Maximize Revenues and Streamline Compliance

Frequently Asked Questions

• What if my municipality doesn’t administer a lot of local taxes?

  We hear this question a lot. In reality, your municipality probably administers more taxes or fees than you might realize—everything from dog-walking licenses to fuel taxes, lodging to franchise fees. Every penny matters. After we complete a baseline compliance review of your revenue streams, our self-auditing Localgov platform will automatically keep your taxpayers in compliance going forward. We’ll work with your staff to get this online filing & payment platform up and running and help your taxpayers get started.

• Will Localgov work if I just purchased financial software or work with an enterprise resource planning (ERP) tool?

  No problem! Azavar’s solutions (including the online tax filing & payment solution Localgov) are designed to seamlessly integrate with other programs. Localgov is a universal platform with universal data export. We configure the required integrations during your onboarding process to meet your needs. 

• How will this fit into my budget?

  We understand just how tight municipal budgets can be. That’s why our pricing structure for revenue reviews involves no up-front costs. We work on a contingency basis. If we recover revenue, we’ll share in the rewards. However, we don’t take a dime until your community is paid first.

  Localgov, our online remittance platform, is priced based on the needs of each municipality and we’ll work with your team to arrive at a price based on transactions processed and other custom requirements. However, the platform is so easy to use that it is a guaranteed revenue generator. Your taxpayer constituents will be able to remit payments more swiftly and consistently. Funds are available almost immediately, ensuring that you can continue to provide service to your residents.

• Do I really need an outside vendor to conduct revenue reviews?

  Yes! Here’s why: a truly comprehensive revenue review includes initial discovery, reckoning, and collections. That entire process, when conducted internally, can take up to two years, depending on complexity, responsiveness, and collections. Few municipalities have the staff required to manage such a thorough and complex process and the funds generated could be cancelled out by payroll costs. However, Azavar takes on the financial risk by offering a no-fee, contingency-only model for municipalities. We only get paid after you do.

  We do more than just check addresses. Using our proprietary GIS software and a time-tested process, we uncover all errors, rate issues, and boundary concerns. Our 360-degree approach looks at every single ordinance and levy from all possible angles.

• My municipality is so small. Do we really need your services?

  Yes! We don’t discriminate on size when it comes to revenue reviews—and neither do tax errors. Smaller communities lack the kind of oversight abilities that larger municipalities have and we bring those to the table. Here’s a great example: we worked with Sesser, IL (pop. 1,875) to uncover $10,000 in revenue. Sounds pretty great, right?

  Localgov, our digital remittance platform, helps small municipalities offer more high-value services. Instead of pushing paperwork, your staff can work directly with businesses and residents on more meaningful efforts. Plus, your taxpayer constituents will save on late fees and fines when they have the option to file, pay, and manage their businesses' local tax compliance online. 

• Will a revenue review or Localgov implementation take up a lot of time?

  Absolutely not. The benefit of hiring a seasoned local firm such as Azavar is that we do all of the heavy lifting. After a short call and subsequent site visit to collect relevant documents, our team will be off and running.

  Adopting Localgov is similarly straightforward. The platform takes as little as one month to implement—again, with our team doing much of the heavy lifting. And then, you’ll watch the time savings add up as previously paper processes are replaced by speedy digital methods.

• Can I trust Azavar & Localgov?

  We’ve been a trusted partner to local governments for more than 25 years. We’ve returned more than $500 million to municipalities across the country and are eager to provide case studies and references from our many contented clients, including city managers, mayors, finance leaders, etc.