Orange County Tax Collector Scott Randolph today announced that his office will consolidate the Property Tax and Business Tax departments. As part of the consolidation effort, the Business Tax Department will relocate from the County Administration Building to the Tax Collector’s Administration Office, located in the SunTrust Building in Downtown Orlando. The consolidation is effective Monday, June 19.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to streamline our operations, cut costs and save taxpayer dollars, “ Tax Collector Scott Randolph said. “Consolidating our two tax departments will make us a leaner, more efficient Tax Collector office.”
Randolph said the consolidation builds upon previous cost-saving and efficiency measures, including:
- Increasing the number of motor vehicle and tax transactions completed online;
- Outsourcing back-office functions to save taxpayer dollars and move more employees to front-line positions; and
- Renegotiating several office leases that cut lease costs by 40%.
Under the consolidation, property tax and business tax employees will be cross-trained to serve all tax customers. And in an effort to better serve business tax customers, who often complete their transactions at the beginning of the day, the new Tax Department will also offer early-morning office hours. The new office hours for business taxes are:
- Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 7:30 am – 5:00 pm
- Wednesday: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
- Friday: 8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Customers may complete a property tax transaction Monday through Friday 7:30 am to 5:00 pm.
“Our customers are business owners and it’s difficult for many of them to come visit our office in the middle of the day,” Randolph said. “Now they have an opportunity to visit our office and complete their transaction before they even open their business for the day.”
The Tax Collector’s Business Tax Department is responsible for collecting and administering the business tax, which is imposed by the county on most businesses operating in Orange County and its municipalities, including the City of Orlando. The business tax generated $2.28 million in revenue to the county in 2016.
The department, which includes 6 employees, has been located in the County Administration Building for more than 25 years. Relocating to the Tax Collector’s Administration Office will free up approximately 2,000 square feet of space for the county.
