Monroe County to Address Property Tax Bill Miscalculations

In Rochester, New York, a number of Monroe County homeowners faced discrepancies in their 2022 property tax bills due to a miscalculation tied to recent census data, affecting not only individual homeowners but also altering the cash payments designated for towns. The county administration has acknowledged the error and pledged to rectify it in the forthcoming tax cycle.

During a news conference held on Friday, Monroe County Executive Adam Bello shed light on the issue, explaining that the miscalculation originated from improperly utilized data from the 2020 census population figures. Essentially, the population counts for various villages were not excluded as they should have been, resulting in incorrect sales tax credits for some homeowners — being either too little or excessively high.

Further, this oversight not only influenced the property tax bills of homeowners but also had ramifications on the cash payments allocated to towns, triggering a cascade of financial inaccuracies. “Some of those towns, a few weeks ago, started reporting that the funds they received were slightly less than what they had anticipated,” noted Bello, emphasizing the extent of the miscalculation’s impact.

The official acknowledged the necessity of revisiting the calculations to ensure that individual homeowners as well as towns are not adversely affected due to this error. He stressed, “We realized that there might have been an error when considering the credits on individual bills as the village populations were erroneously included in the town’s populations.”

Bello assured that the miscalculation did not affect properties situated in the City of Rochester and all the villages encompassed in Monroe County. Outlining the administration’s remedial plan, Bello revealed that corrections will be meticulously undertaken to address the miscalculation. Homeowners can anticipate accurate tax bills reflecting the corrections in the 2024 cycle, with the revised bills expected to be issued in December.

As Monroe County moves forward to address this systemic error, they call upon the residents to bear with the administration as they work diligently to not only rectify the mistake but also to prevent such occurrences in the future. The correction of the miscalculation showcases the county’s commitment to maintaining transparency and accuracy in its financial dealings, ensuring that each homeowner is billed fairly and accurately, fostering a sense of trust and reliability within the community.