county treasurer

New Meals Tax Delinquency List Is a Mixed Bag

By ARLnow.com

The county’s meals tax delinquency list is sort of like a health meter for local restaurants. If the amount owed to the county keeps going up, bad things may be happening for the restaurant financially — or at least managerially.

(The county collects a 4 percent “meals” tax on all prepared foods and beverages sold in Arlington. Often, this tax is passed directly on to the consumer.)

A new meals tax delinquency list dated Dec. 14 shows mostly stagnation when compared to the list released on Aug. 31. The amount owed by the three biggest debtors has increased slightly in the past three and a half months, likely the result of the 10 percent interest the county charges on such debts.

  • Arlington Catering Company owes $75,556.76, compared to $74,304.59 in August
  • Extra Virgin of Shirlington owes $72,352.56, compared to $71,435.96 in August
  • Wall Street Deli, located in National Airport, owes $60,338.49, compared to $58,988.14 in August

The above list excludes chef Roberto Donna, who has so far been faithfully making court-mandated $500 monthly repayments to the county, according to officials.

Three restaurants near the top of the delinquency list have seen significant increases in their debts.

  • Front Page of Ballston owes $23,037.00, compared to $17,113.52 in August
  • Kora Restaurant in Crystal City owes $10,624.41, compared to $5,517.03 in August
  • Market Basket, a store in the Pentagon complex, owes $16,564.89 compared to no debt in August

In some good news, three local favorites have been paying off their debts.

  • Tortoise and Hare in Crystal City has no debt, compared to $19,508.46 in August
  • McGinty’s Public House, in the Market Square at Potomac Yard development, owes $19,751.18, compared to $25,226.64 in August
  • Bob and Edith’s Diner owes $5,468.95, compared to $12,841.15 in August

Roberto Donna May Be Cooking for His Freedom

By ARLnow.com

Acclaimed chef and convicted tax cheat Roberto Donna just opened a new DC restaurant that he hopes will return him to his former James Beard Award-winning glory. If it doesn’t, he could be going to jail.

Donna pleaded guilty to felony embezzlement this summer, after pocketing about $140,000 in meals taxes paid by customers at his now-defunct Bebo Trattoria restaurant in Crystal City. He received a five-year suspended sentence contingent on the repayment of back taxes. But Arlington County Treasurer Frank O’Leary is not happy the $500 per month repayment schedule that state prosecutors set for the $148,000 in taxes and penalties Donna currently owes the county.

“I am far from satisfied with this pace since, should it continue, we will not receive our last payment until September 2036,” O’Leary said. “In all likelihood, I will not be Treasurer at that point, but you can never tell.”

Should Donna’s financial problems continue — according to a recent Washington Post article, he was nearly $40,000 behind on his mortgage and owed at least $70,000 on credit cards — the chef may be unable to meet his repayments. And should that happen, O’Leary is poised to ask the Commonwealth’s Attorney to send him to jail.

Arlington County authorities, however, apparently are not the only ones after Donna. O’Leary said he believes that Virginia’s tax enforcers and the IRS are close to prosecuting Donna for hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of unpaid sales and employment taxes. He’s also being sued by former employees.

“As far as I can tell, the only organization in the United States of America that’s not after Roberto Donna is the Girl Scouts of America,” O’Leary quipped.

(more…)

DEVELOPING STORY — County Vehicle Decals and Tax Bills Delayed Due to Printer Problems

By ARLnow.com

By this time, Arlington residents were supposed to have received about 95,000 115,000 vehicle decals and their accompanying 2011 personal property tax bills. But a problem with the printer has delayed the mailings until next week, throwing into limbo County Treasurer Frank O’Leary’s policy, per state law, of getting the bills to taxpayers 30 days before the October 5 payment deadline.

The printer problem wasn’t confined to Arlington. The same printing company is used by at least one other local jurisdiction, we’re told.

