Birmingham, AL - If you own a home in Jefferson County, your property taxes may not have been paid. 

Phone calls have poured into the tax collector's office from people who say their mortgage company never received the tax bill.

The problem started when the county ran out of money to pay its workers.  That forced each department to put 67 percent of its payroll on leave without pay.  That led to delays in sending out tax bills, and now, delays by mortgage companies paying them.

When you get your tax bill from Jefferson County this year, you may notice something different.  There is a message from the county asking you verify payment through your mortgage holder.  That's if and when you get a bill.

"The IT department prints bills and we have to get the paper from the print shop, all those departments have had employees that were laid off which in turn threw us off," said Tax Collector J.T. Smallwood.

Each first of October, tax notices are mailed to homeowners and their mortgage companies.  This year, staff cuts left the office with only a handful of people to prepare bills.  That delayed Jefferson County sending them out until the end of the month.  Even now, some mortgage companies say they still have not received them.

"If you think about it, the entire county with 300,000 plus parcels, plus business collections, it's an improbably scenario to collect on all of those accounts with 5 or 6 people," said Smallwood.

He says recent refinancers and those whose mortgages were sold make up most of the delays.

"If you're in those two categories, we'll be more than delighted to work with you and waive those fees and interest."

But if you do not fall into those categories, check to see if your mortgage company outsources its tax payments. 

Smallwood says the notice on your bill does not mean it has not been paid.  He says they are putting everyone on alert, just in case.

"Hopefully, there are no other problems out there but, again, without a full staff, these are some of the things you run into."

Check the status of your tax payment here.

 

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