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LISBON -- The village is renewing efforts to collect delinquent municipal income taxes.
Village council on Tuesday authorized village solicitor Alec Beech to file charges against six people who failed to respond to certified letters advising them of the tax delinquency.
The six were among 17 people who were recently sent letters by village tax administrator Megan Richards notifying them they had failed to pay the 1.5 percent municipal income tax, which will increase to 2 percent in 2020. Of the 11 other delinquency letters, five were returned as undeliverable, and the remaining six people have entered into payment plans.
Richards said she has been working since this summer on compiling a list of delinquencies. She was hired in 2018 after the former tax administrator resigned in July.
She has identified 43 people to date who owe a combined $40,000 in back taxes, with several dating back to 2008 but most only going back to 2012. Penalties and interest bring the total debt to $61,000.
Beech said the delinquent tax charge is a first-degree misdemeanor, which carries a maximum possible penalty of six months in jail and $1,000 fine.
The news come as a time when mayor-elect Peter Wilson would like council to take a look a second look at hiring the Regional Income Tax Agency to take over municipal income tax collections because it could save the village $17,000 a year. Council voted down the idea in February, saying residents preferred the convenience and personal touch with having someone at village hall they can meet with.
tgiambroni@mojonews.com