TAMPA, FL – (November 4, 2016) – Doug Belden, Tax Collector reminds property owners to be on the lookout for a very important piece of mail arriving in your mailbox this week.  The 2016 Property tax notices were mailed out on October 31st and are now available for payment.  We encourage customers to take advantage of the early payment discounts.

The deadline to receive a 4% discount is Wednesday November 30th 2016.  “I urge our customers to pay online by E-check, it’s free and convenient. Having online payment options makes it easy to pay at your convenience 24/7.”  Belden stated.

Alternative payment options are offered to our customers, Hillsborough County property owners can make partial payments towards their 2016 property taxes beginning in November, however, certain restrictions apply.  Taxpayers can also plan ahead and enroll in the installment payment plan for 2017. According to Doug Belden, having alternative payment options is just another means of assisting taxpayers.

Services provided by the Tax Collector’s office which include fees and commissions collected on behalf of each taxing authority and other agencies are used to fund the operating budget approved by the Florida Department of Revenue. The work volume, combined with cost-effective operations, results in fee revenues well in excess of the budget. The “unused fees” are returned to the local government agencies in proportion to the amount they pay. This year’s surplus funds enabled the tax collector’s office to distribute unused fees totaling $13.1 million to the BOCC and other agencies.   The 2016 tax roll for Hillsborough County now stands at $1.8 billion with over 465,000 parcels which is an increase of 5.4% in 2015.

Belden says, “The surplus of funds are attributed to efficiencies and cost saving processes established throughout the Tax Collector’s office.”

For more details regarding the collection of property taxes, discounts, partial payments or the installment plan, contact the Tax Collector’s office at 813.635.5200 or visit their website at hillstax.org.