Delinquent B&O taxes and municipal fees are due by Dec. 17. If they're not paid by that date, the city of Logan may be taking business owners to court. December 17 is the deadline before the city will take action against outstanding debtors.
The topic has been discussed for months at council meetings at the Logan City Hall, and the city is reportedly owed thousands of dollars in outstanding taxes and fees, which would be helpful at a time when city finances are ebbing. Other municipalities in Logan County also face the same problem, which has been discussed at town council meetings in Man and West Logan. The city of Logan may be the first to take outstanding deadbeats to court, however, to collect on what is owed. That was the message from the Logan City Council meeting on Tuesday.
City Clerk Amber Gore said there is still a major problem in the city with businesses and residents who have been completely nonresponsive to letters sent by city hall and stories in the media.
"Some of them are major businesses, too," Gore said. "We sent out 189 letters and there were articles in The Logan Banner which did help some."
Gore warned that after the deadline, the city will figure out the exact amount owed and the bills will be taken to Logan Magistrate Court where debtors will face legal action for collections.
City Accountant Jeff Valet said some of the city's current financial crunch came from the fact that the city had three payrolls to make in the month of November and that there has been an ongoing problem with getting the city's mail on time. Valet explained that many people and vendors send their B&O taxes and municipal fees in through the mail and that the mail has been late by as many as nine days before any payments came in, recently. Valet said he had looked into the matter and did not believe it was the fault of local mail carriers.
"The picture is not that good," Valet admitted. "We are in a deficit of $40,000."
Valet said a reimbursement check for $8,900 for fire department equipment was also late.
Valet said other municipalities in nearby Mingo County are having the same problem with late mail delivery. Valet was asked to look into the matter of the late mail by councilmembers.
In other city business:
Council approved a motion made by Councilman David Steele to begin accepting applications for Chief of Police for the City of Logan. Several months ago, Police Chief David White resigned from the position and council replaced him with Councilman Les Goldie, who served as chief briefly before leaving the city to take another job. White was then reappointed as acting chief until a new boss could be chosen. When the topic was brought up last month, it was tabled as then Mayor Ellis was in the hospital. He died not long after allegedly due to complications from gall bladder surgery.
Councilman Tom Fink noted the mayor usually hired a chief of police and the council approved or voted against the hiring.
Post a Comment
