Delinquent property tax collection
Kentucky Department of Revenue
FOR ANY CERTIFICATE OF DELINQUENCY THAT HAS NOT BEEN PURCHASED, Payment of the full amount due plus any accrued interest may be made to the County Clerk’s Office. Payment should be made to:
CAMPBELL COUNTY CLERKS OFFICE ;1098 MONMOUTH STREET, SUITE 204, NEWPORT, KY, 41018
An important responsibility of the County Attorney is the collection of delinquent property taxes. The County Attorney is statutorily required to administer and collect the delinquent ad valorem real and personal property taxes for property located within Campbell County pursuant to KRS Chapter 134 by agreement with the Kentucky Department of Revenue. These duties include assisting the Property Valuation Administration in Tax Assessment Appeals, working with the Sheriff and County Clerk on all tax matters, and overseeing the collection, sale and foreclosure of delinquent tax certificates. The efforts are all part of meeting the Kentucky Constitutional Duty to impose tax for the support of our schools, communities, fire districts and governmental partners.
TAX COLLECTION PROCESS
Every year, a tax bill based on the assessed value is issued for each parcel of real estate in Campbell County. These tax bills are generally issued in October each year with a due date of December 31st.
The tax bill is payable through the Sheriff’s Office from November 1st to April 15th.
You can look up the current year real estate tax bill through the Sheriff’s Office at: https://sheriff.campbellcountykentucky.com/. To review the real estate assessed value, please visit the Campbell County PVA website.
If the tax bill is not paid by April 15th, it is turned over to the County Clerk and becomes a Certificate of Delinquency which is recorded as a lien on the real estate pursuant to KRS 134.122. The tax bill is also a personal obligation of whomever owned the property on the January 1st assessment date of a given year.
This Certificate includes additional penalties, fees and interest at a rate of twelve percent (12%) per annum pursuant to KRS 134.125. This amount due will increase each month with the accrual of additional interest.
If your Certificate of Delinquency remains unpaid for 90 days, pursuant to KRS 134.452, “third-party purchasers” can then purchase your Certificate of Delinquency by paying the amount due.
The first offering of Certificate of Delinquency’s for sale each year is typically done at what is known as a Tax Bill Sale which is usually held in August each year.
Certificates of Delinquency that are eligible to be purchased may be subject to being purchased by a third-party at any time. If purchased, the Certificate of Delinquency lien is assigned to the third-party purchaser and the third-party purchaser may impose substantial additional administrative costs and fees. Before a Certificate of Delinquency is sold, the County Attorney’s Office will attempt to notify the property owner by regular mail.
FOR ANY CERTIFICATE OF DELINQUENCY THAT HAS NOT BEEN PURCHASED, Payment of the full amount due plus any accrued interest may be made to the County Clerk’s Office. Payment should be made to:
CAMPBELL COUNTY CLERK’S OFFICE
1098 MONMOUTH STREET, SUITE 204
NEWPORT, KENTUCKY 41071
Acceptable forms of payment by mail include Certified or Cashier’s Check or Money Orders. The County Clerk will also accept cash and credit card (Visa, MasterCard, or Discover) in person. The County Clerk’s Office does not accept personal checks or phone payments.
IF THE CERTIFICATE OF DELINQUENCY HAS BEEN PURCHASED BY A THIRD-PARTY PURCHASER, YOU MUST CONTACT THE PURCHASER FOR DETAILS ON HOW TO PAY.
A Certificate of Delinquency cannot be sold to a “third-party purchaser” only if the taxpayer has entered into a payment agreement with the County Attorney’s Office, or if the subject property is involved in current litigation (foreclosure or bankruptcy generally) in which the County Attorney is a party.
If you are interested in purchasing a tax bill as a third-party purchaser, please contact the Campbell County Clerk, Land Records Department or visit the Kentucky Department of Revenue website for more information.
Payment Plans
If you are unable to pay a Certificate of Delinquency (overdue tax bill) in full, you may qualify for a payment plan with the Campbell County Attorney’s Office. If the Certificate of Delinquency has been sold to a third-party purchaser, you will not be eligible, but you may want to contact the third-party purchaser who may be willing to enter a payment plan.
