When in doubt, ask

Times Contributor      

 

Objection from a county ratepayer cleared up a tax account penalty that might have led to property seizure and auction. 

Unaware that information on his tax account was not the same as that listed on the mortgage caused confusion in the tax office. However, county policy didn’t require staff to contact the owner or follow-up on letters that had been returned to sender.

When the owner received the notice that his tax account was in arrears, he took umbrage at the penalty as the taxes were being paid by his bank; however, the county file listed the wrong bank. The owner always kept up with his bills and even paid the requested penalty, but he wanted an explanation why he wasn’t contacted as he had been in the offices doing other business with the county, was easy to find and was not avoiding attempts to reach him. He wanted the county to take some accountability for the mix-up, as the delay in notifying him ranged over two years.

“I feel sorry for the guy,” said councillor Alice Booth, on examination of the facts. “I am little concerned we are not looking after business.”

Councillor Don Vander Velde said that everyone knows they have to pay taxes, so they should do due diligence to ensure they are being paid.

“If we get a letter back, it is up to staff to look into it. To the best of my knowledge, we never got a letter,” said Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Alan Parkin. 

Booth said there are often errors in the post office, where returned letters end up in the dead letter files. 

“If we haven’t got a payment, pick up the phone and call them,” said Booth. “It doesn’t take a lot of time.”

Parkin said a simple phone call isn’t what it used to be either. Some people don’t have landlines or list their cell numbers, callers can be blocked and calls avoided.

Booth suggested since there was confusion on both sides of the issue, the penalty should be split half and half with the owner. Council approved this one time for this incident.

“We haven’t had many of these,” said Reeve Glenn Koester. “This is worth discussion and landowners should be phoned. 

He suggested a policy be put in place to ensure communication and follow-up takes place and directed the CAO to look into it.

There are currently 17 properties that are up for auction because of tax arrears which will be sold on March 27, 2014. For more details, see the county website.

 

Additional Peace officer 

Parkin requested permission to advertise for a community peace officer, which would increase officers to four for the county. 

“It is in the budget and there is provision for a level one community peace officer, it would bring us up to a fourth officer,” said Parkin. “We would not fill the position until it is approved, but we are looking to advertise.”

Council questioned if there was a vehicle for the officer and Parkin said they have allotted money for two new vehicles, with one for delivery after Feb. 1. They also questioned if the department was busy enough for the additional officer. The request shows that one officer will require paternity leave in June, which will leave the department short-staffed. It was felt the additional staff could also increase success with road ban coverage. Reeve Glenn Koester noted his opposition. However, council did approve the advertisement but reserved a hiring decision until more information was brought forward to council.

 

One mile of responsibility

Husky Oil has requested that the county develop one mile of road along the Boundary Road RR 214 to one of their pad sites. The company would cost-share the project but the county has reservations, because past contracts have been initiated and then cancelled by other companies.

The county usually covers engineering, land prep, gravel, culverts, sloping and fencing. The landowner is required to cover the other costs. Council discussed the need for the road and whether other roads could be used. There were no objections from the landowners.

Parkin suggested that they follow the existing policy but put an amending clause that the work must be completed within one year. If it is not completed, all the expenses incurred by the county for road development would have to be repaid by the company. Council approved the road with the amending clause. They wanted the county policy reflect the new changes. There was also a suggestion that a deposit could be requested which would be refunded on completion of all terms of the contract. 

Council asked the CAO to develop the policy and bring it back to council for decision. 

 

Meetings set

Wheatland Council will meet with Strathmore Council to improve communication on a number of shared issues. The meeting is set for the first part of February. Topics suggested for discussion will include shared land boundaries, water issues, user fees for ice facilities, and the hospital. 

Council will also meet with the provincial ministers as they attend conferences in the spring. They will be speaking with the head of the RCMP K division, and bringing water, funding and road concerns to provincial representative’s attention.  Any additional issues can be brought to the attention of your district representatives, so they can consider them before meetings commence.