OPERATIONS DIVISION

PROGRAM MISSION: To effectively manage all incoming revenue transactions, issue various County licenses, and provide vehicle-related State DMV services.

To maximize customer convenience by efficiently processing all incoming revenue, effectively managing the billing and decal programs, and promoting electronic methods of payments, while providing high quality service necessary to meet the needs and expectations of all customers. In carrying out all of its responsibilities, the Operations Division works in close cooperation with the Commissioner of Revenue's Office.

The Operations Division is comprised of two sections: Customer Service and Management Information and Billing.

• The Licensing Unit of the Customer Service Section is responsible for managing the issuance of County decals for motor vehicles and trailers, residential zone parking permits, and other permits and licenses, such as dog tags. This entails maintaining, verifying, balancing, and auditing records of sales and issuance, ensuring the integrity of data in the personal property file and subsidiary databases, and coordinating activities with outside vendors for high volume production and distribution efforts.
  
  Since the adoption of a $24 decal fee in 2000, this unit has increased customer service by resolving decal payment problems and hand-delivering decals to taxpayers requiring immediate attention. In addition, the unit enters change of address data received from taxpayers into the personal property file and initiates correspondence to exchange decals if necessary, and to handle lost or stolen decals.
  
  The Licensing Unit is responsible for managing the issuance of residential zone parking permits. This includes applying eligibility rules, managing mass mailings, handling over-the-counter issuance, and coordinating activities with the Department of Public Works to satisfy customer service needs. Parking permits are currently issued under two separate sets of rules, with different requirements. These rules are subject to change with little notice.
  
  The Licensing Unit is also responsible for the initial sale and renewal of County dog licenses. Applications are received, verified, and entered into a database, which is shared weekly with the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. Tags are mailed to pet owners, and renewal reminders are prepared and mailed monthly.
  
  In November of 2004 the Treasurer's and Commissioner of Revenue's Offices jointly opened a DMV satellite office, offering customers the opportunity to perform State vehicle transactions at the same time they handle County business. The Licensing Unit, with support from the Revenue Processing Unit, handles the Treasurer's Office DMV responsibilities. These duties include issuing license plates and stickers, titles, and registration cards, and collecting payments for all DMV services. DMV has estimated that the satellite office can expect to handle over $3,000,000 in transactions annually.

• The Revenue Processing Unit of the Customer Service Section processes all types of directly-remitted County revenues. These include: real estate taxes; utility payments; personal property taxes; transient occupancy taxes; short-term rental taxes; County decal fees; sidewalk, curb and gutter assessments; cigarette taxes; business license taxes; parking tickets; meals taxes; ambulance fees; permit fees; and others. The unit also processes payments received by other County departments and agencies. After daily processing, payment files are transmitted for nightly posting to the accounts receivable files. The Customer Service Unit also provides much of the face-to-face service required to help customers understand their obligations, and to resolve problems.
  
  Payments are made by cash, check, money order, credit card, and debit cards. While most payments are made in person, the unit also handles exception payments that cannot be processed any way other than through a cash register. The unit acts as primary liaison with other County departments on revenue processing matters.
  
  This unit operates a client-server based revenue processing system. Acting as liaison with the manufacturer, the unit proposes and monitors software modifications and enhancements. The unit also operates a system to image all checks received and processed directly by staff.
  
  The Revenue Processing Unit is also responsible for the sale of prepaid parking meter ParkSmart cards, and provides first level support for those customers.
  
  Staff from the Revenue Processing Unit provides support for the office's DMV operations.
  
  All incoming and outgoing mail for the Treasurer's Office is handled by a mail specialist in Revenue Processing. Incoming mail is picked up, sorted, opened and distributed. Over 300,000 pieces are received annually. Outgoing mail is also delivered to the County mailroom or the post office. Questions regarding the receipt of mail are referred to this unit for research.

• The Management Information and Billing Section (MIB) maintains the accounts receivable files for real estate, personal property, business tangible, business license, and meals tax, and adjusts those accounts to assess and abate late payment penalties, resolve payment posting problems, and process customer refunds. They perform or coordinate updates to handle real estate tax exemptions and deferrals, new construction, and other real estate issues. They coordinate with other County agencies and outside vendors to produce timely and accurate bills for real estate, personal property, and business tangible, which include special billing procedures for vehicle fleets, mortgage companies, and mortgage tax services. This section also handles billings for sidewalk, curb, and gutter assessments, and prepare materials for the release of associated liens.
  
  MIB coordinates with other County agencies to produce timely and accurate statutory bills for meals tax and business license, and coordinates with other County agencies to produce annual and ongoing meals tax and transient occupancy remittance forms and/or filing form mailings.
  
  MIB manages the receipt, editing, posting, balancing, and adjustment of all payments received from outside the office for the aforementioned revenue sources, as well as parking tickets, vehicle decals, public service corporation tax assessments, water and sewer bills, and a variety of miscellaneous fees including permits, sidewalk, curb, and gutter assessments, and others. Payment sources include bank-operated lockbox services, automated bank debit and credit card services, mortgage companies, tax services, Internet and telephone payment services, collection agencies, vehicle fleets, and others. This section works with banking services contractors to develop advanced lockbox capabilities, and investigates and resolves payments that cannot be processed by lockbox services. They serve as the primary contact with the County's Department of Technology Services on user interface and payment data issues for the County's Internet Payment Portal.
  
  The Management Information and Billing Section prepares, in coordination with other County agencies, reports to the County Board on tax write-offs and delinquencies, and prepares regular and ad hoc statistical reports for use within the Treasurer's Office. This section also provides customer service support to the public, other Treasurer's Office staff, and other County agencies for all of the above responsibilities.

SIGNIFICANT BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS:

• A decrease in non-personnel expenses ($7,554) is due to internal reallocations of postage and printing to the Administration Division ($2,000) and to a decrease in the Department of Technology Services projected telephone costs for the department ($5,554).

• Revenue increased ($9,332) primarily due to the FY 2005 cost of living increase approved by the State Compensation Board and the new Department of Motor Vehicle fee revenue received for the operation of the DMV Select satellite office established in November 2004.

PERFORMANCE MEASURES:

• Some of the measures above are new and no historical information is available. Data collection began in FY 2004.