Sonoma County Treasurer-Tax Collector's Office, with Donald Merz, Terry Urquhart and Tom Ford

Good evening. This is community Antenna television. See a TV Channel, six Santa Rosa. The programming of total television of Santa Rosa's local programming department. Opinions expressed on See a TV Channel six are not necessarily those of total television of Santa Rosa or Post Newsweek Cable announced

a tune for cinema counting the eighties with Rich McGlinchey coming up next. Ah, now the Sonoma County Public Information Office presents Cinema County in the eighties with your host Rich McGlinchy. Hello again, Everyone. Welcome to another

edition of Sonoma County in the eighties. On this edition of our program will be talking to the treasure attached collector of Sonoma County assistant treasurer Attack Specter of Sonoma County and the supervisor of the Central Collection division of the T TV office. First talk to Dawn

MERS is on the left of your screen. He's our treasure tax collector. Little later, we'll talk to Terry Urquhart and Terry is the assistant treasurer tax collector, and these gentlemen perform different functions, obviously, in their office. A little later in the program will be talking to

Tom Ford Don. It's nice to have you chose to be here today, Rich Terry back uh first of all. I'd like to congratulate you on a tough election. Thank you, Richard. I've had a lot of congratulations the past couple of weeks, and I appreciate it very

much. Had I vote count in case you don't want to be in on the joke to Don was one of the two. I guess it was county officials that no one chose to run against this time. They felt that he was doing such a good job.

He was undefeatable. And so he did not have an opponent. He was elected in the recent election, so feelings weren't hurt. It's It means you've had a good record. Thank you Should take Okay. A lot of people sitting out there, there's a treasure tax collector. All

I know those guys like I question and paid taxes every year. But I need to know is what are the basic responsibilities of the treasure tax collector and and the function of your office? Well, as you say, most people know my office is the this a

tax collector, and a lot of comments are as well. You collect taxes twice a year. What do you do the rest of the year? But there are financial activities and the banking functions, investment activities. All these air are going on continuously and and take up a

major portion of the office where most of the public doesn't get involved with those areas. So it's ah, it's mainly the the financial part of the office, probably some of the main, the main areas. There's about four divisions in the office. Besides, the tax collector's office

you mentioned will be talking Teoh Tom Ford on the central collections later in the program and the Treasures offices is a function that although only about five people work in that area, we have, AH, major amount of activity going on every day with all the banking

functions. Also, ah, major function is the management of the retiree's pension programs. So that takes up a good deal of time. And there's a considerable amount of activity there with the payment of all the retirees and and ah ah, handling of the business of the retirement

system, retire user of watching, and they're things that nobody has to say this, but he has No, that's right. I died of the county banker and investment officer. Tell us something about the investment of the county funds. And let me add to that how much money

is there involved? And how much do we make on these investments? Well, the banking function is to me it's one of the most interesting functions the office and I usually try to say. Well, describe the offices where the county banker, Because that's really what we are.

We have all of the county of the county agencies, plus the the district's the county schools. All that money does flow into the county treasury. A lot of people may not realize that were really the the banker, the treasure of the investment officer for everything except

for the cities. And they take care of their own functions. Uh, this has been growing continually as far as the amount of money over the last few years, and we we right at this moment in time are probably about $260 million in the Treasury, which doesn't

include the pension program, which is 100 another 125 million. So so we're we're right around $400 million if you include the Trust Fund of the pension system with the main county Treasuries around 250 million plus closer minus, usually during the year. And how how much money

do you make? Uh, very, of course, with the interest rates and how much money we have in there. But I would say that we're approximately $20 million a year, and that is divided amongst all of these people that have have accounts. So we have. Ah, about

only about 25% of that money is really county money. So, really, where the treasure's office for all these other agencies? Also over half of that goes to the schools that we make 20 year, Terry, that's more than we could make off a pick. Sex isn't much.

I have done what happens in county treasure. And how do you get the information that Prince, if you use computers? Yeah, we really, really dio uh, We use computers back since, as's faras the investment function, we use computers there, too. Teoh Major. Our cash flow one

of the important things in the offices. Teoh know how much money we do have to invest because we have several $1,000,000 a day sometimes going out coming in sometimes larger attacks time we hit hit highs on the 10th of December and the 10th of April, where

we'll see over $10 million a day coming in. Uh, and then we have high payment times. So we must know how much money we've got to invest on computers. Play a part in that we actually track all those receipts. We track all the dispersement so we

can estimate pretty close down toe within about a percent of just what we have coming in. And then we have Teoh. We invest everything that we we don't need, and we invest every day. It's investments are usually for the daily investments are all done before, about

