County to hire new tax attorney

By WILLIAM PAINE

Patriot Publishing

Pulaski County is hiring a new tax attorney in an attempt to collect on delinquent real estate taxes.

At Monday’s meeting of the Board of Supervisors, Pulaski County Treasurer Melinda Worrell introduced John Rife, a partner in Taxing Authority Consulting Services (TACS), a law firm that specializes in recouping delinquent real estate taxes.

“We want to hire this company to do our delinquent taxes for us,” said Worrell. “This is all that they do.”

The change was made necessary because the attorney who formerly handled delinquent real estate taxes, Sam Campell, announced his retirement at the end of this month.

According to Rife, TACS has 137 employees and currently serves Montgomery, Wythe, Smythe, Washington and Bland counties, as well as the City of Roanoke.

“Our fee is paid by the taxpayer, so we are in essence no cost to the county,” said Rife, who went on to explain that TACS charges a 20 percent fee for services, but that increases to 25 percent once a lawsuit is filed.

“I’m glad you’re writing this story,” said Rife after the meeting. “Because we typically like to give folks a heads up that if they want to save some money, to go ahead and pay up before the account gets sent over to me and they’ll save 20%.”

“I think he’ll do a great job for us,” said Worrell.

Before their scheduled meeting, the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors hosted a reception in honor of Robert Brandon, the newly hired President of New River Community College.

Once the meeting commenced, President Brandon gave the first presentation of the evening and began by praising the ACCE (Access to Community College Education) program.

“Since 2020, 250 students have come through the ACCE program,” said Brandon. “That’s 250 students who have achieved opportunities they may not have otherwise had the opportunity to see. Those students have given back to the community in the amount of 28,000 hours for community service.”

The ACCE program pays for two years of community college in exchange for performing 80 hours of community service per year. Students must also maintain a 2.5 grade point average to remain in the ACCE program.

Brandon went on to say that NRCC awarded 1,027 degrees and certifications last year, which is an increase of 21 percent from 2021 and that NRCC had the highest graduation rate in the Virginia Community College System. He added that 81 percent of community college graduates stay in the area where they went to school.

“These are students staying here, working here and making our communities richer,” said Brandon. “I am proud to be the new President of NRCC.”

Also at Monday’s meeting, Clark’s Ferry Road resident Tom Holcomb asked the board to find a way to dispose of the massive root balls that washed on shore from flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. Holcomb asked if Federal funds could be used to get rid of root balls that still remain along the river’s edge.

Dwight Hicks, who also lives on Clark’s Ferry Road, appealed to the board to help clean up the large amounts of debris that the flooding brought to his neighborhood. He also mentioned a clogged culvert that could eventually pose a risk to drivers.

Hicks asked that the county utilize some of its equipment to clear out the heavy debris.

“Clark’s Ferry is a mess,” said Draper District Supervisor Dirk Compton. “I was shocked when I went down there.”

“We’ll try and find a solution,” said Chairwoman Laura Walters, in reference to the issues at Clark’s Ferry.

Walters went on to talk about the county’s ongoing One Bag Challenge garbage collection program.

“We ask everyone in the county to pick up one bag of trash, but you’re more than welcome to pick up more,” said Walters.

Approximately 140 people have participated in this year’s effort so far, resulting in 582 bags being collected along with 91 tires.

As part of the One Bag Challenge, the names of three participants are drawn at random to receive a $100 gift card, as a reward for their efforts.  Walters asked Pulaski County School Board Chairman Gina Paine to draw the names out of a hat.

Winners of the drawing included the Friends of Peak Creek, who worked in conjunction with AmeriCorps to pick up trash, the Barren Springs Holiness Church, whose members picked up 50 bags of trash and Rhonda Massey, who has been deeply involved in the One Bag Challenge since its inception.

Pulaski County Public School Student Representative Nora Lester gave the supervisors an update on school activities, noting that Spring Break was set for April 14 – 18.

The only vote taken by the supervisors in this month’s meeting involved a resolution of recognition for the American Red Cross. The supervisors voted unanimously to recognize the good work done by the organization.