2010 Conference Session

Contacting the Debtor

What is the best way to contact debtors to get them to pay? Correspondence, telephone, email, text message? Each methodology has its strengths and weaknesses. Does the type of debt drive the method of contact? In this session you will learn some of the successes for each method of contact.

Speaker: Gary Sabean

Gary M. Sabean has worked for the Arlington County Treasurer for 25 years gaining extensive knowledge in tax collection and the overall operational functions of a well-run local treasurer’s office. Over his 25 year tenure, Gary has worked in each department within the Treasurer’s Office including the accounting and operations divisions. His knowledge of the functions of each division gives him great insight into the functioning of the entire office. This knowledge helped him to assist and manage many system conversions and upgrades within the Treasurer’s Office, including conversions of the parking violations system, collections system and receivables system.

His innovative thinking and leadership skills earned him the appointment of Deputy Treasurer for Compliance. Managing a 24 member staff responsible for the collection of all taxes and fees owed Arlington County, Gary can be credited for reducing the delinquent rate in Arlington County Virginia for Real Estate and Personal Property tax to an all time low of 0.81% for fiscal year 2008. . Gary has also been an innovator in the collection of other debt owed Arlington County such as accounts from the Department of Human Resources Fraud division for collection of fraudulent section 8 housing and food stamp fees. His department also collects debts for the Park and Recreation Division, Ambulance fees for the Fire Department, False Alarm fees for the Police Department and 13 other departments within the county. With the extraordinary powers of the Treasurer in the Commonwealth, it is Gary’s vision that has made the Treasurer’s Office the collection agency for Arlington County, allowing each of these Departments to focus on providing services to the public.

With his knowledge of the Code of Virginia and the collection process his division collected over 24 million dollars in delinquent debt last year using the wide array of collection tools authorized by State law. In collecting delinquent debt, the Compliance Division seized over 1,200 vehicles and issued more than 4,000 levies to financial institutions and employers.

As an expert on tax collections, Gary has spoken at many seminars on collection techniques and processes. Gary also teaches a class on “Collection of Delinquent Taxes and Other Charges” for the Virginia Treasurers’ Association. Gary is a founding board member of GRCA.