By Carol McIntire
Editor
July 8, 2008

Paying real estate taxes in Carroll County is getting easier.
Carroll County Treasurer Jeff Yeager told county commissioners last week he has established a monthly payment system for paying real estate taxes.

“If you think about it, if you have an escrow account with a mortgage at a bank, you are paying your taxes on a monthly basis,” Yeager said. “This way, people can pay their taxes on a monthly basis and won’t have to pay larger sums of money every six months.”

The monthly system will include 10 payment coupons that property owners can mail along with their payment. The sixth and 12th months will be those months when the treasurer’s office mails tax bills. Those bills will be returned with the payment.

“We are doing everything we can to make it easier for the taxpayer,” said Yeager, noting there is no charge to use the monthly system. The service will be offered upon requests from taxpayers whose taxes are paid current. Anyone interested in utilizing the system should contact Yeager at 330-627-4221 or visit the office, located on the ground floor of the courthouse.

Yeager said his office is also investigating the possibility of using a credit card payment system for tax payments similar to the one now in use by Carroll County Municipal Court. He noted no decision has been made on the system.

In an unrelated matter, Yeager presented the second quarter investment report showing interest income of $77,616.20. Interest earned for the first half of 2008 totals $167,884.31, down significantly from the $271,041.29 earned during the same period last year.  Yeager noted there is a total of $9.3 million on deposit.

In other business, commissioners:
-TABLED action on a request from Matt Campbell, superintendent of the Carroll Hills program, to place a 2.8 mill replacement levy on the November election ballot. Campbell noted the MR/DD board plans to combine two existing levies into one. Commissioner Tom Wheaton asked why the levy was a “continuous” levy rather for a specified number of years. Wheaton noted commissioners imposed the sales tax for a continuing period of time a couple years ago, and he has “taken a lot of flack.”  “I want to the voters to have a say and know what they’re voting on,” he said. Campbell said he favored a continuing levy and said if the voters don’t want the levy to continue if it is passed, they can remove it with a referendum vote.

Wheaton also questioned a statement Campbell made about the replacement levy generating $1.86 million, but that amount being rolled back to 2006 collection figures. The two levies generated $1.7 million in 2006.

Wheaton also said he would like Auditor E. Leroy VanHorne to attend a meeting and explain the rollback process, which Campbell said will be done for two years.

-GRANTED permission for the county to host the Health Department’s website at no additional cost.

-RECEIVED the monthly Golden Age Retreat report showing 16 male and 27 female residents.

-CONDUCTED the annual budget meeting.

-RECEIVED the weekly dog pound report showing 17 impounded, 21 tagged, one redeemed and two put to sleep 9 (due to dog bites). There were six citations issued for no license.

- CHANGED the meeting time for the July 10 session from 9 a.m. to 1 p..m. due to other commitments.