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Q&A
Strategies for collecting unpaid taxes and fines in New York City
5:03:32
·
154 sec
Council Member Brewer inquires about strategies to collect the $2.1 billion in unpaid taxes and fines. Commissioner Niblack explains the challenges and processes involved in debt collection.
- Major challenges include businesses going out of business or dissolving and reincorporating
- The Department of Finance has a robust collections process, bringing in $600 million last year
- Outside collection agencies are used, with a tiered system of three agencies for each type of debt
- Collection efforts are constantly innovating to improve collection rates
- The use of multiple collection agencies has improved the overall collection rate
Gale A. Brewer
5:03:32
Then I might, you know, dollars 2,100,000,000.0, taxes and are paid.
5:03:36
I know that the controller went through some, you know, it's definitely a problem.
5:03:41
Is there anything new about how we can collect some of this 2,100,000,000.0?
5:03:45
Is that something that is it's everything.
5:03:47
It's fines, it's oath, it's these taxes that I these plates I just mentioned, etcetera.
Preston Niblack
5:03:54
I think one of the biggest challenges here is that when especially if it's issued against a business, the business goes out of business or the business dissolves and reincorporates in another form.
5:04:10
It's very hard for us to track down ownership in that case.
5:04:12
So I think that's one of the largest reasons why we are unable to collect on a certain percentage of outstanding business taxes or ECB debt or other, you know, or also property based charges like sanitation charges, etcetera.
5:04:29
So that's you know, we have a very robust collections process.
5:04:36
I like to say every now and then our collections staff brings in more per capita than our audit staff does every year.
5:04:46
They bring in last year's $600,000,000 in collections of outstanding business taxes, parking tickets, ECB debt.
5:04:54
So we are constantly they're very good.
5:04:59
They're managed very well by Assistant Commissioner Pam Parker Cortijo.
5:05:04
They, are always innovating and trying to find programs and and methods to, help increase our collection rate.
Gale A. Brewer
5:05:12
So do you hire, consultants that do collection, or are you doing it in house?
Preston Niblack
5:05:17
We have outside coll we have, I don't remember the exact number.
5:05:21
We have nine outside consultant contracts.
5:05:26
One for each type of debt, business, ECB and parking.
5:05:29
And we have three agencies for each type.
5:05:34
And so for example, we'll refer each outstanding debt to the first collection agency, and then they have it for six months.
5:05:45
Then it goes to the second collection agency, and then it goes to the third collection agency.
5:05:50
So, you know, we added a third collection agency just last year or two years ago, and that has improved our collection rate.
Gale A. Brewer
5:05:59
So they're making you're making money more than what you're paying them, I assume, in terms of collection.
5:06:05
Absolutely.
5:06:05
Right.
5:06:06
Thank you.