Public officials delinquent on taxes send wrong message

Published: September 3, 2010

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There are recent examples at the local, county and state levels where government officials have redoubled their efforts to collect taxes. Most notable was Pennsylvania's tax amnesty television commercial, where in what many considered a "Big Brother" approach, a threatening voice told those who owed taxes, "We know who you are."

Such extreme tactics are concerning, but they are born out of frustration for those who simply skirt the law and refuse to pay. No one likes taxes; there are myriad ways in which they could be reduced, and many of them simply aren't fair. But what is even more unfair is that most law-abiding citizens make it a priority to pay their taxes, on time, while others don't.

Perhaps that's what is so disappointing about the recent revelation that three current members of the Mount Carmel Area School Board have been delinquent in paying their Northumberland County property taxes regularly since 2005 (which is when easily accessible digital record-keeping was established). Eric P. Belfanti has been delinquent for five straight years, from 2005 to 2009; his 2008 bill went unpaid for two years, putting his property on the county's "upset sale" list with a total owed of $8,357. His recent establishment of a payment plan for the 2008 bill remedies the situation, so the county won't sell his house as long as he keeps paying.

Dr. Raymond Kraynak also had a bill two years late, putting one of his properties on the upset sale list in 2008 with a total owed of $9,044. Furthermore, he's been delinquent on multiple properties and for multiple years.

Rose Marquardt has been delinquent on her tax bill for a property in Kulpmont. Her name and property never made the upset sale list - she's paid in each case before it came to that - but she's been delinquent every year from 2005 through 2009. Her 2009 bill of $1,015 was paid Tuesday after she received a call from The News-Item about our story on the delinquencies, saying the inquiry jogged her memory.

In fairness, The News-Item has not yet inquired about other local public officials. It was Belfanti's name on the Aug. 21 upset sale list that sparked the inquiry regarding Mount Carmel Area School board members.

Whether there are others or not, the fact that one-third of the members of a local school board - all three with professional careers - are habitually delinquent on their tax payments is shameful and disappointing. Public officials are held to a higher standard, and their actions here set a precedent that many property owners - some of them facing true financial hardships - would be more than happy to emulate.

Being a school board member is a thankless job, and it doesn't pay, despite what many people think. No one probably ever thanked Belfanti, Kraynak or Marquardt for their public service, but they're surely going to comment about their tax delinquencies. As they should.

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