COVINGTON — Most of the Kenton County workers still due a refund from a disputed payroll tax increase should receive it within the next two weeks.

        “I think we'll be done with all but the problem cases by the end of next week,” Kenton County Treasurer Ivan Frye said Wednesday.

        Anyone who earned wages in Kenton County last year qualifies for a refund from a contested payroll tax increase repealed by Kenton Fiscal Court. In February, county workers began processing refund checks ranging from $1 to about $445.

        As an example of problem cases, Mr. Frye said that some companies withheld Kenton County payroll tax from workers' checks during 2001 but failed to pay the county for one or more quarters. Those companies, which he declined to name, will be cited to court after county workers finish processing refunds, he said.

        County workers calculated the refunds, as employers submitted copies of workers' W-2 forms showing how much Kenton County payroll tax was withheld for each employee.

        More than 2,000 checks also were returned to the county because of incorrect addresses for employees, Mr. Frye said.

        Since February, workers in the Kenton County treasurer's office have mailed about 65,000 refund checks, Mr. Frye said. Another 10,000 to 11,000 checks are being processed and should be sent out by next week.

        Mr. Frye estimated a total of $4 million to $4.3 million in refunds will be sent out when all 75,000 to 76,000 checks are processed. About $3.7 million has been mailed out so far.

        Since February, the county has spent about $22,000 on postage for the checks, he said. Mr. Frye added he has not tallied the cost of the workers who've processed the checks.

        For about three months, four employees — including two who are working on the refunds full-time — have helped get the checks out.

        In December, Kenton County Judge-executive Dick Murgatroyd recommended — and county officials agreed — to refund the money while appealing a court decision against Kenton County in a lawsuit challenging the payroll tax hike that took effect on Jan. 1, 2001. Democrats accused the all-Republican fiscal court of acting under pressure with the election less than a year away, a claim that members of Kenton Fiscal Court denied.

        Mr. Frye said he's receiving about 15 to 20 calls a day about payroll tax refunds.

        “Early on, we told them to call back in a month,” he said. “Now we're looking when an employee calls, and we're finding that nine out of 10 of them are in process.”

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