The Webster Parish Sales Tax Commission has placed a lien for more than $24,000 on the business of a Minden City councilwoman.
The notice of tax assessment and lien placed on Kennon’s Mortuary, Inc., operated by Fayrine Kennon-Gilbert, was filed in February for failure to pay parish sales taxes related to taxable services and merchandise associated with the business.
“There has been a lien filed against the mortuary for back taxes owed and we are in the process of making arrangements to pay those delinquent taxes,” Kennon-Gilbert said Thursday during a Press-Herald interview at the funeral home.
According to the lien doccument, the commission’s legal claim on the property stems from unpaid parish sales taxes for the tax period of September 2007 through December 2009 for a total of $24,541.11.
Kennon-Gilbert said the delinquent taxes are due to business-related and economic griefs.
“It is because of the hardships that the business has been experiencing that we became delinquent on the sales taxes,” she said. “Again, we are in the process of arranging payment for the back taxes owed. While the arrangements are still in the process, payment has already begun.”
Kennon-Gilbert attributed some of the tax issues to services that her business has rendered to individuals, but have not received payment for merchandise and/or services.
“We have provided services and merchandise for individuals that failed to pay us, which contributed to the economic hardships that we were already experiencing. It (delinquent taxes) has nothing to do with Operation Turn Around.”
In 2007 Kennon-Gilbert, along with another Minden City councilwoman, Magaline Quarles, was named in an inspector general’s report in connection to financial discrepancies with Operation Turn Around, a non-profit abstinence program, which is no longer active in Minden.
The report alleged that Kennon-Gilbert, who at the time was employed by Know Your Bible Ministries, had been paid approximately $9,500 over a yearlong span for job duties that she did not perform.
In February, the Louisiana Department of Education filed suit against Know Your Bible Ministries, which did business as Operation Turn Around Inc., claiming it paid the organization nearly $200,000 for services it did not provide.
Due to confidentiality the Webster Parish Tax Commission office would not comment to the Press-Herald regarding Kennon’s Mortuary’s tax woes.
However, the commission’s administrator, Cynthia Herrington, said the commission follows a general process when dealing with businesses and delinquent parish sales taxes.
“First we send out delinquent notices to a delinquent taxpayer,” she said.“We try to work with them, through payment plans or whatever we can do, but after a taxpayer has been delinquent for several months, we file an assessment letter and a lien.”
Herrington added that the lien helps to keep the businessowner from obtaining loans and making major purchases. “Once we get to that point (lien) if the taxpayer is willing to work out an agreement, then an agreement will be reached between us and them, whatever it may be.”
Herrington said if the taxpayer does not cooperate and payment arrangements/agreement is not reached the commission has the right to file a judgment.
Reportedly, the majority of Webster Parish businesses are set to file a monthly parish sales tax report; however, a select few are set up for quarterly or annual reports.
The parish sales taxes are collected by the Webster Parish Sales Tax Commission, which is governed by a board of directors comprised of all of the agencies that have a sales tax, such as the police jury, sheriff’s office, municipalities, the school board, and tourism.
Reportedly, once the commission collects taxes and collection fees are deducted, along with other penalties, the tax is forwarded to the agency for which the tax is assessed.
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