MOUNT VERNON — Knox County property owners will have until Friday, Feb. 12, 2010, to pay their 2009 property taxes, according to Knox County Treasurer Sandy Mizer.

Employees with the Knox County Auditor’s Office are working on updating the tax information in the system in preparation to send data off to the printer.

Mizer said there is approximately a 10-business day turnaround for statements to be printed. By state law, property owners are to receive tax statements at least 20 days before they are due.

“We have a little bit of extra time worked in this time,” Mizer said. “We were looking at a due date of Feb. 5, but if there was a glitch, it wouldn’t give us enough time.”

Statements will include a first-half amount and a whole year amount, Mizer said. Property owners can pay the whole amount or just what is required for the first half of the year.

“It’s really a courtesy to offer [first-half and second-half] billing,” Mizer said. “A lot of states do just one tax mailing.”

Printing and mailing of statements twice each year can take a toll on budgets, Mizer said.

“Hopefully we can continue to provide this courtesy,” she said.

The treasurer’s office is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Thursday this week for those who want to pay their property taxes before the year ends. Mizer said interim numbers are available to calculate the bill, or property owners can pay the same as last year. Any overage would be credited to the second half of the year, Mizer said. Underpayment would result in a bill for the amount due. Those who pay their balance in 2009 will not receive a statement.

Mizer reminds property owners it is their responsibility to pay property taxes regardless of whether they receive a statement.

“If you do not receive a statement by Feb. 1, you need to call our office and update your mailing address,” Mizer said.

Payment received in the first 10 days after the due date are penalized 5 percent of the tax due. Payments after 10 days are subject to a 10 percent penalty.

The Knox County Treasurer’s Office is at 117 E. High St. Questions can be answered by calling 393-6735.