In Arlington, the decals must be displayed by November 15, which will give drivers plenty of time. But meeting the October 5 deadline for paying the tax may be more problematic.

“The county is trying to figure out a way to ensure that people have adequate time to pay their bills before any penalties are imposed,” a county source told ARLnow.com. One possibility is waiving the fees for late payments, up to a certain date. (Update: October 15. See below.)

If you don’t want to wait for the bill in the mail, you can pay your taxes online here.

Hat tip to J.A. for the heads up.

Update at 8:00 p.m. — The county has released a press release.

ARLINGTON, Va. – Defective forms have delayed the mailing of some 115,000 personal property tax bills, Arlington County Treasurer Frank O’Leary said today. The problem also affected the cities of Alexandria and Falls Church, all of whom use the same form supplier, Graphic Communications, for their tax bills.

Arlington mailed some 45,000 bills this week, and expects to mail the remaining 70,000 bills next week, O’Leary said. By state law, the bills are required to be mailed no later than 30 days before the deadline for paying them. The County, by ordinance, has established Oct. 5 as the payment deadline for personal property tax.

Due to the delay, the County will only begin to charge penalties on payments received or postmarked after Oct. 15, to ensure ample time for residents to pay their bills.

“It is unfortunate that the bills could not be mailed in a timely fashion this year,” O’Leary said. “We regret this inconvenience for residents and the concern that it has caused.”

O’Leary noted that any additional printing and mailing costs will be borne by the vendor.

“We are glad that a solution has been found that is fair to taxpayers and fair to the County,” said Board Chairman Jay Fisette.

New Additions to Meals Tax Delinquency List

By ARLnow.com

McGinty’s Public House, Tortoise and Hare Bar and Grill and Bob & Edith’s Diner have piled up tax debts to the county over the course of the summer.

McGinty’s (3650 South Glebe Road) owes the county $25,226.64 in unpaid meals taxes, according to the latest list from the County Treasurer’s office, published on August 31. The owner of the Potomac Yard bar opened the massive P. Brennan’s pub on Columbia Pike earlier this year. As recently as July, McGinty’s was not on the delinquent list

Tortoise & Hare (567 South 23rd Street) was also not on the July list, but now owes the county $19,508.46. The Crystal City bar opened three years ago, and regularly hosts live music acts. It is also a popular football destination on Saturdays and Sundays.

Bob & Edith’s Diner (2310 Columbia Pike) is a bit of a surprise, considering that it seems to attract a crowd at all hours of the day. A second B&E’s location further down Columbia Pike shut down a couple of years ago, and the shell company for “Bob & Edith’s Diner II” has been listed on the delinquency list ever since. But the granddaddy Bob & Edith’s is now listed as owing $12,841.15 (B&E’s II owes $36,370.58).

Flickr pool photo by Chris Rief

Arlington Restaurants Paying Off Tax Debts

By ARLnow.com

A handful of tax-delinquent restaurants have all reduced their debts to Arlington County over the past eight months. But the restaurants still collectively owe the county hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid meals taxes.

The now-defunct Bebo Trattoria, Arlington Catering Company and Murky Coffee owe $133,825.80, $66,581.76 and $46,240.93 respectively as of July 12. That’s down from $156,330.96, $70,734.58 and $52,949.69 (according to a past Washington City Paper article), for a total reduction of $33,366.74 collectively.

Shirlington’s Extra Virgin and Clarendon’s Tandoori Nights, both of which are still in business, also paid down their considerable debts.

Extra Virgin has paid down $10,939.45, and now owes $72,280.27 — which is still the second-highest figure on the meals tax delinquency list. Owner Shary Thur did not return a phone call for comment earlier today.

Tandoori Nights, owned by the Indaez Group, has repaid $14,048.07 and now owes $18,721.78.

Other Arlington restaurants near the top of the list include Wall Street Deli, Bob & Edith’s Diner, Armand’s Pizza, and Hamburger Hamlet.