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GTS approved to collect Reidsville taxes
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William Bullard from Government Tax Solutions (GTS) presented information regarding the firm and their process for recovering delinquent taxes at the September 6, 2022, meeting. The council approved hiring GTS to collect close to $180,000 in delinquent taxes at the September 12 meeting.

Only about five percent of these properties go to the courthouse steps to be sold, according to the representative. 

“We do not want to sell anyone’s property. That is not what our business is about,” Bullard said. “Our business is to collect.”

GTS takes on the liability that comes with tax collection, but payments still come through city hall. Their process of notifying home owners is organized in stages. 

First, a letter of intent is sent to property owners who have delinquent taxes; this is a 30-day notice. Following that, GTS can contact the property owner again or they can move on with placing a levy on the property (60-day notice). After the levy is placed and the property owner does not respond with payment, the property will be sold on the courthouse steps. 

GTS also conducts a phone campaign but recommends the City post the properties in the paper after stage three. GTS can go back seven years for collection, which is convenient since Reidsville’s delinquent taxes date back to 2015.

At the September 12 council meeting, Councilman Donald Prestage made a motion to have two council members work with City Clerk Nivea Jackson and GTS to be a liaison to the council, recommending himself and Councilwoman Lindsay Bennett. Bennett seconded the motion, but Council Members Verdie Williams, Carolyn Crume-Blackshear, and Doug Williams did not approve this motion, because they trust GTS to do it all themselves.