pay online at www.lakecountyin.org by e-check. They also can pay online by credit card. The credit card company, not the county, will charge a fee for that service.
He advised the public that as the deadline approaches, his office will be receiving a high volume of calls so anyone calling for information will need to be patient.
