Knox sheriff's tax settlement released by state auditor

CORBIN, 28 May 2010 — With the exception of inadvertently going without a county revenue bond for 2008 tax collections, Knox Sheriff John Pickard's 2008-2009 settlement audit looked good, according to Crit Luallen, Kentucky Auditor of Public Accounts.

Auditors noted the missing bond and Pickard responded, the "Fiscal Court had always carried the bond but when insurance companies changed, this bond got dropped by accident." Once the sheriff's office became aware of the incident, the court corrected the problem and currently carries the bond. It was bought through Kentucky Association of Counties.

In the 2008-09 fiscal year, the sheriff's department collected and handed over to the county $1.1 million.

Taxes collected for special taxing districts — including the county library, county health district, University of Kentucky extension district, soil district, ambulance district and Artemus fire district — totaled $1.75 million. Taxes collected for schools in Knox County totaled $3.26 million. The sheriff also collected $1.2 million in taxes for the state.