The Clark County Treasurer’s Office sent 6,000 residents an erroneous property tax bill last month.
The office mailed property tax statements for the second half of the year Sept. 16 to about 62,000 residents across the county. Of those, 6,000 residents who pay taxes through escrow accounts were incorrectly sent a statement due to a system setting.
The property tax bills indicated those residents had no escrow account on file and needed to pay their bills directly. Treasurer Alishia Topper said anyone who received this erroneous bill should simply disregard it.
“We apologize for any confusion this may have caused and are addressing customer concerns,” Topper said in an email Wednesday.
Mailing property tax statements to taxpayers who pay through an escrow account is not required by law. Topper chooses to save Clark County taxpayers money by only sending statements to taxpayers who pay directly.
Topper said residents who pay property taxes through an escrow account and have questions are encouraged to call her office at 564-397-2252, call their mortgage company or visit the Clark County Property Information Center.
Residents who have already paid the bill sent in error should contact the treasurer’s office as soon as possible for a full refund, Topper said.
Vancouver’s Jerri Clark was among the residents who received the erroneous bill.
Clark first reached out to the number listed on the bill, but she was unable to reach anyone. After that, she called her mortgage company, which encouraged her to reach out to the treasurer’s office.
A treasurer’s office staff member told her the bill was sent in error but did not tell her the source of the error, Clark said.
“It feels like our money is being transferred between all these companies behind the scenes, and I don’t have control over who’s doing what and if they’re doing it correctly,” Clark said. “But if something doesn’t get paid, it’s going to be my fault and responsibility. That’s why it was so alarming. It’s like the citizen is ultimately responsible for all of these things that we don’t have control over.”
Topper said the treasurer’s office has added a verification control for when future statements are sent to ensure the error doesn’t happen again.
Property taxes for the second half of the year are due Oct. 31.