8 30 in the morning, usually, and so it's it's quite an operation. Teoh, maybe to give you a little more on the computer background is that with all the banking industry now on their computers, we actually tie into Bank of America's computer, and, uh, each morning

we dial up before any of the other banking people in town or in about usually about seven o'clock. We have all of our balances, all of our disbursements from the day before receipts. They give us complete listing of just everything we'd want to know, to be

able to know just where we stand and that's all dial up on microcomputers. All comes in, is printed out for us, and we have to make our decisions within about the first half hour of the day of just what we're going to do for that day

and some days we we may have as much as usually varies, but it could be 10 25 or 30 million. It's just being put out from one day to the next because of some needs that will be coming up in a few days. So that function

is a is very important, and, uh, the interest rates. It might be interesting to know the interest rates in that short term area one day are many times much better because of the changing marketplace. And they are if you go out for six months or a

year. So so we, uh, we often are doing better just toe invested for one day at a time. That's fascinating. It really is, incidentally, don't Gone is the past president of California Association of County Treasures anti collectors, and that's a very singular honor and and we

congratulate generally reserved, last anger that deal and Terry. Let's talk to you for a moment to share and Terry into it is also a past director. The Wise User Group Conference 1985. Another prestigious appointment. Um, tax collection, tax bills. How many tax bills are sent out

each year, Terry? And then add to that how much money you collect? Okay, I get to talk about the bad guy part of the office. I guess the public isn't always do that part of it, but we do. In 1985 86 we did send out just

over 100 45,000 secured tax bills, and the total amount due from those bills was about $151 million. We also build unsecured property taxes, and we sent out just over 13,000 tax bills, and that was about 6.5 $1,000,000 worth of revenue. Now we also have another program

we call supplemental property taxes and what are supplemented tax bills, texts they knew that is a totally new area. In the last two years, 1983 the legislator legislature passed legislation requiring the reassessment and rebuilding of property at the time of change of ownership or the completion

of new construction. Prior to that, under the guidelines of Proposition 13 the change of ownership in the new construction triggered a reassessment, but it was not build until the normal tax bill. Now we build as soon after the property changes, ownership or new construction is completed,

that the assessment can be accomplished. And since that program began, we've sent out over 45,000 tax bills and that his totaled approximately $11 million worth of taxes being built. So that's a supplemental. That is, UM, 10 90 Taxpayers seemed to be understanding this last process. This

has been a very difficult time for us and for the taxpayers. It's a very complicated process. Property changes hands multiple times, and as a result, each one of those events triggers a new tax bill, and people will sometimes be confused between the regular tax bill, the

supplemental tax bill. Each of these bills are independent. This is creating quite a few problems. The supplementals are not build on a route on a fixed basis, like the regular tax bills, which are build in October and they have a delinquent data of April of December

10 for the first installment in April, 10th for the second installment. The supplemental bills can be build any time during the year, and the delinquent dates will vary depending on when the tax bill goes out. Attack there. That doesn't understand what this is. All I want

is going on or what this is all about. Can they call your office? And definitely we encourage anybody who is not rial firm on where they stand on their taxes to call the office, whether it's a supplemental bill or a regular bill, many people and it

does create, say, one of the biggest problems. It may not be large in number, but the people that you have to deal with in trying to explain that your taxes are delinquent and you have to pay a penalty if they haven't come forward and found out

what their situation is. We get a lot of cooperation from the press, a lot of cooperation from the radio and TV media to announce when delinquent dates are and to encourage people to call the tax collector's office. If they're not certain, Um can We were about

to appoint will make a break here that any particular advice taxpayers and general other than you've just been been stating anything else you want to add to that? Well, I think I'd like to add that if you have a question about your taxes, please call the

tax collector's office. Not your neighbor, not the realist realtor that you bought it from. Not yes for company. And even though it's always a problem with being shifted around the county on the bureaucratic method from one department to another, try not to get your information from

the assessor's office or Rich McGlinchey's office or the Public Health Department. Please call the tax collector's office. If you have a question about a tax bill, all right, what number would they call? They gotta have a number Kari 5 to 7 2281 5 to 7 to

281 So if you have any question about your taxes, the regular tax bill or the new supplemental tax bill, which has been confusing, a lot of people call Kerry card at 5 to 7 to 81 Okay, so we're gonna pause for just a moment. What kind

of come back and we're gonna be talking more to Don murders our treasure. And also, we talked to Tom Ford, the supervisor for the Central Collection division. Treasury tax collectors off. But first, this important message right now, 25 people you probably don't even know are updating

the blueprint for your future. The Sonoma County General Plan. It determines how we continue to grow here in Sonoma County. Transportation, land use, industrial growth, Open space housing. You're the expert. Let the committee know how you feel. Your community should grow. What should be saved or

developed. Please call 5 to 73789 for further information. Welcome back. Ladies and gentlemen to this tradition of cinema, count in the eighties were talking to memories of our Sonoma County treasure attack collector's office. And we're going to be talking to Tom Ford, who is the supervisor

