Discover Town Taxes and Tax Collector Information in Pendleton, NY
The Town/County tax bills are collected by the Pendleton Town Clerk/Tax Collector. These bills are usually mailed to residents the last week of December each year. Watch for Legal Notice publications and postings near the beginning of tax collection season.
Town/County tax bills are collected in Pendleton from January 1st through March 31st each year. Unpaid tax bills are then turned over to the Niagara County Treasurer’s Office on April 1st.
We do not accept postdated checks. We are required by law to deposit all payments received within 24 hours. Our bank will not accept a postdated check for deposit. You will be contacted by the telephone number you provided with your payment and asked to come in and correct the date of your check. If we are unable to reach you, your postdated check will be returned to you by regular mail.
This page will be updated at the beginning of the next tax season.
SCHOOL taxes are paid directly to the Starpoint Tax Collector. Please click on this link for information about your Starpoint School Tax Bill.
Please call the Starpoint School Tax Collector at: 716-210-2313
or email Starpoint School Tax Collector at: hvarney@starpointcsd.org
Deborah K Maurer
Town Clerk/Tax Collector
Where does it say that collecting officers cannot waive a penalty? My check was only a day late.
Real Property Tax Law § 924 requires the collecting officer to impose a penalty on all payments received after the interest-free period expires. The collecting officer has no discretion in the process. Additionally, the Office of the State Comptroller has specifically opined that “[i]f taxes are received after the due date, or are received after the due date and do not bear a postmark date prior to the due date, a penalty must be added and collected and no employee or official can waive the penalty (Op St Comp 68-626).
How are penalties determined?
New York state law sets the penalty schedule. Local governments are required to comply with the penalties imposed at the state level. Real Property Tax Law § 924-a sets forth the amount of interest/penalty to apply to late payments.
I never received a bill – why do I have to pay a penalty?
Real Property Tax Law § 922 addresses the form and contents of real property tax bills. This law explicitly states that the failure of the collecting officer to mail the tax bills and / or the failure of the taxpayer to receive a tax bills does not in any way impact the validity of the taxes or penalties due. Real property taxes are due regardless of whether the taxpayer receives a bill, and penalties are imposed on any late payments, including late taxpayers that did not receive a bill (Real Property Tax Law § 922 [3]).
I initiated my bank check payment well within the interest-free period – why are you imposing a penalty upon receiving it in the mail?
Real Property Tax Law § 925 provides that any mailed tax payment received with a postmark dated within the penalty-free period is a timely payment – even if the collecting officer physically receives the payment after the interest-free periods expires. To qualify as a timely postmarked payment, the payment must be:
The postmark rule also applies to tax payments mailed via certain designated delivery services, including DHL, UPS and FedEx. Tax payments mailed via metered mail do not meet the above-referenced parameters and are considered paid upon receipt by the collecting officer.
Most banks mail taxpayer-initiated bank check payments by metered mail. Metered is not postmarked and is considered paid upon receipt by the collecting officer. Online bank payments typically include a message indicating that the taxpayer should not use the service for time-sensitive matters, including tax payments. Oftentimes taxpayers initiate payment with their banks well within the interest-free period, only for the collecting officer to receive the check from the bank without a postmark after the interest-free period has expired. In this scenario, the collecting officer must impose a penalty.
Why do I have to pay school taxes when I do not have any children in school?
Schools are the foundation of communities. Real property taxes serve to educate the individuals that will ultimately become doctors, nurses, mechanical engine operators, accountants, attorneys and other professions that ensure your community runs smoothly.
Deborah K Maurer
Town Clerk/Tax Collector
Click here for ONLINE TAXES to access our service provider’s secure web page that will process your tax payment and provide you with a receipt.
Contact the Tax Collector
