ANDERSON, Ind. — Ralph Wellons got a grand surprise when his tax bill arrived in the mail. Grand — as in $1,000.
Wellons, who lives in Redbud Estates’ Camelot development southwest of 38th Street and Raible Avenue, got a property tax bill saying he owed $1,400. He’s paid about $400 in past years.
“I just couldn’t understand what’s going on. ... I’ve worked all my life for that and I don’t want somebody taking what doesn’t belong to them,” said Wellons, 83, who retired from Delco Remy after 34 years as a tool-and-die maker.
Wellons’ homestead exemption had been dropped from his tax bill, as had his senior-citizen exemption. Without those deductions, his tax bill went up more than 298 percent. He said some of his neighbors saw similar problems when their tax bills came, but others didn’t.
“It throws up a flag,” he said. “I don’t get everything, and I’m not that smart and I’m no attorney or anything,” he said, “but a thousand dollars?”
He was among hundreds of residents of Redbud Estates who received tax bills that were far higher than they should have been. Redbud Estates office manager David Porter said he was informed by a county office after tax bills came out that a glitch in the software for taxes on manufactured homes was to blame.
“What we did in our park was put out a one-page flier that said have your bill checked before you pay it,” Porter said. But not everyone got the message in time.
“People have come in and said they already paid it,” he said. He’s encouraged people who have paid inflated tax bills to contact the county to inquire about a refund. People who have paid bills that didn’t include exemptions they are entitled to can contact the Madison County auditor’s office to request a refund.
Robin Wagner, who works in the exemptions department of the auditor’s office, described the process for people who have problems with their tax bills. “It would boil down to what kind of problem,” she said.
“If there’s a problem with the assessment, they need to call the assessor’s office. ... If they think they’re missing exemptions, they need to contact our office.”
Some problems can be resolved with a single visit, but appeals of assessed value can take longer.
Wellons went to the auditor’s office at the Madison County Government Center, and the problem with his tax bill was fixed. It was adjusted to his satisfaction — less than $10 different from what he was accustomed to paying.
“If I hadn’t gone up there and said something, I would have been forced to pay it plus the delinquency bill,” he said. “I don’t like to get charged a delinquency on something I don’t owe.”
Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com
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