It's tax time again, the time of year when many property owners dread long lines at the collector's office to pay their taxes. However, local taxpayers can avoid those long lines and complete the entire process online, saving time and money. KSMU's Theresa Bettmann has the details.
http://ozarkspub.vo.llnwd.net/o37/KSMU/audio/mp3/online-payments-most-convenient-taxpayer-greene-county-official-says_49474.mp3
Tax bills for 2012 were mailed to many county property owners earlier this month. Taxpayers now have the option to print statements, pay bills and print receipts without ever having to step foot in the office. Greene County Collector of Revenue Scott Payne says people who paid their taxes online last year won't be getting a paper bill, but an emailed version instead.
"The ability to pay online is not new. We have been doing that since 2005, I believe. However, it has grown tremendously. The first year that we collected payments online we had around 5,000 payments. And this past year we had almost 21,000 on-time payments online," Payne says.
Payne says the Collector's office shares the general revenue budget of Greene County. He says wherever they can save money; it can be used for more important purposes. Payne says by paying online it saves both the taxpayers and the county time and money.
"Since the person who makes an online payment doesn't require us to mail a receipt to them, that alone saves over $14,000 in postage and envelop expense. So that alone was a $14,000 savings over when we had to mail a receipt to the people," says Payne.
Property taxes must be paid by December 31st to avoid penalties. Payne says there are no transaction fees applied when paying taxes online. You can find a link to more information below.
Click hereto visit the Greene County Collector web page.
