RICHMOND, Va. — A Richmond city official has stepped down after a series of errors plagued the city’s property tax rebate process, resulting in over 8,000 residents receiving rebate checks with incorrect names printed on them. The mistakes, which have led to widespread confusion, prompted an audit of the program and raised questions about the city’s oversight of the tax rebate distribution.
The rebate program, designed to offer Richmond property owners a four-cent reduction per $100 of assessed property value, was meant to be based on properties owned in 2024. The city initially issued nearly 60,000 checks as part of the special rebate initiative. However, on March 25, officials acknowledged that “several thousand” checks were sent out with the wrong names on them.
The city quickly moved to cancel the incorrectly issued checks and promised to reissue them. However, further investigation revealed additional errors in the distribution process. According to city officials, a number of checks intended for individuals who sold their properties in 2024 were mistakenly sent to the new property owners. Additionally, nearly 200 checks were issued for parcels of land that no longer existed as of 2024. Some checks that were correctly issued were not sent out at all.
By April 28, the total number of affected residents had been clarified to be approximately 8,300. The city’s Department of Finance is currently working to validate and correct the remaining checks, with plans to issue accurate checks as soon as possible.
As a result of the ongoing issues, Jamie Atkinson, the city’s Director of Revenue Administration, resigned on April 21. Atkinson had been responsible for overseeing the property tax rebate process. Going forward, Sheila White, the senior Director of the Department of Finance, will directly supervise the distribution of the rebate checks.
In response to the errors, the city has also outlined a procedure for residents who were charged bank fees for attempting to cash a valid, stopped check. Affected individuals can request reimbursement by submitting a ticket through RVA311. The process involves uploading documentation of any bank fees incurred, and requests must be submitted by May 30.
As the city works to address these mistakes, many Richmond residents are left waiting for resolution and hoping for smoother processing of future rebate programs. The situation has raised concerns about the effectiveness of city operations, prompting scrutiny over how such widespread errors could have occurred in the first place.
With the oversight of the program now in the hands of Sheila White, city officials are hopeful that the remaining checks will be issued accurately and in a timely manner, putting an end to the confusion and frustration that has marked this rebate process.
