Jefferson County Tax News

New voter certificates are sent to every registered voter in odd years. The new certificate will be blue and replace the current orange certificates. The new certificates will be used for elections occurring between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2017.

State law requires us to send new certificates in each odd year. These certificates have all changes that are current as of the time of mailing. Of course, voters may make changes throughout each time period and we encourage people to do so as they move or change names, etc.

Almost 134,000 certificates were mailed out today. Please call us at 409-835-VOTE (8683) if you have any questions.

The list below contains properties that have been bid into Jefferson County because of delinquent taxes. They are available for sale at public auction.  If you are interested in purchasing any of these properties, please email the Jefferson County Tax Office at property@co.jefferson.tx.us .   This email should include the following information:

Name of interested buyer

Interested buyer’s email address

Complete mailing address of interested buyer

A contact phone number for the interested buyer

The property account number/address the buyer is interested in

When the property is scheduled for sale you will be notified.

JEFFERSON COUNTY PROPERTY

Residents who wish to be a volunteer Deputy Registrar can do so online at the Secretary of State website: 

http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/pamphlets/deputy.shtml

After completing the course, you must take the exam at our office, 1149 Pearl, during regular office hours.  Upon satisfactory completion of the exam,  you will be appointed  as a volunteer deputy registrar, and be advised of any county-specific procedures for completing the duties of a volunteer deputy registrar. 

Please call us if you have any questions (409)835-8683.

The TAC office will conduct a delinquent tax sale Tuesday,  October 6th, at 10 a.m. at the Courthouse Annex Bldg:  1225 Pearl St., Beaumont, Tx.

Click link below to visit the Delinquent Tax Sale page and then click the “Delinquent Tax Sale List” link to see the properties available at the October sale.

Delinquent Tax Sale Page

I am pleased to announce that HEB on 3590 College and 3025 N. Dowlen in Beaumont and 4800 B Hwy 365 in Port Arthur are processing auto renewals.  Taxpayers MUST bring their auto renewal form they received by mail to process the transaction.  If the form you received in the mail states it is time to replace your license plates, you must come to the tax assessor collector’s office.  NO LICENSE PLATES can be given at HEB.  There is a $1.00 convenience fee to use this service at HEB.

Please be aware of people that are going door to door or calling by phone trying to collect your property taxes.  “My office does not go to a taxpayer’s home or make collection calls”,  Tax Asssessor Collector, Allison Nathan Getz said.  There have been numerous reports of taxpayers being called or someone coming to their door to collect money.

All correspondence with the tax office is done by mail with an official letterhead and the county seal on it.  There are several companies that do a direct mailing wanting taxpayers to authorize them to recover refunds for them from failure to file for tax exemptions.

“Why would you pay someone money for something that you can easily do on your own?  If you receive a letter about the recovery of a refund, please call our office and let us help you file the necessary paperwork, so that you keep your money.  We want our taxpayers to get the most out of their exemptions” Getz said.

Property owners who are in doubt about the status of their exemptions can contact the Jefferson County Tax Office and have the staff inform them of any exemptions they are currently receiving; and any that they may potentially qualify to receive.

Property Tax Payments for 2014 must be paid by Monday, February 2, 2015 to avoid penalty and interest charges.

They may be made in person at:
1)  Jefferson County Courthouse, 1149 Pearl, Beaumont
2)  Jefferson County Sub Courthouse, 525 Lakeshore Drive, Port Arthur; or
3)  Mid County Tax Office, 4605 Jerry Ware Dr, Beaumont (near the airport).

All three locations will remain open until 5:00 pm on Friday, January 30th and Monday, February 2nd.

2014 payments by mail must have a Post Office cancellation mark on or before February 2, 2015 to avoid penalty and interest charges.  The cancellation mark must be affixed by the Post Office and not a metered postmark.  Payments by mail may be sent to Jefferson County Tax Office, PO Box 2112, Beaumont, Tx 77704.

Beginning February 3rd, a penalty and interest of 7% will be applied to unpaid tax balances.  An additional 2% penalty and interest will be added each month until the end of June.  On July 1st, a penalty and interest totaling 18% will be applied, plus a 20% addition of collection fees.  Finally, interest of 1% per month will accrue from that time forward.

“Jefferson County has an excellent payment rate,” Allison Getz said.  “We typically collect over 98% of the total tax roll on a current basis.  We appreciate the effort our community makes.”

“We hope this reminder will help people remember to not overlook taking care of a payment they fully intended to make.  Please call our office if you are having difficulty meeting your tax obligation.  There are special provisions for payment for citizens with age homestead or disability exemptions.  The Tax Office deputies will be more than happy to give information on options that are available under the State Property Tax Code.”

Taxes may be paid in cash, check, or credit/debit card in person.  Telephone payments may be made by calling 1-866-549-1010 and use Bureau Code:  2228888.  Also, credcit card payments or e-check payments may be made online at www.certifiedpayments.net and follow the instructions on the screen.  A convenience fee of 2.4% on credit card payments and a $1.50 fee on e-check payments will occur.