Orange County officials are telling residents that they can pre-pay their 2018 property taxes before new federal tax laws take effect on January 1.

The response from the county comes after residents emailed members of the Chapel Hill Town Council and Orange County Commissioners in the public email archive asking about their options.

The unusual rush comes after Republicans in the United States House and Senate passed new legislation overhauling the country’s tax code. One provision of the new law caps the amount of state and local taxes that can be deducted at $10,000. The rush to get tax payments in before the end of the calendar year has become the subject of national news stories, especially after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order authorizing localities to collect payments early and for residents to make partial payments.

Even with local governments collecting payments early, there is still no clear indication as to whether there will be a benefit to taxpayers until further guidance is issued by the Internal Revenue Service.

But for Orange County residents who would like to pre-pay 2018 property taxes, county offices open back up from the holiday break for normal business hours on Thursday and Friday and residents can pay in-person at 228 South Churton Street in Hillsborough.

Residents can also call county tax offices at (919) 245-2100 or email tax@orangecountync.gov.

County officials warn that if a large number of residents choose to pre-pay their property taxes, there could be a backlog and they ask that residents be patient with the process.

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