February 2022, Vol. 16, Issue 2

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Dear Friends:

Well, the new year has gotten off to a challenging start here in the Tax Collector’s Office as we are managing through the latest COVID-19 surge.  Like many other offices and businesses, this latest surge has resulted in numerous staff being out in order to rest and get healthy.  My staff is working diligently to process the influx of work we are receiving as a result of being in the middle of tax season.  Rest assured, that our focus is to process the volumes of work as quickly as possible and that our staff is safe and healthy.  I, along with our entire team, greatly appreciate your patience as we work through these challenges.

Notwithstanding these challenges, I am thrilled that in February, our new service center in the City of Westlake, will open for business!  This new state of the art 23,735-square-foot service center will replace the current facility in Royal Palm Beach and serve the
western communities of our county.

I look forward to welcoming clients to this new location!

Sincerely,

Anne M. Gannon
Constitutional Tax Collector, Serving Palm Beach County

MAKING AN APPOINTMENT IS EASY AS 1,2,3

The Tax Collector offers many services such as driver license, motor vehicle, vessel, property tax, tourist development tax, business tax, and more. There is a good chance that at some point you will need to visit one of our six service centers within the next year for one or more of the services listed above. We want to make this process as client friendly as possible by breaking it down to three easy steps:

1. Browse the Types of Service that we offer to determine what appointment you need
2. Check our latest guidelines on How Appointments Work to prepare for your visit to one of our locations
3. Make Your Appointment by selecting the service you need along with the location, date, and time

REMINDER: Our appointment system can only schedule appointments up to 60 days in advance. If no appointments are available for the requested transaction, please continue to check back periodically for appointments to become available. Are you ready to schedule your appointment? Click here to Make Your Appointment!

NEW RESOURCE AVAILABLE FOR VAB PETITIONERS

The Tax Collector’s Office is committed to working with our partner agencies to best serve the residents of Palm Beach County. We’ve teamed up with the office of Dorothy Jacks, Property Appraiser, on a fact sheet called “What to Expect After Your Value Adjustment Board (VAB) Petition is Administratively Granted,” which will be provided to clients involved with the petition process.

The Value Adjustment Board (VAB) is an independent entity which includes elected officials and citizen members who approve Special Magistrates to preside in a public hearing format. Joseph Abruzzo, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller’s office serves as the Clerk of the VAB; processing all petitions, scheduling hearings and maintaining all records.

Each August, Palm Beach County’s taxpayers are notified of their property’s assessed and market value by the Property Appraiser’s office. At that time, the property owner can file a petition with the VAB if they feel the assessment, classification or exemption status for their property is incorrect.  Regardless of the outcome or pending status of the petition, the required portion of the property taxes are due by April 1 to the Tax Collector to avoid penalties, as per Florida Statute 194.014. This new resource sheet will assist clients who have had their VAB petition administratively granted during this time.

An overview of the petition process is available on the Clerk’s website at www.mypalmbeachclerk.com including an online portal for filing.

CHARITABLE GIVING

In our December issue, we talked about the generosity and giving spirit of our employees.  This holiday season, they “knocked our socks off” in a holiday sock drive for one of our charity partners, Living Hungry.  Employees were challenged to donate 1,000 pairs of socks to the local charity that partners with the school district to deliver supplies to those who need it most- homeless students right here in the Palm Beach County community.

Employees doubled that goal and donated 2,087 pairs of socks!  Socks are one of the most-requested items; one fresh pair of clean and new socks adds dignity to an already challenging circumstance of being homeless while a full-time student. The majority of our donation will go to elementary students. See more on our community involvement at: https://www.pbctax.com/about-us/community-involvement/.