County Treasurers. A county treasurer is the custodian of county money and the administrator of the county's financial transactions. Treasurers have many duties enumerated in statute, which include receiving and disbursing money, issuing receipts for money received, and maintaining financial records reflecting receipts and disbursements.
 
Tax Statements and Payment Due Dates. All real and personal property in Washington is subject to property tax, unless the law provides a specific exemption. All taxes due on real and personal property are due and payable to the treasurer. To avoid interest and penalties, at least half of the amount owed is due by April 30th, and the balance is due by October 31st. If the tax is less than $50, the entire payment must be paid in full by April 30th.

Tax Delinquencies and Payment Options. Delinquent tax payments are subject to interest and penalties. Interest is charged at 1 percent per month on the full amount due from the month of delinquency until the delinquency is paid in full. A 3 percent penalty is also imposed on the unpaid amount of current taxes on June 1st, with an additional 8 percent penalty imposed on the unpaid amount of current taxes as of December 1st. Taxpayers are authorized to participate in a payment agreement with the treasurer for past due tax delinquencies. If a taxpayer is participating in a payment agreement, the treasurer may not assess additional penalties on any taxes included within the payment agreement.

Tax payments generated by an automated check processing service or payments with no discernable postmark date and received within three days of the 30th day of April or the 31st day of October are not delinquent.

PRO:  A taxpayer can pay their taxes on time and still be penalized for paying late. The current statute does not allow leeway for treasurers to determine if a penalty should be assessed. If property tax payments come in without a postmark, it is considered late. This issue is increasing because, with a check pay service, those payments are often not postmarked and in rural post offices, mail is sent to central post offices for processing and that adds time. This bill allows a treasurer to not fine a taxpayer when the payment was made on time.

OTHER:  A taxpayer can pay their taxes through a bill pay system and if the bank does not mail the check timely, the taxpayer can be considered delinquent. There is concern with this bill as it would treat some forms of payment, such as online bill pay, different than others. The due date should be fair and consistent across all forms of payment. Taxpayers receive their statements in February or  March, so there is opportunity to ensure their payments are received on time. The language specifying three days should be changed to three business days because if the due date falls on a weekend, the payment is due the following Monday.