4 Park Avenue, PO Box 1
Arkport, NY 14807
Tax Collector
Jessica LaFrance, Town Clerk/Collector
Office: 607-295-9660
Fax: 607-295-8015
Shannon Smith, Deputy Clerk/Collector
The Town Clerk/Collector is responsible for the collection of property taxes within Hornellsville. All powers and duties of this office, as well as collection procedures, are statutory and found in the New York State Real Property Tax law.
My deputy and I welcome any inquires pertaining to collection policies as well as general tax information. We offer our assistance to residents, realtors, lending institutions, title companies, and other entities that may require tax information.
Duties of the Tax Collector
The Town of Hornellsville is a town of the second class. A collecting officer in a second class town is known as a Collectors of Taxes. It is required that all tax collecting officers take and subscribe the Constitutional Oath of Office before undertaking the duties of the office. Once the Collector has taken the oath, he/she becomes the insurer and guarantor of all moneys, securities, papers, and records that the law provides shall be in his or her custody.
Tax Bill Information
The Collector of Taxes collects the Town and County property taxes in January. The bills are mailed in late December of each year. They are postmarked no later than December 31st. The tax bill covers the period of January 1st - December 31st. Payments can be made beginning January 1st through January 31st without penalty.
The Property Tax bill contains levies for the Town, County, Fire District, and any special districts. In addition, if school, village or water bills are unpaid, they will be re-levied on to the property tax bill. If a previous owner was receiving an exemption, a payback amount may also appear in the bill which covers the time period that the new property owner enjoyed a previous owner's exemption to which they are not entitled. Please contact this office if there are any questions regarding the amounts due.
Third Party Notification
To assist our elderly and disabled residents, third party notification of tax bills is offered. Property owners who are disabled or 65 years of age or older and own a one, two or three family home, may designate an adult consenting third party to receive duplicate copies of tax bills and notices of unpaid taxes. In order to receive this service, one must fill out a third party notification, using form RP-923, which is available in our office or online.
Escrow
Many residents have their taxes escrowed with lending institutions. The town updates bank codes prior to each billing cycle. It is the lending institution's responsibility to notify the County, Assessor and Tax Collector of any additions or deletions of accounts. Many banks contract with Tax Service Organizations (TSOs), which are agencies that service escrow accounts for these banks. These organizations provide us with a listing of their customers and their identifying account numbers. In the event that a resident received a bill that should have gone to the bank, it is still the responsibility of the bank to call for that bill. If the bill should have gone to the homeowner, but went to the bank, it is the homeowner's responsibility to know that the taxes are due. Please call our office immediately and we will issue you a duplicate bill.
Responsibility
Failure to mail a statement or the failure of a property owner to receive a statement will not affect the validity of the taxes or interest prescribed by law (New York Real Property Tax Law §922). If you should have received a bill, but have not during the first week of January, please contact this office for a duplicate bill.