But a dozen mobile homes, four town homes and a duplex are now in tax jeopardy.
Like the FLDS, Wisan has been faced with non-FLDS residents who do not pay taxes. In a 2006 report, he said a "number" of non-FLDS had not paid property taxes and he planned to "attempt" to get them to pay and would use those funds for administrative costs.
Gross breach?
The trust has no money to address the tax problem, Wisan said Thursday. It is in debt about $3 million, money owed primary to Wisan and his attorneys.
This summer the FLDS paid nearly $400,000 in past-due occupancy fees to Wisan, and according to spokesman Willie Jessop, asked Shurtleff to ensure it went to taxes.
But Judge Lindberg did not restrict the funds and Wisan didn't use any of that to protect the property, he said.
"It's extremely disappointing after making the AG's office fully aware of the tax problem, we gave hundreds of thousands in hopes they'd mandate that taxes be paid and it not go for fees," Jessop said. "We're still reaching out to the AG's office to put some protections in place."
Wisan also sold heifers from a trust farm this summer, netting an additional $360,000, that could have been used to wipe out the tax debt, Parker said.
"His charge from the court is to protect the property and it would be a gross breach of his duty to fail to pay the taxes," Parker said.
Wisan said in July those funds were needed for "the continued survival of the trust."
Regarding the occupancy fees, Wisan said they have always been earmarked for the trust's administration.
"I had to make some decisions where to pay it," he said. "Frankly, in order to keep the trust going, in order to defend the trust, I had to pay some professional fees."
brooke@sltrib.com
The tax tab for 2009
Property taxes for 2009 are due in Arizona by Oct. 31. UEP Trust fiduciary Bruce R. Wisan said he has not alerted Colorado City residents what they owe due to "a lack of monetary resources" and because, until a month ago, he thought a settlement over management of the trust might effect his duties.
He said he hopes to notify residents next week of their past-due and current taxes, including shares of communal property, such as parks.
"The community has paid this in the past, the community should pay this now," Wisan said.
"I'm not the bishop, I don't have the ability to communicate to people and businesses like the bishop did previously," he added. "My understanding is that the bishop often allocated property taxes from one residence to another based on the ability to pay. Internally, the FLDS may have to make those kinds of adjustments."
- -- Brooke Adams
-----
To see more of The Salt Lake Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.sltrib.com.
Copyright (c) 2009, The Salt Lake Tribune
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
A service of YellowBrix, Inc.
