ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
Seward County’s tax sale is in the process of being scheduled.
At last Thursday’s commission meeting, Treasurer Mary Rose said the necessary journal entries (JE) have been completed, and it is currently in circulation for approval for all counsels who have parties in this case.
“They have a drafted notice ready to go, and they’re waiting for the approval of the JE,” she said. “Then they should be able to finalize a date, set publication and move forward.”
“This is the journal entry to proceed with the upcoming tax sale,” she said. “They met in court for the deeds to be transferred in their names. That one’s moving forward as far as the writeoff you’re talking about.”
Commission Chair Steve Helm asked Rose to provide the commissioners with a recap of the prior real estate and include information such as net proceeds of the sale versus real estate taxes, interest and penalties owed on each property.
“Whenever we get those transferred to us with the payouts, we’ll give those figures to you,” Rose said. “You’re probably going to have to take action on some of that writeoff once we get it.”
Rose said there are two different journal entries involved with a tax sale.
“We’re talking a financial journal entry, and this is going to be a court journal entry through the court case,” she said. “The financial journal entry will eventually come before you once that is in its final stages. With the tax sale that’s coming up, they do have the journal entry filed. They’re waiting on all parties to respond back. We’re nearing. We’re getting close.”
With a recent return to the Revenue Neutral Rate for the county’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget and many local taxpayers filing payments under protest following the commissions Sept. 15 3-2 vote to raise the mill levy more than 15 mills over the RNR, Commission Vice Chair Todd Stanton asked what percentages of real estate taxes had been paid thus far.
“In 2024, the first half, which is Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, at that point in time, 52 percent of taxpayers paid their first half of taxes,” Rose said. “For 2025, that was at 39 percent. We have had a big decrease in paying the first half.”
Rose said overall, county taxes would include gas, oil, personal property, real estate, special assessment, specials and trucks.
“In 2024, 52 percent paid that, and in 2025, 40 percent have paid,” she said. “We are down in collection.”
County taxes are distributed to many local entities, including USD 480, USD 483, Seward County Community College, Memorial Library and Kismet Public Library, and Rose said these distributions are made five times a year. She further explained constituents have until May 10 to pay the second half of their taxes.
“If they don’t pay their first half at that time, they do incur penalties and fees,” she said. “I don’t know what each person’s pocketbook does, but I can tell you that isn’t something that isn’t unheard of. I think with the whole scenario we’ve had going on since October, some people have decided not to pay. I don’t know, but it should catch up. If they don’t pay, it goes into delinquent taxes for the next year, but I feel moving forward, it’ll pay out.”
Administrator April Warden asked if Rose’s numbers included cases the treasurer’s office is holding in payment under protest currently.
“Any payment that was made, whether it’s a payment under protest being held or whatever, we are down in receiving payments,” Rose said. “We have a 23 percent decrease from the first half. I’m hoping it’ll pick up.”
“That should catch you up by the second quarter,” Helm said. “The delinquent tax rate we calculate is 5 percent.”
“It’s figured in there already,” Rose said.
“That will catch up with the second half payment,” Helm said. “We’ll have a massive amount of delinquent taxes.”
Rose said the next distribution will be made before March 20, and she is hopeful those distributions will be at their needed levels.
“By statute, I am 100 percent collection, 100 percent distribution,” she said. “Whatever we collect, we distribute 100 percent. We don’t hold anything back.”
Rose said payments under protest are held, and she said a higher number of those were seen this year than at any time in the past.
“We knew that, but moving forward, there was nothing that was withheld intentionally for financial gain,” she said. “It was all distributed out per statute.”
