Grebien apologizes for erroneous delinquency letters

MORE THAN 4,000 taxpayers who received delinquent motor vehicle tax notices in error from the city's Division of Collections will receive letters of apology, according to a press release from the mayor's office.  / COURTESY CITY OF PAWTUCKET
MORE THAN 4,000 taxpayers who received delinquent motor vehicle tax notices in error from the city's Division of Collections will receive letters of apology, according to a press release from the mayor's office. / COURTESY CITY OF PAWTUCKET

PAWTUCKET – More than 4,000 taxpayers who incorrectly received letters from the city’s Division of Collections about having delinquent motor vehicle taxes are getting an apology.

“As mayor, I sincerely regret that the letter was sent to you in error,” Mayor Donald R. Grebien said in another letter that is being sent out over the next week to those affected by the mishap. “Please know the administration is taking the appropriate steps to ensure that this does not happen again.”

The city is participating in the state’s Income Tax Offset Program (iTOP) to increase collections from delinquent motor vehicle taxpayers. This is a program the state offers local governments at no charge that will allow the city to recoup some of the $11 million in receivables owed for outstanding motor vehicle taxes.

Grebien said in the letter that it is unfortunate that “some of the very people we are looking to protect through this program were incorrectly notified of a delinquency that does not exist.”

- Advertisement -

The city has determined that the error was the result of redundancies in data downloads from different systems. Approximately 4,400 letters were sent to incorrect account holders, and approximately the same number of delinquent accounts that should have been noticed were not, according to a press release from the mayor’s office.

Letters to those delinquent account holders will be going out over the coming weeks.

“Unfortunately, with this implementation, as we look to shift the tax burden from those of you who are paid up on their taxes to those who have not, the city hit a road bump during implementation,” Grebien said. “This will truly be a lesson learned by the city as we move forward to prevent errors like these from happening in the future.”

Grebien is thanking those who received the letter in error for their patience and understanding as the city works to correct the issues.

No posts to display