ATHABASCA – Two late tax payment penalties will be upheld after council decided against waiving the fees for a resident and a business, citing reluctance to create a pattern of forgiveness for late payments.
Town of Athabasca councillors voted 7-0 during their Aug. 15 meeting to deny requests submitted by Glecirine Villalon and Gregory J. Properzi of PT Law — a firm specializing in corporate and commercial real estate — for forgiveness of interest accumulated on owing property taxes after payment was not received by the June 30 deadline.
Administration had recommended denying the requests. “I’m just concerned about setting precedents,” CAO Rachel Ramey told council.
Villalon, a former Athabasca resident currently living in Edmonton, submitted an e-mail July 31 to the town, asking for the interest on her remaining property tax balance to be waived.
The correspondence stated the owner does not currently live in the residence on 45th Avenue and Villalon did not receive an e-mail version of the tax statement before the June 30 deadline as she requested.
Ramey confirmed a mailed statement was sent to the Villalon property in May, and mayor Rob Balay noted Villalon, as a former resident of the Athabasca property, had reasonable knowledge of when statements are provided and payments due.
“Our responsibility, according to the MGA (Municipal Government Act) is to send it to the address on title, which was done,” said Ramey. “Once it leaves our office, that’s out of our hands.”
Delivery delays cause problems
On Aug. 4, Properzi contacted the town regarding the owing balance on properties owned by clients of the firm, stating a company cheque for $12,767 was cut and mailed on June 6, and was accompanied by an e-mail including a photo of the cheque requesting confirmation of receipt of payment from the town.
Properzi said when the firm’s accounting department noted the amount was not withdrawn by the June 30 deadline, it was assumed the payment had been lost in the mail. A replacement cheque was issued July 17, and received by the town July 20.
“In this one I feel differently, only because they did try sending it out,” commented Coun. Darlene Reimer. “It’s not our fault we didn’t get it, I’m not saying that, but this was frustrating for (PT Law), I felt.”
Reimer inquired as to what payment options were available to the firm, given it was acting on behalf of a client operating out of the address in question. Ramey said alternative payment options included sending the cheque via courier or making the payment online.
Bylaw 04-16, authorizing the imposition of penalties on unpaid property taxes, outlines the incremental interest rates on unpaid property taxes, which start at four per cent imposed on July 1, and increase to eight per cent if the balance remains unpaid by Sept. 30.
If any balance remains owing by Jan. 1 of the subsequent year, a penalty of 12 per cent is tacked on, and recurs every new year the taxes remain unpaid.