of the Central collection division of that office. Fact, Tom, we welcome your first way Would had you with us for a couple of years. About 34 now. All right. You are the the supervisor of the Central Collection division. What is the primary job? Such a collection

toe. Well, our primary job is basically where the guy that where's the black hat for the county? We collect the debt that is owed the Sonoma County, various departments and agencies. We ensure that the taxpayers are getting the services. And we also make sure that the

county is getting the money that taxpayers of us excellent. One thing I want to mention to Tom is these gentlemen, all of the gentleman in this office have been serving their statewide counterparts. Tom is the California Counties Recovery Revenue and Recovery Officers Association president and our

congratulations. Thank you. Should've done that. Start with Okay, Um, what type of accounts are gets? Can individuals owe to the county of Well, just about any. If you think of the county has a very, very large corporation, we provide services in just hundreds of different areas

from the airport to the fairgrounds, medical services, social services, anything that deals with life in general primarily, the two major accounts we have are the unsecured property tax, which is not covered by a state law the way that real property taxes are, and then the services

offered at the Community Hospital of Center. And those are two major. Those are big your major jobs. Where is your office located? We're looking on professional drive at 22. 30. Professional drive right across from Lyon, right across from lands Restaurant. Little plug. Yeah. Uh, that See

how many persons Aaron involved? I have 17 people now that work in my office, where One of them rapidly growing offices in the county. A few years ago, when Proposition 13 changed the complexion of county government. We're seeing a change too. User orientated fees, for instance.

The people who own airplanes and used the airport are more of the fees are directed toward supporting that agency, along with the fairgrounds and along with the veterans buildings and all the things that we have we're trying to allocate so that the fees that people pay

the marinas reports that the people who use those facilities are the ones who actually pay for them and not the general fund, for instance. So we have become mawr prevalent in the use of collecting these phase, and the department has to be have become more more

knowledgeable about getting those days. Well, Tom, wonder a few of the methods I guess you'd say of collection that is used by your center collection division. Well, we use the standard methods that are available to most of the private collection agencies. That is the court. It's

the small claims areas and municipal courts. We use a system of building and letter writing, but we have a method that is far more important. I feel on that is what we call our tax intercept program. What, together? It's okay. Wouldn't want goingto I wanted to

ask you one question either now or later. What amount of money do you collect in a year for County? Let's say, Well, we'll go work for all the departments in the county. We're looking at about 2.5 $1,000,000 this year. You will collect that mark. We will

collect that. What is the cost of your department? Approximately about 410,000. Hell of a good deal, isn't it? I like mission. Okay, you mentioned tax intercept. Um, this is the time to elaborate that well, several years ago, the legislative body in Sacramento decided that they would

clean up the state coffers by it withholding state income tax checks to people who owed the state money. Last year they granted that privileges to county government. And so we have collected approximately 25 or $30,000 this year untaxed state tax returns that would have gone to

taxpayers had we not held legitimate owed debts to the county against them on those tax checks were sent to us instead of to the taxpayer. Now there is legislation and a lot of pressure being put on the federal people now to make the same type of

intercept program available for federal income tax again, like the state the federal people started this year intercepting federal income tax checks for student loans and V A benefits. So we're hoping that within the very near future, a major portion of our collection program will be in

state and federal tax intercept programs. That's a very good idea because I think that that's something we all have to face. It would go out and make builds up with contract for things that cost money, and we fail to pay, and there's another method by which

that could be collected. I think that's going to be employed. I think that's proper. I think that, you know, in good faith If you make a debt and you know what you're doing, you should grant to pay that debt. And, uh, that may be an outgoing

idea nowadays, I don't know, but it certainly seems to be morally right that something like this would have been instigated both on the state and the federal level. We'll hope that it's on the federal or state level now on both levels right now, only only to

the state and federal. You might pick up a lot more money than I think. How successful in dollar terms have you been used? At 2.5 1,000,000 now, very important. This agency, that division Treasury Tax Collector's Office centric election collects 2.5 approximate $1,000,000 last year cost of

the agency's western half $1,000,000. So this becomes very, very valuable. It's something you the taxpayer should very seriously consider or know about when you hear about these departments. Is there anything else you want to say about the success in terms of dollar figures that the agencies

established so far? Well, we're very proud of the dollar success that we've had, but I think the more important part, aside from dollars is is the fact that we are able to generate a lot of other activity in the county because there are so many programs

available to people who do not have the ability to pay and that we have access or tip offs to these programs where we can put people into them. I look at my department is is a little different than a private collection agency in the fact that

it's our job, more or less to separate the people that won't pay from the people who can't pay. And I think the distinction is very important. Government is there to provide people with a certain amount of services that can afford, and so our department is there,

