COUNTY TAX BILLS NOW GOING OUT

JACKSON -- Tax bills for 1992 are being mailed and Cape Girardeau County Collector Harold Kuehle urged taxpayers to take note of bills they receive.

Taxpayers who receive tax bills are encouraged by Kuehle to open the bills promptly to make sure all information is correct. In particular, Kuehle advised taxpayers to take a close look at personal property tax bills to make sure vehicles and other items listed are correct.

He urged anyone with a problem or question about their tax bill to call his office at 243-4476.

Kuehle also said people who do not receive a tax bill should not automatically assume they do not owe anything. "Failure to get a tax bill does not relieve anyone of interest and penalty," said Kuehle.

"The most important thing to remember is, if you own real estate, you owe a tax," said Kuehle. "Whoever ends up with property has to pay a tax regardless of whether you get a bill or not."

Kuehle said many people get confused when they read the abstract for property and see that all taxes are paid. But that refers to back taxes and does not include 1992 taxes.

"If you own property, and within two weeks of today have not gotten a tax bill from my office or the previous owner, you need to call this office," said Kuehle.

"People need to open their tax bills and make sure they have all bills they have coming, that there is no error, and, if there is an error, it needs to be taken care of as quickly as possible rather than waiting until the end of December," he explained.

All personal property tax bills are based on what taxpayers owned as of Jan. 1. Earlier this year assessment lists were mailed to taxpayers asking them to identify personal property they owned as of Jan. 1.

Kuehle said he anticipated having all bills in the mail by Tuesday except for bills to taxpayers who submitted their assessment lists late. Those bills are being processed and will be mailed within a week.

Kuehle said tax bills are going out several days ahead of last year.

The collector said that most tax levies are about the same as last year except for residents of the Oak Ridge School District who approved a 28-cent levy increase.

Bills mailed by the county collector also include the amounts due for the city of Cape Girardeau. For about five years the county has been mailing bills for Cape Girardeau, and it is included as a line item on the bill.

The city of Jackson still mails its own bills. Those went out several weeks ago.

Addressed envelopes are included with the tax bills and Kuehle encouraged taxpayers to mail them to his office. They can be paid in person at the collector's offices in the county administration building in Jackson and in the Common Pleas Courthouse Annex at Cape Girardeau.

Tax bills are due by midnight Dec. 31.