Computer causes another problem with county tax bills, this time sending bills for property people don't own

Confused about the Beaufort County property tax bill that recently landed in your mailbox?

You're not alone.

County offices have been flooded this week with taxpayers, many of whom received bills for rental properties they do not own or that had a "0" where the amount of their homestead exemptions should have been.

Auditor Sharon Burris, whose office generates and mails the bills, said Tuesday her staff is still trying to determine how many bills were incorrect. They are relying on taxpayers to inform them of problems.

Taxpayers have until Jan. 15 to make payments without penalty.

"I spent eight hours out in our hall (Monday) with a line of taxpayers, from two minutes after 8 until 4:30," Burris said.

Gerry Thornton arrived at 9 a.m. Monday at the auditor's office in Bluffton after receiving one tax bill for his primary residence and a second, in the same envelope, for a rental property he has never owned.

"There were probably 40 people already in line when I got there," said Thornton, who was quickly told the error would be corrected.

A glitch in a new computer system is to blame for some residents receiving additional bills for rental properties they don't own, Burris said. The transition to a Manatron system from the decades-old Legacy software has caused several problems for the county, including leaving thousands of residents waiting for new car tags and vehicle renewal notices in recent months.

Part of the latest problem has hit residents whose homes should be taxed at the 4-percent rate for primary residences but were taxed at the 6-percent rate for secondary homes.

"This year, with the new system, something happened," Burris said.

Staff are not sure why the error occurred.

Her office is trying to figure out how many people have been affected, and the information technology staff is working to fix the computer error, Burris said.

"In the long run, we're going to get them off the books," she said of the incorrect tax notices. "It's frustrating that they got them, and I know it's frustrating to them, but it's not something that can't be easily corrected."

Many taxpayers also are concerned about their homestead exemptions, which provide property tax relief for South Carolina residents who are blind, disabled or 65 and older.

The exemptions were applied to the total tax bill but showed up as zero on the exemption line-item on the statement, Burris said. She said a printing error moved the credit from the "Appraised Value" section of the bill to the "Account Data" section.

"In 99.9 percent of the cases, the homestead was actually calculated and credit given," Burris said.

• If you received a tax bill for a rental property you do not own, take it to the Auditor's Office or return it via fax, e-mail or mail.

Beaufort office: P.O. Box 458, Beaufort, SC 29901; 843-370-2555 (main line); 843-470-2550 (fax)

Bluffton office: 4819 Bluffton Parkway, Bluffton, SC 29910; 843-757-1500 ext. 229 (main line); 843-757-1035 (fax)

• For an explanation of how to read your tax bill, go to the Beaufort County Web site at www.bcgov.net and look for "Click here to view the sample 2009 tax bill."

• Taxpayers with questions can call theTreasurer's Office at 843-470-2766 and the Assessor's Office at 843-470-2850.