County Takes Claim of $950k in Property Tax Overpayments

By City News Service:

The Board of Supervisors this week approved depositing nearly $950,000 in property tax overpayments into the general fund, a month after Riverside County Treasurer-Tax Collector Don Kent had requested that no action be taken to give prospective claimants a little extra time to get their money back.

According to Treasurer-Tax Collector documents, in the roughly 30-day window that Kent left open, 33 claimants came forward, resulting in $27,000 in previously unclaimed receipts being paid out.

The total amount approved Tuesday by the board for transfer to the general fund was $947,888.

Between May 1 and Aug. 1, the county advertised via newspapers and the county website regarding how people could check to determine whether they were entitled to any of the money.

Kent said the Office of the Treasurer-Tax Collector started out with 2,214 individual overpayments totaling $2.35 million last year. But thanks to stepped-up efforts by treasurer staff -- including phone calls to some recipients alerting them to the fact they had money waiting -- the amount was dramatically reduced.

As of Sept. 23, there were 1,529 prospective claimants. As of today, 1,496 remained. However, with the board-approved transfer, there is little chance now that a claim would be honored. Legally, it doesn’t have to be, according to county officials.

The overpayments resulted from changes in the tax roll that occurred between the time a bill was due and when it was paid.

According to a list published on the treasurer’s website, the amounts available to be claimed ranged from around $11 to just under $60,000.

Several companies and individuals were mentioned multiple times. Familiar names on the list included Chase and Citi banks, DR Horton, Exxon Mobil, Fidelity National Title Co., the Outdoor Channel, the Riverside Community Health Foundation and Sport Chalet Inc.

Last year, board members expressed concerns about the number of government agencies -- among them the city of Riverside and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs -- with unclaimed money, prompting several supervisors to suggest that the county redouble its outreach efforts. No government entities were included on this year’s list.

Under state law, a county must hold unclaimed property tax overpayments in abeyance for at least four years before placing the funds in an active account for discretionary use. In addition to the state mandate, the county holds money for an additional three months to give prospective claimants a little additional time, according to Kent.