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Volusia County. Revenue Division. Welcome Citizen’s Academy Class of 2013. We Are Special!. 64 counties in Florida have elected Tax Collectors 3 counties (Volusia, Broward, & Miami-Dade) have appointed officials (Revenue Director)
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Volusia County Revenue Division Welcome Citizen’s Academy Class of 2013
We Are Special! • 64 counties in Florida have elected Tax Collectors • 3 counties (Volusia, Broward, & Miami-Dade) have appointed officials (Revenue Director) • Since Volusia County is a Charter Government, tax collection falls under the Revenue Division in the Financial & Administrative Services Department • Results in efficiencies by sharing resources such as personnel, accounting, legal, & information technology & economies of scale in purchasing
Duties of Revenue Division • Agent for: • Florida Department of Revenue • Billing, collection & administration of property taxes • Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles • Vehicle, vessel, & mobile home registrations, & title work • Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission • Issuance of fishing & hunting permits • Cashier for other county revenues such as building and development fees, water bills, Votran passes, etc.
Taxes • Tourist & Convention Development Tax • 6% Tax (3% & 3%) on short term rental of living accommodations (6 months or less). • Business Tax (formerly Occupational Licenses) • A tax for doing business in Volusia County (most common rates $22 & $30). • Public Service Tax • A tax on electricity & metered or bottled gas in unincorporated Volusia County only (10% of gross sales). • Communication Service Tax • A tax on communications services collected by DOR & sent to the County (5.22%). • Property Tax • Real Property: Land, buildings, & improvements to land. • Tangible Personal Property: Equipment & items used in a business such as furniture, tools, computers, etc. • Centrally Assessed Property: Railroad tracks or fixed assets owned or leased by a railroad company.
Property Tax • The elected Property Appraiser, Morgan Gilreath, determines the appraised value of properties in Volusia County, the exemptions due to property owners, and the owner name & mailing address for each piece of property. • The Volusia County Council, and other Taxing Authorities set the millage rates. • The Revenue Office bills & collects the property taxes based on the information provided to us by the Property Appraiser and Taxing Authorities.
Taxing Authorities • We collect for 31 Taxing Authorities • 17 Municipal • 4 County (General Fund, Library, Volusia Forever & ECHO) • 4 Special Taxing Districts (Municipal Service, Fire, Mosquito Control, & Ponce Inlet Port Authority) • 3 Hospital (Halifax, Southeast Volusia, & West Volusia) • 2 State (St Johns River Water Management & Florida Inland Navigation) • School Board • We distribute current collections weekly through May, and delinquents, BTRs, and interest monthly
Property Tax Timeline • Tax Bills are mailed November 1st. • 4% discount if paid in November. • 3% discount in December • 2% discount in January • 1% discount in February • Payments not postmarked by March 31st are delinquent. • A penalty for late payment is added to unpaid accounts on April 1st.
Delinquent Tax Collection • Collection efforts • Tangible Taxes: • Warrants issued for the levy and seizure of the property. • Real Property Taxes: • Tax Lien Certificates are sold at an online auction & earn up to 18% simple annual interest. If interested, go to bidvolusia.com. • Tax Deed Auction proceedings can begin if Tax Lien isn’t redeemed after 2 years
Tag & Title • We process over 460,000 vehicle & vessel renewals & 110,000 title transfers annually. • Can renew online at https://www.volusia.county-taxes.com/tcb/app/renew/renewals. • Registrations expire at midnight on your birthday, not at the end of your birth month. • 120 specialty plates are currently available for environmental & other causes, organizations, military, professional sports teams & universities for an extra $15 - $25.
Tag & Title • Handicapped Parking Permits - Volusia County has approximately 44,000 holders of blue permanent disabled parking permits. Now they must be recertified every 4 years. • Mobile Homes – We sell approx. 26,000 annual decals to mobile/manufactured homes registered in rental parks or retirement communities.
Tag & Title • Toll By Plate - This new all electronic toll system located on the Florida Turnpike captures images of the license plate and bills the customer. If you fail to pay your toll bill a Registration Stop will be placed on your vehicle registration and you will not be able to renew until you pay the tolling authority. • A little over 3,000 hunting & fishing licenses are sold annually. • Web Cams - Check at volusia.org to see if any of the 4 Volusia County Tag, Title & Tax Offices are busy before you get there.
Our Accomplishments • Conversion to new web based revenue collection software in October 2009 has allowed us to realize a tremendous number of efficiencies, and do more with fewer staff. • Public website is much more user friendly and informative. http://www.volusia.org/revenue/ • Also handle the domestic partnership registry