The Commissioners Court approved Monday the county implementing a Texas law to encourage citizens to pay fines and fees they owe the county. County Judge Brint Carlton told the reason for approving the Texas Scofflaw Program for Orange County is to give citizens another incentive to pay fines or fees they owe. Carlton explains that under the new program the Tax Office can reject the renewal of a vehicle registration for customers who have outstanding fines or fees they owe the county. The tax office will be working with the four Justice of the Peace Courts in their collections since their computers use the same software that the Tax Office uses according to Tax Assessor-Collector Lynda Gunstream. The County Tax Office will need to publicize the new policy before it goes into effect beginning August 1. The local homestead exemptions for the 2015 tax year were approved and were the same as the previous year. The Homestead Exemption will be 20 percent, the Senior Citizens exemption will be $25,000, as will also be the Disabled Citizens exemption. The Court approved raising the life insurance benefits for county employees and eligible retirees by $5,000. Judge Carlton summarized that county employees’ life insurance benefits will go from $15,000 to $20,000, while eligible retirees will have their life insurance benefits doubled from $5,000 to $10,000. Carlton concluded it will cost the county less than $4,000 to raise everyone’s life insurance. Lamar State College Orange nursing students will continue to get clinical nursing experience at the Orange County Jail infirmary after commissioners renewed the agreement with LSC-O. At the end of the meeting Commissioner Barry Burton shared some good news about the work of Donna Scales in the Parks Department. Burton said a list was released recently naming the 20 hidden gems in the state of Texas. Not surprisingly the Shangri La Botanical Gardens in Orange was named as the number seven hidden gem, but worthy of praise and applause from those attending the meeting was Burton’s announcing that Claiborne West Park between Orange and Vidor off of Interstate 10 was selected as the sixth best hidden gem in the state. Scales who manages the county parks including Claiborne West Park thanked the room for their applause and thanked her staff for their efforts adding they work very hard.
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