That report issued by a Grand Jury investigating fraud at the tax office found negligence and a lack of supervision. The Grand Jury was greatly alarmed and the report lays the blame squarely at the feet of Tax Collector Bruce Elfant for dereliction of duty and pervasive lack of supervision. The report says that environment led emboldening people to defraud the county.
Three former tax office employees were indicted in June.
Statement from Tax Assessor-Collector Bruce Elfant on the Grand Jury report issued today:
“I have great respect for the grand jury and understand that this is a serious issue. I take responsibility and am fully committed to making sure this never happens again.
I embrace the recommendations made by the grand jury, and my office has already taken a number of actions to increase oversight, provide additional training and implement best practices. We will continue to work with the Travis County Auditor, and we have hired an outside, independent expert, Monica Blackwell, one of the most experienced and respected title managers in Texas. We are confident that she can successfully lead our motor vehicle team.
We will be calling on Travis County Commissioners to begin public hearings as recommended. Our goal is to rebuild the public trust and meet the needs of our customers. We will continue to work closely with the county attorney, along with the county auditor and others, to restore confidence in the tax office.”
(Photo: Shutterstock)
