For those
that don't have the time for all of my words (people say I am a bit "wordy"),
I am starting with my conclusion so you can move along with your day. If you
have a hard deadline for bill payment, DON'T use your online bill pay feature
with your private bank. There is no guarantee that your physical check will be
mailed in time to meet the deadline (even after you do your calculations and
conclude that the date you select is plenty of time). And if you use your
online bill payment feature to pay your property tax bill to Lawrence Township,
understand the risk involved. If the Township does not receive your check by
the deadline (which always includes a grace period), interest and a penalty will
be imposed. Ok, if you want the full, long-winded version why, keep reading.
It seems
like at the same time each year (3rd Quarter Tax Payments), the
Lawrence Township Tax Collector and her staff are on the receiving end of angry
and frustrated taxpayers that received a notice that their property tax
payments were late and that interest and penalties are being imposed (as
required by N.J.S.A. 54:4-66). It doesn't
matter whether the interest is.08 cents or $25 or more, the degree of anger and
disrespect delivered from the property owner to the Tax Collector and her staff
is the same. And when they hear that the interest and penalty will not be
waived, the level amps up --- and then I receive the phone call. The
conversation I have with the callers doesn't give them the relief they demand because
waiving the interest and penalty are not optional. The callers offer all kinds
of excuses, and some demand for the Township to prove their check was
received late. A policy that empowers a municipal employee to use
discretion on voiding interest and penalties creates an unrealistic situation to
manage. Undoubtedly, those denied will feel unfairly treated, and accusations
of wrongdoing and favoritism will abound – wasting even more time and
resources. It just won't work. So, I thought, why not write a blog article
about this issue and, hopefully, get out in front of the problem for the next
go-round?
Ninety
percent of the time, the late payment involves a taxpayer's use of the online
bill payment feature offered by their private lender. The taxpayer believes their
payment was mailed on the day they scheduled it. That may be the case, but it
doesn't mean the check will be received by the deadline. What people don't know
or realize, despite their bank's notice that it does not guarantee delivery of
payments by a specific date, the thousands and thousands of online bank payments
are physical checks released by their bank on the day scheduled but are seemingly sent to
a clearing house and ultimately collected together and mailed in bulk --- not necessarily on the day you expected
it to be sent.
When tax
payments are due and collected, the Tax Collector's office receives hundreds
and hundreds of physical checks mailed in bulk daily. These checks are often
dated differently and days apart from one another. Meaning a check dated
September 15 and a check dated September 20 are in the same bulk delivery to
the Township by U.S. Mail. Notably, the day the check is physically received by
the Township is the day it posts it to your account – without fail. No check is
left unposted for a day or days in the tax office. It doesn't happen. People
seem to assume that their property tax payments are handled similarly to the I.R.S.
and State tax returns, with the date they are mailed being the date that
counts. It's not true. The date the payment is received is the date that matters
for collecting property taxes --- everywhere, not just Lawrence Township.
To assist
taxpayers in making sure they meet the deadline (and the grace period), Lawrence
Township offers four ways for you to pay your taxes: (1) A taxpayer may take the short ride to the
municipal building Monday through Friday between 8:30 AM and 4:30 PM to make
their payment in person. The added benefit to this option is that you can offer
some warm greetings to the municipal staff as you see them in the hallways; (2)
A taxpayer may take the short ride to the municipal building and use the
secured black box positioned at the North Entrance to make their payment. It is
available 24/7, 365 days a week. The box is checked multiple times a day and
first thing Monday morning. The added benefit to this is that you can avoid all
human contact and take care of business and move along with your day; 3) A
taxpayer, comfortable in using an online payment option, can use our E-check
payment feature to make sure the date you make the payment is the date it will
be posted to the account. The administrative fee for this is $2. And, no, it is
not a grand scheme to make revenue for the "Township." It is a fee paid
by the "user" of the service, with the "Township" making no
money from it. Unlike your online bill payment option from your lender, this
option is received and posted to your tax account on the same day, and (4) A
taxpayer can pay by credit card. Some like getting the points, I guess. But to
use this, there is a more significant fee based upon a percentage of the total
payment made. If you are unnerved by being assessed interests and penalties,
this option is not for you!
Do your due
diligence by contacting your bank to verify how online bill payment works. You
will most likely find the information on the site where you use the feature. So, if you have a hard deadline for payment,
don't use your online bill payment feature!
Now, on a
personal level, most of you may not understand the kind of verbal abuse (and,
at times, threats) our Tax Collector and her staff take from residents and business
owners who fail to take the proper steps to ensure they pay their taxes on time.
Trust me; it is unsettling, to say the least. We also have many saved envelopes
with the most disgusting things written on them from people who take their "tax
payment" anger out on our staff. I guess it makes them feel good – at the
expense of the good people who work here.
As I try
to do from time to time when I write on social media, I again want to remind
you that all of us working for the Township are living and breathing human
beings. Many of us live in town. We are your friends, neighbors, and family
members. And, no, we all are not working in concert with one another to bilk
you for $10, $15, or $50 in interest in late fees. Contrary to some who believe
the worst, we are not corrupt or evil. We come to work each day and do the job
the community needs us to do.
Oh, one
other thing, for as long as I can remember, the August tax payments are
customarily billed later than the other quarters. We send out the tax bills immediately
after we receive the County tax rate from the County. It just is what it is (and it has nothing to
do with us) – and all that we can do is promptly send out the bills when all of
the information is received – and we do.
We also provide an extended grace
period when tax bills are later than expected. Ok, no more “words” for now! Have a great day, Everyone!
