Mich. city spends $5.21 to mail 51-cent tax bill

[May 15, 2008]  BRIGHTON, Mich. (AP) -- A Michigan doctor is getting a laugh out of a 51-cent property tax bill. It isn't just that Phil Kazanji's bill is so low. It's that it cost the city of Brighton $5.21 to send it to him by certified mail.

Kazanji says he first thought the amount was a mistake. Now he calls the whole thing "the most ridiculous thing a government agency would do."

City finance director Dave Gajda says Kazanji paid $158 on a bill for $158.48. The city penalized him 3 cents and sent him the new tab.

Gajda says Brighton doesn't have the authority to waive a portion of taxes.

Kazanji says he'll write out a check for 51 cents and drop it off.

[Associated Press]

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