Official warns USPS change may impact tax payments

Ozaukee County Treasurer Sandi Tretow says residents who pay their property tax bills by mail should be aware of a recent U.S. Postal Service policy change that may affect when envelopes containing tax payments are postmarked.

In August, the Postal Service instituted a nationwide change to when a postmark is affixed to incoming mail. Instead of postmarks being affixed when the item is first touched by the Postal Service, postmarks are now stamped at regional sorting centers.

“That means your postmark could be several days after you put it in your mailbox,” Tretow said in a press release. “In other words, if you plan to pay your property taxes by mail, don’t wait until right before the deadline to put it in the mail.”

Federal and state laws often define timely payment based on the USPS postmark, meaning payments may be considered delinquent if they are mailed too close to the deadline even if they were, in fact, placed in a mailbox before the deadline.

To avoid this issue, Tretow encourages Ozaukee County property taxpayers to mail payments earlier or to pay online to avoid becoming delinquent and accruing substantial late fees.

While credit or debit card payments and e-checks come with service fees, she noted, it is a good option for people concerned about mailing their payment too close to the deadline and potentially being delinquent.