To have a valid payment plan, the property owner must have signed a payment plan agreement with the County Attorney’s Office and made the first month’s payment.
Payment plans generally run from 4 to 8 months depending on the amount of the tax bill and property owner’s income. Payments must be in form of cashier check, money order, personal check or cash made payable to the Campbell County Attorney. Credit cards are not accepted. Payments are due by the 15th of each month. Entering a payment plan agreement does not stop interest from continuing to accumulate but does remove the Certificate of Delinquency from being available to purchase by a third-party purchaser.
Failure to make any of the required payments will void the payment plan agreement and the tax bill will be release for other collection efforts, including but not limited to, sale to a third-party purchaser. Moreover, if the payment plan is not complied with, all reasonable costs associated with the County Attorney’s Office in administering said payment plan will be charged against the payment plan funds held by the County Attorney.
To sign up for a payment plan, please contact us by the Online Delinquent Tax Payment Plan Request Form, phone at (859) 491-7700 or in person at the County Attorney’s Office at 319 York Street, Newport, Kentucky 41071.
Waiver of Penalty
In certain very limited circumstances, may a property owner obtain a waiver of property tax penalties and interest under KRS 131.081(6). These circumstances are governed by Title 103 of Kentucky Administrative Regulations promogulated by the Kentucky Revenue Cabinet
These instances include:
Taxpayer has relied on erroneous written advice from the Department or a local official. (103 KAR 1:040(1))
Death or serious illness of a taxpayer or a member of the taxpayer's immediate family at time the tax bills were mailed or due. (103 KAR 1 :040(2))
Death or serious illness of the taxpayers tax return preparer at the time the tax bills were mailed or due. (103 KAR 1 :040(3))
Unavoidable absence of the taxpayer at the time tax bills were mailed or due. (103 KAR 1:040(4))
Destruction or unavailability of taxpayer records due to a catastrophic event at the time the tax bills were mailed or due. (103 KAR 1:040(5))
Inability to obtain records in custody of a third party. For example, taxpayer divorced and the tax bill was mailed to the person other than who received the property under the terms of the divorce decree. (103 KAR 1 :040(6))
Employee theft or defalcation (misuse of funds) of taxpayers financial records. (103 KAR 1:040(7))
Undue hardship which can include the loss of a job or unexpected emergency at the time the tax bills were mailed or due. (103 KAR 1 :040(8))
Human error. For example, the taxpayers name or address may be misspelled and the taxpayer does not receive the bill. (103 KAR 1 :040(9))
Erroneous written advice by tax advisor on which it was reasonable for the taxpayer to rely. (103 KAR 1 :040(11))
Reliance on substantial legal authority. (103 KAR 1 :040(11))
Lack of previous tax and penalty experience by the taxpayer. For example, the taxpayer moved in or out of state, but failed to update the address with the property valuation administrator's office. Another example is when a taxpayer purchases property after January 1 and the tax bill is sent to the January 1 owner. The new owner is unaware of the delinquency, the sheriff sends a second notice or the county attorney contacts the taxpayer about the delinquent bill. (103 KAR 1 :040(12))
Miscellaneous. The taxpayer has submitted a written waiver of penalties and it is decided that the statements of the taxpayer establishes reasonable cause for delay in filing of a return or paying a tax which clearly negates negligence on the part of the taxpayer. (103 KAR 1 :040(14))
To request a waiver, you must complete Waiver Request Form and submit it with all supporting documentation to the Campbell County Attorney’s Office, Civil Division, 319 York Street, Newport, Kentucky 41071.
Once received, the Request Form is reviewed and investigated (as necessary) by the County Attorney’s Office. After review and recommendation, the Request is submitted to the County Clerk, Sheriff and County Attorney, each of whom will approve or deny the request. A request must be approved by all three officials to remove all penalties and interest. Approval is discretionary may be withheld by any official for any reason even if the property owner has qualifying circumstances. Waivers generally take 7 to 10 business days to process.