Lac qui Parle County Auditor-Treasurer’s Office

Auditor-Treasurer Jake Sieg

 

HOURS:  MONDAY-FRIDAY, 8:30-4:30 PM

PHONE:  (320) 598-7444; General Information, Motor Vehicle/Drivers License

Property Taxes:  (320) 598-3648   FAX:  (320) 598-3125

E-mail: auditor-treasurer@lqpco.com 

 

The office of the Auditor-Treasurer was created on January 2, 2007 when the former offices of the Auditor and Treasurer were combined.  The Auditor-Treasurer’s office is the central financial department of the county government.  The office is staffed by the Auditor-Treasurer who is appointed by the County Board of Commissioners along with five Deputy Auditor-Treasurers. The responsibilities of the Auditor-Treasurer are broken into five major areas:

 

            General Administration

 

            Financial Administration

 

            Election Administration

 

            Property Tax Administration

           

            Motor Vehicle/Drivers License, Miscellaneous

 

General Administration

 

The Auditor-Treasurer serves as clerk to the County board of Commissioners.  Duties include:

 

  • Scheduling of appointments to meet with the Board
  • Preparation of meeting agendas and minutes
  • Publish meeting minutes in the official newspaper of the county
  • Perform other duties as directed by the Board

 

The Auditor-Treasurer’s office is responsible for most human resources functions within the county.  Duties include:

 

  • Payroll preparation and payment of payroll, payroll taxes, insurance premiums, and pension benefits
  • Maintenance of employee files
  • Advertisement for county employment openings

Financial Administration

The Auditor-Treasurer’s office is the financial headquarters of the county.  Related duties include:

·        Preparation of the annual county budget

·        Calculation of Real Estate, Personal Property, and Mobile Home taxes

·        Maintenance of the county’s accounting system for the General Revenue and Ditch Funds

·        Maintenance of the summary accounting of the Road & Bridge and Welfare Funds

·        Maintenance of Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable

·        Preparation of the county’s Comptrehensive Annual Financial Statements

2008 Financial Statements

2009 Financial Statements

The Auditor-Treasurer also performs a variety of treasury duties for the county.  Treasury duties include:

·        Reconciliation of county bank accounts

·        Invest surplus funds in accordance with Minnesota Statutes

·        Record cash receipts

·        Ensure adequate collateralization of bank account balances

Election Administration

The Auditor-Treasurer is designated by the Secretary of State as Register of Voters and is the Chief Election Officer of the County. Election duties include:

·        Conduct primary and general elections and any special countywide elections

·        Train election judges and officials

·        Print election ballots

·        Act as filing officer for county races

·        Distribute absentee ballots

·        Tabulate and report election results from voting districts

Property Tax Administration

Each taxing district within the county must certify a tax levy and special assessments to the County Auditor-Treasurer. The Auditor-Treasurer tabulates all of these levies and special assessments and then calculates the amount of real estate, personal, and mobile home tax that will be paid by each property owner in the county based on the valuations certified to the Auditor-Treasurer by the County Assessor. Upon completion of the calculation of the tax, statements are distributed to all taxpayers indicating the amount of tax due and the due dates for payment of these taxes.

After each tax deadline the Auditor-Treasurer must reconcile all collections for accuracy and pay out to each taxing district their appropriate share of the taxes collected. State Statutes specify when these payments must be made.

Property taxes that have not been paid to the county at the end of the tax collection year are considered delinquent.  Delinquent taxpayers are advertised in the official county newspaper each year.

All real estate transactions for property located in the county are processed through the Auditor-Treasurer's Office either to collect deed or mortgage registry tax, or to make changes to the ownership of property. The Auditor-Treasurer's Office maintains the ownership records in the tax system daily or as needed. 

Miscellaneous

The Auditor-Treasurer is responsible for issuing motor vehicle, driver's license, DNR licenses, liquor, wine, beer, tobacco, auctioneer, and transient merchant licenses.

The Auditor-Treasurer is by statute a member of the County Board of Equalization and a member and secretary of the County Extension Committee.

Other miscellaneous responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

·        Cemetery reporting

·        Preparation of Auditor’s Certificates

·        Preparation of Gas Tax Reports

·        Maintenance of the Register of Bonded Indebtedness for all taxing districts in the county

·        Redistricting

·        Maintenance of ditch assessment records