brianfending.com

I used to live in Falls Church, VA, and relocated from there to Buffalo, NY in late 2001. It was great.

So I received a collection notice from the City of Falls Church, Virginia on Tuesday. The amount was $408.46 for delinquent Personal Property Tax payment on my 1999 Chevy Malibu. To quote the next part of the letter,

Unless this obligation is resolved by October 26, 2006, we shall proceed to FILE SUIT in the Falls Church General District Court,

yada yada yada.

But the letter didn't look like it came from Falls Church. It had the Virginia state seal instead of the city's seal, as well as a return address in Arlington. The last time I checked, Falls Church was in Falls Church. So I didn't call the number on the letter, but instead called (this name is for real) The Office of the Commissioner of the Revenue. I talked to a woman with a lovely accent named "Tina", who told me that it appeared as though only $10.52 was outstanding on my account. This was not apparent in their "newer" system, but was readily available when she referred to their old AS400 production environment. Plus, according to the system, I had already paid $128.31 before leaving town and notified them that I left said town on 1 November 2001.

Great! But I would need to talk to the Office of the Treasurer about settling the amount due, and she advised that I shouldn't let them transfer me back.

So I was transferred and spoke to "Lisa", who couldn't see into the ancient system and had to transfer me to her supervisor. Okay, little bump in the road. So "Dick" wasn't very helpful, but he was informative. He let me know that Virginia state law changed on 1 September 2006 and the 70% state subsidization of this tax was repealed. So since I had a balance of $10.52, even though it was from 2001, I was now responsible for that other 70% of the original tax bill. My tax obligation, not counting what I had already paid, was to be $535.44.

I was a little irritable at this point, but Dick didn't really care about my point that there is no way I can be held responsible for a change in the laws of a state in which I no longer live. He offered to transfer me back to The Office of the Commissioner of the Revenue. I stated my preference that he conference in the other office so we can get to the resolution together. And so he did.

Before the party started, Dick got Tina on the right page and they were prepared with a unified front. The math was presented again, my argument was futile again, and I said, "You both have been very helpful, but you don't have the tools to help me. Who do I have to talk to?" Dick offered that I speak to the City Attorney, Roy (actual name), who would be back next Tuesday, 24 October.

When I asked what else I could do to help this along in the mean time, Tina suggested that I provide documentation from the NY DMV proving when I officially surrendered my VA registration. Thanks all around.

So I called the Arlington County Collection Unit and talked to "Rose", who said that I *actually* owed $388.96. I didn't want to argue the completely new amount. I told her I was going to talk to the City Attorney when he gets back on Tuesday and she advised that they wouldn't take real legal action until 13 December. Thanks.

The DMV. I found the right form on the DMV website (MV-15) to request the Abstract of Registration Plate Record. I went to the DMV and I knew there was something wrong right away - no lines. That was just ominous. When I got to the counter, the nice lady explained that I had no need for the form, she'd just produce a duplicate registration for that plate. "But I don't own that vehicle anymore and the plates were transferred to a new vehicle." Oh, no. "You'll need to call 800-CALL-DMV." Thanks all around.

No luck the rest of the day getting through to that number. On Wednesday, I succeeded and spent two minutes and $20 ordering a paper and fax copy of my Abstract of Registration Plate Record. Form MV-15 was the right one after all. The next day, I had the fax in hand and sent a descriptive cover letter, the Abstract proving I registered the same car in NY on 23 January 2002, and an annotated key to the Abstract. I requested a call.

Today, I received a voicemail at 3:30 in the afternoon from Tina. She processed my request and made the adjustment in the system, but I'd need to call the Office of the Treasurer again to get the new amount.

So I called and got "Mark", who advised that there were two ledger entries, one for $0.00 and the other reflecting a $12.62 credit. They actually owed me money now. But the Office of the Treasurer wouldn't issue that check. That's done from The Office of the Commissioner of the Revenue. Okay, another bump, but that's okay.

I sent an email to The Office of the Commissioner of the Revenue advising my new (well, as of 2004) mailing address. I then called the Collection Unit and talked to Rose again. I advised her of the situation and asked when I could call her back to make sure this was resolved. She said next Friday at the earliest.

So the saga is finished. For now. I fear. I loath. I'm never living in Virginia again.

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