Property Tax Deadline For IRS Deduction To Expire Soon
Bettencourt Encourages Public To Pay Tax Bills This Week

HOUSTON - Dec. 29, 2005 - Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Paul Bettencourt is encouraging Harris County taxpayers to get their property tax payments in the mail by the end of the week to ensure they qualify for a 2005 federal income tax deduction.

“Taxpayers who itemize deductions on their federal income tax returns should make their property tax payments before January 1 to take full advantage of the income tax deduction,” Bettencourt said. “If your income tax bracket is in the 20% to 30% range, you can pay your property taxes this month and receive the benefit of that percentage deduction on your 2005 federal income tax return early next year.”

Property tax payments can be made in person or by mail. Mailed payments must be postmarked no later than Dec. 31. Taxpayers also can choose to ‘Get online instead of in line’ and pay by e-check or credit card 24 hours a day on the Tax Office Web site at www.hctax.net. E-checks are free checks processed without a transaction fee. Credit card payments may also be made by touch-tone phone by calling 713-368-CARD (2273). A non-refundable transaction fee of 2.15% is added to all credit card charges.

All Tax Office branches will be open from 7:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. through Friday, Dec. 30. The office will be closed Jan. 2 for the New Year’s Day holiday, but will reopen Tuesday, Jan. 3, with regular business hours. Taxpayers who pay property taxes to other taxing jurisdictions (cities, school districts, utility districts, etc.) within Harris County are urged to contact those entities regarding their hours of operation.

“If you haven’t received your tax bill in the mail yet because of a late certification by the Harris County Appraisal District, you can contact my office to determine an estimated or actual payment due,” said Bettencourt. “We’ll have extra employees available at all our branches Friday to help customers with property tax payments.”

For more information, call 713-368-2000 or visit the Tax Office Web site at www.hctax.net. For information about certification or exemption issues, call the Harris County Appraisal District at 713-957-7800 or visit the district’s Web site at www.hcad.org.

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