Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Tax Refunds topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Beaufort County to issue about $1.6 million in missed interest refunds to property taxpayers
Summary
County officials told the council they identified roughly 5,500 property refund accounts that did not receive interest dating to 2020 and plan to issue approximately $1.6 million in unpaid interest within weeks; staff said the general fund may require a budget amendment to cover the cost.
Beaufort County administrators told the county council on Aug. 11 that staff has identified about 5,500 real‑property refund accounts that did not receive required interest payments dating back to 2020 and will begin issuing checks to affected taxpayers in the coming weeks.
"Approximately $1,600,000, which would come from the general fund," County Administrator Michael Moore said, describing the amount staff expects to distribute for unpaid interest. Moore said the assessor’s office recalculated the amounts after the county discovered the interest figures had not been computed since 2020.
The administrator said staff is working with the county’s CFO and the state Department of Revenue to process the refunds and that the county may need to adopt a budget amendment to cover the expense. "We're just gonna have to see how that plays out, but we do intend to make those refunds," Moore said.
Council members pressed staff on the cause and legal limits on refunds. Councilman Dawson asked whether the county would go back farther than the state’s refund look‑back period; Moore said the county is planning to make taxpayers whole because the omission was a county error. "It was back at 2020," Moore said when asked when the miscalculation began.
Auditor TJ Cad and assessor staff explained how the interest accrues after the allowed 70‑day appeal period and described manual work required to correct records in an older tax system. "When we looked at the roster today, I got 6,113 hits or line item numbers that I have to do to get that in there," the auditor said, explaining the time‑intensive line‑by‑line system entry.
Moore said the county has identified those owed interest and will send checks without requiring taxpayers to file claims. "We have found the errors. We know where the errors are, and we'll send out a check to the constituents," an assessor staff member said.
The council did not take formal action during the meeting but signaled support for timely refunds and asked staff to notify constituents when checks are mailed. If a budget amendment is required, staff said it will return to council with the request for approval.
Next steps: staff will begin issuing checks in the coming weeks and will provide updates to the council and the public about the refund schedule and any required budget actions.
