Condo Owners Sent Incorrect Property Tax Bills Update – Lt. Governor Responds

Condominium owners in the territory might want to hold off paying their property tax bill until new, corrected bills are issued. Some property tax bills sent out June 1 incorrectly used a commercial property tax rate of 0.711 percent, nearly double the residential tax rate of 0.377 percent.

Both tax rates are set in the 2019 edition of the U.S. Virgin Islands Code.

Lt. Gov. Tregenza Roach’s office issued a statement late Wednesday saying new tax bills were being printed. Neither Roach nor Tax Assessor Ira Mills, reached earlier by telephone, explained why the mistake was made.

“One of the things I don’t like to tell people is don’t pay their tax bill,” Mills said. “We would in fact send out supplemental tax bills so they can have new tax bills at the correct rates.”

The bills are due June 30.

Suzanne Mabe, a St. Thomas real estate agent and broker, said she heard from a property owner who paid their bill in person – not using the new payment web portal — and was given the correct rate. That’s not going to work for most off-island V.I. land owners.

She thinks the tax office’s new website is the culprit.

“Why they launched this right at the time the tax bills go out, I have no idea,” Mabe said. “It’s a software glitch.”

Mills said the issue was not caused by software problems with the portal but stemmed from a “communications issue.” He couldn’t say when the new bills would be in customer’s hands.

“Let me put it this way,” he said. “Changing the rates was not intended.”

Roach said as much in his statement:

“What we are witnessing with the new system is basically growing pains, but this new system will result in the overall improvement of the collection system and increased revenues to our government. We are asking taxpayers to bear with us as we work through the kinks and rectify their issues one by one. I sincerely apologize for the inconveniences,” Roach said.

Roach defended the new system, however, as a necessary step forward.

“The newly converted billing and collection system is now capturing and utilizing data in accordance with industry standards. The system will include new features that will enhance the ability to perform searches, get comparable sales data, make payments, and perform other related property services,” he said.

Condo owners weren’t alone in the problems. Property owners who previously qualified for and received Homestead Tax credits, may have received tax bills wherein the credit is not shown or applied to the bill amount. Roach’s statement said this error had been corrected in the internal system by the Real Property Tax Division and supplemental bills will be issued indicating the applied credit amount.

Those making amnesty payments may have also received incorrect bills that do not reflect their payments. Property owners who took advantage of the property tax amnesty and made payments during the designated amnesty period will receive supplemental bills showing only amounts currently due, according to Roach’s statement.