Some tax bills sent to Riverhead property owners this month have not yet been delivered, according to Riverhead’s receiver of taxes.
Tax Receiver Laurie Zaneski said in an interview that some people have contacted her office saying they have not received their property tax bills for the 2022-2023 tax year.
This is the first time something like this has happened and it is unknown how many property owners might be affected, Zaneski said.
Zaneski said property owners who have not yet received their bills should contact her office at 631-727-3200 ext. 247. The office has a record of all the tax bills and can send out a duplicate bill to residents if needed. Property owners can also access their tax bills through the town’s online portal. Tax bills can also be paid online, but online payments are subject to a 2.5% “convenience fee.”
The first half tax can be paid without penalty through Jan. 10. After that, a penalty of 1% per month is assessed up to May 31. After May 31, the bill must be paid in full, including penalties and interest, to the Suffolk County Comptroller’s Office.
Zaneski said her office followed the usual procedures to issue tax bills. The Suffolk County Legislature authorizes the collection of taxes at its first meeting of December — this year, on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Then the tax receiver’s office starts printing the bills, numbering around 10,500 — one for every tax parcel of land within the town, Zaneski said. The town’s mailing company picked up the bills on the afternoon of Thursday, Dec. 8, the town’s mailing company came to collect the bills and dropped them off Dec. 12 at the U.S. Postal Service processing center in Melville.
But in the last week, Zaneski was contacted by property owners in town who said they did not receive bills. That includes farmers who own multiple adjoining tax parcels, but who only received tax bills for half their parcels and residential property owners who did not receive their bills — while their neighbors did receive theirs, Zaneski said.
“It’s very, very sporadic. We don’t know why,” Zaneski said. “And I can’t get an answer from anyone. But as far as my office, we printed them. The mailing company signed off on that number. The post office signed off on that number.”
Zaneski has been in contact with the USPS processing center in Melville, where the bills were dropped off, to try to figure out why they haven’t been delivered to some residents.
“They’re saying it’s Christmas,” Zaneski said, referring to the impact of holiday mail volume on the postal system, causing delays.
A representative of the USPS Mid-Island Processing and Distribution Center did not return a call requesting comment.
Zaneski said she is doing all she can to try to figure out why the bills haven’t shown up in some property owners’ mailboxes. However, she stresses, whether or not tax bills are physically received, property owners are still responsible for payment according to the Suffolk County Tax Act.
New property owners may not get their tax bills as a result of the cyber attack on Suffolk County. The cyber attack delayed the transmittal of deeds to the town’s tax offices, so if a property was recently transferred, the town might not have been notified and the tax bills may have been mailed to the previous owner. Zaneski said new homeowners should call town offices and inform them of the transfer.
If a property owner’s bank or mortgage servicing company pays the tax bill, the owner will receive an informational bill from the tax receiver’s office by Jan. 31, according to the tax receiver’s office.
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.