Jim’s still on his Spring Break, but offers this reprise of a recent column …
“This is the number one form of tax evasion in Connecticut. Connecticut is losing millions annually and our DMV does not care.”
So says Stonington Tax Assessor Jennifer Lineaweaver, president of the state association for her profession, the Connecticut Association of Assessing Officers. She’s speaking of Connecticut residents who register their cars in other states to avoid local property taxes. “Connecticut is also losing money on registrations, emissions, insurance and unpaid parking tickets that cannot be enforced,” she says.
get Maine plates for your vehicles… without even traveling to the state or having an address there. You can even register in Montana, a scheme especially popular with expensive motor home owners.
A couple of years ago Vermont admitted there were 3,600 cars registered in that…
MANAGEMENT & CULTURE (THE “TONE AT THE TOP”)
Fraud thrives in “sloppy” environments where leadership ignores the rules.
- The Fraud Triangle: For fraud to occur, three elements must be present: Pressure (the need for money), Rationalization (thinking “I deserve this”), and Opportunity (weak controls). You can only control the Opportunity.
- Whistleblower Hotline: Provide an anonymous way for staff to report “odd behavior.” Most internal frauds are caught via tips, not audits.
- Background Checks: Conduct credit and criminal record checks for all employees in financial or data-sensitive roles.
- Annual Ethics Training: Make sure every staff member knows that the company has a Zero Tolerance policy toward “borrowing” from petty cash or fudging overtime.