CROWN POINT | Lake County Treasurer John Petalas said Tuesday he isn't to blame for tardy property tax bills.

He, and other county officials who came to Petalas' defense, said enraged taxpayers and municipal officials should direct their ire at Lake County's assessors, who must measure any changes in property value each year before taxes are computed.

"I have nothing to do with calculating bills, determining the tax rate, or anything in between. These assessors are holding up the process, and Gov. Mitch Daniels is playing games on his end when they send data downstate and he kicks it back," Petalas said Tuesday.

He said he cannot predict when bills will be mailed this year.

Lake County Assessor Paul Karras could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Suburban municipal officials are complaining about the prospect of property tax collections being delayed for the seventh year, forcing them to borrow millions of dollars annually from banks to meet their payroll.

The Munster Town Council passed a resolution recently objecting to the failure of Petalas' office and other county officials to get tax collections back on schedule this year.

Property tax bills used to be mailed to local property owners' homes in May of every year until the jarring 2002 reassessment of property values that gave Gary, Hammond, East Chicago and Whiting radically higher taxes. The ensuing controversy and litigation caused months of delay, and constant changes in tax laws have derailed efforts to catch up.

Griffith Clerk-Treasurer Ron Zafarczyk said his town council is preparing to pass a resolution similar to Munster's, but cautioned against the public placing the blame on Petalas or any other single official.

He said the process of determining property tax bills is compartmentalized and broken up among numerous township, county and state officials before the treasurer's office collects any money.