Mrs. McCain, San Diego County Would Like a Word
Suzanne Smalley, Andrew Murr, Mark Hosenball and Nathan Dinsdale
NEWSWEEK
Updated: 3:53 PM ET Jun 28, 2008

When you're poor, it can be hard to pay the bills. When you're rich,
it's hard to keep track of all the bills that need paying. It's a lesson
Cindy McCain learned the hard way when NEWSWEEK raised questions about
an overdue property-tax bill on a La Jolla, Calif., property owned by a
trust that she oversees. Mrs. McCain is a beer heiress with an estimated
$100 million fortune and, along with her husband, she owns at least
seven properties, including condos in California and Arizona.

San Diego County officials, it turns out, have been sending out tax
notices on the La Jolla property, an oceanfront condo, for four years
without receiving a response. County records show the bills, which were
mailed to a Phoenix address associated with Mrs. McCain's trust, were
returned by the post office. According to a McCain campaign aide, who
requested anonymity when discussing a private matter, an elderly aunt of
Mrs. McCain's lives in the condo, and the bank that manages the trust
has not been receiving tax bills on the property. Shortly after NEWSWEEK
inquired about the matter, the McCain aide e-mailed a receipt dated
Friday, June 27, confirming payment by the trust to San Diego County in
the amount of $6,744.42. County officials say the trust still owes an
additional $1,742 for this year, an amount that is overdue and will go
into default July 1. Told of the outstanding $1,742, the aide said: "The
trust has paid all bills shown owing as of today and will pay all other
bills due."

Dan McAllister, treasurer- tax collector for San Diego County, said that
about 3 percent of San Diego's approximately 1 million property owners
default on their property taxes each year. The county assesses a 1.5
percent penalty for each month that goes by unpaid and puts houses up
for sale after five years. "We do hear an awful lot of excuses for why
people don't pay," McAllister said. "Under the law, the property owner
is responsible for keeping the address current. We're only as good as
the information we are given."
URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/143775