Collection of taxes; county treasurer tax collector; statements; contents; special assessments; de minimis amount; how treated

(1) The county treasurer shall be ex officio county collector of all taxes levied within the county. The county board shall designate a county official to mail or otherwise deliver a statement of the amount of taxes due and a notice that special assessments are due, to the last-known address of the person, firm, association, or corporation against whom such taxes or special assessments are assessed or to the lending institution or other party responsible for paying such taxes or special assessments. Such statement shall clearly indicate, for each applicable county, city, and village, the amount of property taxes due to fund any and all public safety services as defined in section 13-320 , county attorneys, and public defenders, regardless of whether such amount is taken as an exception to the political subdivision's property tax request authority under section 13-3404 . Such statement shall also clearly indicate, for each political subdivision, the levy rate and the amount of taxes due as the result of principal or interest payments on bonds issued by the political subdivision and shall show such rate and amount separate from any other levy. When taxes on real property are delinquent for a prior year, the county treasurer shall indicate this information on the current year tax statement in bold letters. The information provided shall inform the taxpayer that delinquent taxes and interest are due for the prior year or years and shall indicate the specific year or years for which such taxes and interest remain unpaid. The language shall read "Back Taxes and Interest Due For", followed by numbers to indicate each year for which back taxes and interest are due and a statement indicating that failure to pay the back taxes and interest may result in the loss of the real property. Failure to receive such statement or notice shall not relieve the taxpayer from any liability to pay such taxes or special assessments and any interest or penalties accrued thereon. In any county in which a city of the metropolitan class is located, all statements of taxes shall also include notice that special assessments for cutting weeds, removing litter, and demolishing buildings are due.

(2) Notice that special assessments are due shall not be required for special assessments levied by community improvement districts organized under the Community Improvement District Act or sanitary and improvement districts organized under Chapter 31, article 7, except that such notice may be provided by the county at the discretion of the county board or by the community improvement district or the sanitary and improvement district with the approval of the county board.

(3) A statement of the amount of taxes due and a notice that special assessments are due shall not be required to be mailed or otherwise delivered pursuant to subsection (1) of this section if the total amount of the taxes and special assessments due is less than two dollars. Failure to receive the statement or notice shall not relieve the taxpayer from any liability to pay the taxes or special assessments but shall relieve the taxpayer from any liability for interest or penalties. Taxes and special assessments of less than two dollars shall be added to the amount of taxes and special assessments due in subsequent years and shall not be considered delinquent until the total amount is two dollars or more.