A recent tax sale of property in the county has affected property lines for the owners of homes, one of which now wonders if they own their home.

Board of Supervisors attorney Joe Montgomery said that a few months ago he was contacted by Nelson and Kathy Smith who said they got a call from a man in Florida who said he bought their home in a tax sale. He then offered to sell the tax title to them for $10,000. Montgomery said he checked into the situation and found a number of years back complications with a strip of land in the tax office led to five pieces of property near and including the Smith’s home being shifted in that office’s records.

His suggestion was to have the county engineer survey all five properties to exactly locate the property lines.

Nelson Smith said he was previously paying about $800 in annual property taxes, but recently got a bill stating this year’s taxes were only $37.

Montgomery said that decrease was attributed to the assessment of the Smith’s home to another lot. A course of action to rectify the matter will be determined after the new survey of those lots is completed. Montgomery advised Smith to wait to pay his taxes until the matter is resolved.

In other business, Chancery Court Clerk Melinda Bowman asked the Board to approve a motion allowing her office to enter into an agreement with Revolution Data Systems at a cost of $27,013 for scanning services. Bowman said that the expense will come from fees collected by her office, and it will allow those who sign up for a subscription to search deeds of trust through her office’s due process database.

The Board also approved a motion to sponsor the upcoming Chapel Hart concert set for the Brownstone Center on the Pearl River Community College campus on January 8, 2022.

State Representatives Timmy Ladner also took a moment to commend the Board on a recent redistricting effort to ensure the minority population is properly represented. Board President Sandy Kane Smith said the Board saved between $60,000 to $100,000 by doing the redistricting in-house.

Ladner said other counties in the state have not been so quick to get the process done, which is typically needed every decade after the Census is conducted. He said any county that has not competed that task will have it done for them by the Legislature.