MT - County struggles with tax snafu

Problems with the computer program Gallatin County uses to distribute motor vehicle taxes sent thousands of dollars into the wrong bank accounts, according to an emergency audit of the system finished this week.

Accountants with the independent firm of Veltkamp, Stannebein & Bateson discovered $156,845 was errantly diverted from accounts of school districts, rural fire districts and even the city of Bozeman -- and deposited into others.

"This is money people thought they had to spend," said county Treasurer Jeff Krauss. "I'm pretty sure (some districts) are going to have to go back and adjust their levies."

On Wednesday afternoon, Krauss, county Commissioners Bill Murdock, Jennifer Smith Mitchell and Phil Olson, and other officials met with the accountants who did the review to figure out how the problem went undetected for months -- and how it can be remedied.

Officials are uncertain whether distribution of vehicle tax revenue from 1999 was also distributed incorrectly. The same firm has been asked to review those numbers.

"I'm not here to point fingers," said Murdock repeatedly. "I just want to fix this problem."

Noticeably absent from the meeting was county Auditor Joyce Schmidt. Until two years ago, her office had tested the vehicle tax distribution system for errors like these. Schmidt reorganized her office in 1998, elminating an accountant position an

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-- Doris (reaper@pacifier.com), October 12, 2000