GOP hopeful refutes tax problem charges
Anita Forte-Scott, the Republican challenger in the 56th District state representative race, has more than $43,000 worth of federal tax liens on the private school she owns in Elgin, public records show.
Her opponent, Democratic incumbent Paul Froehlich, brought the issue to light, pointing to four liens totaling $43,487.90 on Forte-Scott's Bright Stars Academy.
Forte-Scott has addressed earlier charges explaining why she's been paying some of her property taxes late on the Elgin school. She insists the federal liens fall into the same category of issues that have already been settled.
According to Internal Revenue Service records kept by the Kane County recorder, the liens for unpaid taxes were put on the property between March 8, 2007, and April 11, 2008.
"I have an accountant who handles all of our paperwork at the school," Forte-Scott said in a voice-mail message Friday. "I've asked him to look into Kane County or whoever files their paperwork to make sure that if there are things they have that are not supposed to be up, that they're supposed to be on a more timely basis. I'm waiting for him to give me a statement."
Forte-Scott couldn't be reached for further comment Friday.
Kane County Recorder Sandy Wegman said the information available at kanecountyrecorder.net is kept up to date. There was no record of any release of Bright Stars Academy's liens Friday.
IRS documents define a lien as a legal claim to property as security for payment of tax debt. A federal tax lien is used after the IRS assesses liability, sends a notice or demand for payment, and 10 days have passed without full payment of the debt.
It can take up to 30 days for the IRS to issue a certificate of release of a tax lien after a tax debt is satisfied, IRS documents state.
In reference to Froehlich's accusations of late or delinquent property taxes on her business, Forte-Scott emphasized that all property taxes have been paid on the Elgin business - something Kane County Treasurer David J. Rickert confirmed.
Forte-Scott said the nature of her business causes her to pay taxes late because state payments she receives on behalf of her low-income students are often late.
The number of her low-income students who qualify for a state tuition aid has jumped from 40 percent to 90 percent in the past few years, Forte-Scott said. This has resulted in a large percentage of her income arriving in late state payments.
"If I was a bad business owner, my business would not be open right now," she said. "It means I'm going to fight even harder to make sure the state pays its bills on time. We've never laid off a staff person or turned away a family."
Another factor in her finances, Forte-Scott said, is that her family's assets were temporarily frozen because of the theft of her husband's identity around 2005. He's a co-owner of Bright Stars, so its finances were briefly affected as well, she said.
The 56th District includes Schaumburg and portions of Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Hanover Park, Roselle and Bloomingdale.
Charges: Candidate says problems are caused by late payments from state