Tax decal mandate to be enforced

HIAWASSEE, Ga. – Towns County will begin actively enforcing a state mandate, O.C.G.A. 48-5-492, which requires the placement of up-to-date tax decal stickers on mobile and manufactured homes. The decals provide proof for field assessors that taxes have been paid.

Noncompliance will result in a citation issued by the Towns County Sheriff’s Office, leading to magistrate court.

Taxpayers are expected to affix the decal sticker, given upon receipt of their annual tax payment, to their mobile or manufactured home within 10 days of obtainment. The decal must be placed on an area of the structure that is visible from the roadway.

The penalty for noncompliance is a $50 fine. Failure to further resolve the issue by complying with the mandate will result in the issuance of a legal citation.

“This is something we want people to come in and take care of,” Elizabeth Dillard of the Towns County Tax Commissioner’s Office told FetchYourNews. “We have no desire to cite and go to magistrate court.”

The citation process is still in the early stages of development, and Towns County is looking to other counties to learn how to best rectify the situation. Towns County government states it will uphold the minimum penalty the state law allows.

“This isn’t something that the county decided,” Towns County Commissioner Cliff Bradshaw explained. “We certainly don’t want to cause hardship for families who may be struggling, but we are required to follow state law.”

The Towns County Tax Assessor’s office noted the importance of having the correct out-of-county addresses of part-time residents on file in order to send a notification prior to the matter being forwarded to the Tax Commissioner’s office.

Mobile and manufactured home taxes are due annually before April 1.

The Towns County Tax Office is located at 48 River St. in Hiawassee, next to the Towns County Courthouse.