City auditor to look into Richmond rebate check process, former employee concerned

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A former Richmond finance department employee has shared concerns about communication and organization during his time at the department ahead of a planned audit by the city.

After thousands of rebate checks were issued incorrectly, City Auditor Riad Ali says an official audit will be conducted to get to the bottom of several check processing issues.

The recently launched four-cent rebate program was designed to help Richmond property owners.

In a statement to 8News, City Auditor Riad Ali says, "My office will be looking into the tax rebate process to provide reasonable assurance that the rebates were calculated accurately and in accordance with City rules. We will also look into what caused the problem and offer any recommendations to strengthen future processes."

M.B., a former finance department employee who did not wish to be fully identified, says he is hopeful findings from the audit will help prevent something like this from happening again.

“At the end of the day, we all pay the price if we're not able to confidently trust that our government is competent and consistent in what they're doing," M.B. said.

M.B. started working in the department in March. Soon after, 8News learned several thousand Richmond residents received rebate checks with the wrong name printed on them. Following the error, city leaders reassured residents that no sensitive taxpayer information was released and that the Department of Finance would cancel and reissue affected checks.

To help resolve the issue, M.B. says he was tasked with checking the accuracy of the names and check amounts for the new checks.

“I would say it was more disappointing just because, I mean, you wouldn't expect that from your government," M.B. said.

After just a month on the job, M.B. says communication and organization issues he observed contributed to his decision to leave the department. He told 8News that, after his experience, he was left wondering whether there were additional issues like rebate calculations that hadn't come to light.

"And all I was asking is, if my math was wrong, just show me. But they weren't able to," M.B. said.

In April, 8News learned about 8,300 residents were initially impacted, some rebate checks were sent to the wrong address, 156 checks were issued to nonexistent addresses and even correctly issued checks bounced. Following these errors, the city says Jamie Atkinson, Director of Revenue Administration, submitted her resignation on April 21. Department of Finance’s Senior Director, Sheila White, will now oversee the tax rebate check process.

If you received one of these checks and then were charged bank fees for attempting to cash a valid, stopped check, you can submit a request for reimbursement via RVA311.

You can do so by either calling 311 or submitting a ticket online. According to the city, here are the steps to submit said ticket:

• Click “Create New Request.”
• Click “Real Estate Taxes.”
• Click “Continue” through the pop-up window.
• Fill out the requested information, including uploading a photo of the return check fee from your bank.
• Click “Next.”
• Fill out your contact information, then click “Submit.”

The deadline to request such a reimbursement is May 30.