By Betsy Finklea
The Dillon County Council has passed two readings of an ordinance for the installment payments of real property taxes.
What is this ordinance and who can participate? At the request of The Herald, County Administrator Clay Young, Finance Director Richard Gaddy, County Attorney Alan Berry, and County Treasurer Jamie Estes (via telephone) explained and answered questions about this ordinance.
The ordinance is for the pre-payment of taxes for real property for the following year in installments. It is not a post-payment plan.
County Attorney Berry said that real property is land and non-movable structures on the land such as a house or a building.. This ordinance does not apply to vehicle taxes such as cars, boats, etc. It does not apply to mobile homes, Berry said, unless they are detitled and part of the real estate and established as a residence. It also does not apply to homeowners with a mortgage  in an escrow account. People who are delinquent on their taxes cannot participate, and if one misses a payment, the county can refuse to let that person be on the plan.
In the event that someone misses a payment and is dismissed from the program, their money is refunded, and they must make the full payment of their tax bill by January 15th.
The payments are estimated and based on the previous year’s tax bill. If the millage increases or decreases or the property is affected by reassessment which occurs every five years, the final installment will be adjusted for that difference.
Those wanting to participate must notify the treasurer’s office in December of the year prior to when they want to begin making payments.
Those who qualify for the plan would make payments on February 15, April 15, June 15, August 15, and October 15. The remaining balance will be due on January 15 of the following taxable year.
Some of the counties who have a similar plan include York, Dorchester, Charleston, Horry, and Georgetown.
The money collected is put into an account until the final payment is made and cannot be distributed to entities such as the municipalities or the school board. Finance Director Richard Gaddy said the account would have only a short-term interest, and this interest would be so negligible that there would have to be a substantial number of participants to come out with any money from the interest. Gaddy said the software program for the system would cost approximately $8,800 and has a $200 per year maintenance fee. It would take years to even generate enough interest to pay for the software.  The cost to the treasurer is unknown and will depend on, in part, if she has to hire additional staff to handle this additional work created by the ordinance. Other offices that could potentially be affected include the assessor’s office and the auditor’s office.
County Treasurer Jamie Estes said, “If taxpayer dollars are to be used for any program, it should be available to all. This does not do that.”
Since the first payment date of the year has passed, those who qualify must pay their 2016 taxes in full by January 15, 2017.  They would then make their first installment payment on February 1, 2017 for the tax bill due by January 15, 2018