The Times-Journal

Tuesday, February 9, 2010 | DeKalb County's Oldest Newspaper

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Property tax revenues decrease

By Lindsay Slater
The Times-Journal

Published June 9, 2009

Revenue Commissioner Martha Crye Ogle will head to Montgomery on July 1 to do a yearly report on property taxes paid by DeKalb County residents.

Ogle told the DeKalb County Commission on Tuesday that the numbers she is taking with her are lower than last year. She said the lower number means the office has received less money in property tax payments.

“The economy is down, and that could possibly be the cause,” Ogle said.

County Administrator Matt Sharp said property tax payments came in just about where they were budgeted.

“This year, I budgeted about $1.6 million in general fund and that’s about what we got,” Sharp said.

Sharp said even though it was lower than the budgeted amount, it was not significant enough to affect anyone.

“It was a minimal difference,” Sharp said.

Sharp said if it had been a big difference in income, all of the county governments would suffer.

“It would be schools, all county operations, the road department, the sheriff’s office and the revenue commission,” Sharp said. “It would be everything.”

Sharp said to fix that there would be a reduction in the budget or go into surplus funds until the economy got better.

Ogle said the annual tax sale in April did bring in more money this year. She said she goes to District Judge Steve Whitmire’s courtroom with a list of those who haven’t paid their property taxes.

“People in attendance can bid on property for the amount of the unpaid tax or more than the amount owed,” Ogle said.
Ogle said if an individual picks up the tax payments on a piece of property, they would pay those for the next three years.

“The person who places a winning bid on a piece of property will pay the taxes on it and will own it after three years if the owner doesn’t redeem it,” Ogle said. “The owners of the property have within that three years to redeem the property, and the other person who has been paying the taxes will get their money back.”

Ogle said any property that is not picked up by a bid from an individual would go to the state.

“The state will continue to hold onto that property until the owner or a person of interest redeems it,” Ogle said.

The commission also:

• heard an update from the Road Department. Workers continue to move chert, and commissioners are considering leasing or renting a rock crusher.

• awarded a bid to Jackson Paving to resurface County Road 141.

• sent a damage claim to the county’s insurance company, where a dump truck hit a woman’s car apparently causing about $4,000 in damage.

• agreed to send Sheriff’s Department employees for training.

• accepted the totals for the annual garbage exemptions.

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