What are the fees associated with the use of a lock box service to process tax payments?

A: July/August collection period (5,249 items processed)

• Prior lock box company - FISERV:            total fee $2,121.00
• Current lock box company - Lighthouse:   total fee $620.00

The change to the current lock box company represents a 70% savings. The lock box company is vetted by our bank, Newtown Savings Bank.

Q: Was the service bid out?

A: No bidding is required because it is a professional service (the amount is also below the threshold)

NOTES: The majority of towns use lock box services to process tax bills that are mailed. Many towns have a local address on their return envelopes which is a PO Box. They then pay a courier service to pick up the mail and deliver it to the lock box processor. The courier service is quite costly.

The fees for the January collection period are slightly lower because of a lower volume of items processed.

Many tax bills are still processed over the counter and by bank escrow accounts.