RAYMONDVILLE — Tax attorneys are busy trying to round up thousands of dollars in unpaid property taxes.
Willacy County’s property tax collection is about $37,000 behind as county commissioners prepare to review finances as they plan next year’s general fund budget.
So far, officials have collected about $4 million in property taxes, or 93 percent of the county’s total, Tax Assessor-Collector Elizabeth Barnhart said yesterday.
“Every year is different,” Barnhart said. “Some years it’s a little bit more, some years it’s a little bit less. This year, it’s a little bit less.”
Barnhart said taxpayers who owe outstanding taxes will become delinquent July 1.
The county’s tax collection picked up since February, when collection was behind 7.4 percent, or about $275,000.
At the time, Barnhart was counting on many residents receiving their income tax refunds to pay their property taxes.
Now, Barnhart said, the law firm of Linebarger, Goggan, Blair & Sampson is tracking down delinquent taxpayers.
Taxpayers began facing penalties when they did not file their taxes by Feb. 1, she said.
The county needs the money as commissioners prepare to plan next year’s budget.
Last October, commissioners entered the current fiscal year after eliminating 25 positions, forcing 16 layoffs.
The Willacy County Correctional Center’s closure slashed a third of the local budget, plunging the county into a financial crisis as commissioners tried to offset a $220,000 monthly shortfall.
