Leslie Young, Craven County tax collector, told the Board of Commissioners on Jan. 5 that the tax office saw its busiest day of the year and that recent process changes improved taxpayer experience and throughput.

Young said the county provided free parking to help with flow and that she and staff "worked the line," collecting more than $2,832,000 at the counter during the four-day period surrounding the year-end tax deadline. She described cross-training among four collection staff and praised the operational support of County Manager Jack Bight, chief appraiser Justin Deese and Sheriff Chip Hughes for maintaining safety and logistics during peak demand.

Young said the county will continue the free-parking arrangement going forward and that she plans to report delinquent totals at the board's first Monday in February meeting as required by statute. Commissioners thanked Young for customer-service efforts and for easing the year-end tax process for residents.