too, to separate these people and see that the ones who need medical care or some type of social program received that and the ones who have the ability to pay that. We also ensure that they do pay for the services they're receiving. I think that's very

important and I'm glad to hear you say that there are methods by which they assist people who cannot pay to meet their obligations or try to help them do so. and yet they expect those of us who contractors. I said, I'm a few moments ago poor

services and can pay. They expect us to do start. I think that's that's as it should be. We have about five minutes left to a gentleman. What would you say the future holds for central collections? Tom. While I feel that with the the financial status of

the county government becoming tighter and tighter, I I would like to think that central collections will take on added significance year in and year out. I think this will happen because department heads and managers of various agencies are becoming much more physically fiscal aware than they

have been in pastures. They are now very much aware. I talked to department heads with regards to their revenues. 56 years ago. Revenues were not as important as expenditures, but now revenues are, ah, very key item, and I think central collections will continue to have a

problem that place. Excuse me as long as we can generate additional revenues for various departments, and I looked for us, Teoh be one of the growth departments in the county. That's extremely important also because, as you probably know if you've been following the your newspapers over

the media in general, the counties throughout the state. In fact, the state itself having fiscal problems on this counties experienced them also. So any agency that can enhance our revenue picture is going to be very important in the future to carry government in sustaining money of

the services we have today, that increasing just sustaining the things that you ask us to provide out there. Let's come back to you for a couple of minutes here. What is happening to interest rates now? And how do you think this will affect Sonoma County? Well,

interest rates, of course, as everyone knows, have been coming down, and, uh, that that does affect our earnings. We have done quite well this past year, even with them coming down because we have had some that were out longer than a year. About 25% of our

money is out between one and three years, and about 75% is a year or less. But by, uh, by having some a little longer, and also by doing some trading or selling from time to time, we we do enhance that interest rates. So this year I

expected our interest rate will still average, uh, in a between nine and 10% probably around 9.5% for the year, which with the interest rates the way they're going will be re pretty good. But next year is gonna. If interest rates stay down, we'll drop to and

will be looking for or any ways that we can to enhance. Those point you might be interested in is a From time to time we do some trading or we buy something that we may be a one or two year maturity, and then we sell it

very quickly. In the past week, I made two purchases and sold them within a day or two, and out of that, there is almost $15,000 netted that came in before we had had a chance to even pay for the investment we bought. So those type of

things help our interest rate. When we can do a few of those from time to time, Do you do any financial advice? Besides, forget it. If you got five or $10 million I think we could help you out. Would you go for 500. 500. I don't

know if I could help you there. Better see your banker. It is very, very interesting note. And I hope that you ladies dominant with us tonight. Agree with me that our treasure text records office in general is well running. The investment programme has been extremely well

run central correctness have done amazing job of collecting the death. Do us one of the thing here. I wanted to ask you, Does the county actually borrow money and and in addition to that, are we involved in any financing? Anything? Yes, we sure are. Uh, we

we did have some financing last year about the last day about a year ago for the honor farm when we went out for about $4 million did some borrowing there. We, uh, one thing of interest that lately that's ah, uh, people might be interested in While

everybody's trying to refinance their homes and do things like that. We've done some refinancing of some of our county assessment bonds, and that has helped the taxpayer some 11 that we just did was able to save several $1,000,000 over the life of the life of the

maturity of that bond. So So we do have some others coming up. We're looking possibly doing some cash flow barring this year that although we can borrow, we can make some additional funds. When? When We do not have those funds immediately. And you. So if we

so it gives us some opportunities to make a little additional interest when we can. When we can borrow and and, uh, have an opportunity to what we call arbitrage where those monies aren't being used, That's like you enjoy your job. I do so interesting for another

four years. I think I will rich appreciate that. Done. Thank you for being here. Congratulations on being restoring the office for four more years starting in January. Comfort Graduate your on your reelection. But I congratulate you on the job people doing in collecting money 2.5 $1,000,000

last year is a pretty impressive figure Looking future. You and all the gang over there. Ladies and gentlemen, we've been talking with Don merged our treasure tax collector who you re elected just recently, and we talked a little earlier to carry her cart and he's the

assistant treasure cache collector and handles most of the tax collection and talked about the black Hat part. Then we talked to Tom Ford, who is the supervisor of the Central collection division of the Treasure text director's office. Hope you know a little bit more about what

they dio and how they help us all. My name's Rick Maternity. I'll be back next week with another man with the county government, family or related agency. Learn a little bit more about this county we all love and kill them so long. A lot of good

luck to each and every one of you. Sonoma County in the eighties is a production of the Sonoma County Public Information Office. This program is being produced as a public service by Total Television of Santa Rosa for Channel 22. Be sure to join us next week.

Same time, same channel for another edition of Sonoma County in the eighties