VALPARAISO | Auditor Jim Kopp said that for the first time in eight years, Porter County is on track to mail tax bills out on time next year.

The auditor's office succeeded late Thursday in meeting the deadline of providing the state with the county's assessed values for real and personal property, he said.

"We're feeling real good here today," Kopp said.

The auditor and his staff have been the target of a lot of criticism over the last year as a result of the extreme delays in getting tax bills out the door. The 2008 bills were not mailed out until early this year and this year's bills went out just last month.

State statute calls for the bills to go out by April 25 and be returned with payment May 10 and Nov. 10.

Kopp, who has argued his office had inherited the problems contributing to the delays, said the additional $10,000 for overtime and $20,000 for part-time help reluctantly approved in July by the County Council allowed his staff to solve the situation.

"It paid off," he said.

The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance confirmed Friday it had received the county's assessed values before the Dec. 4 deadline and 307 days sooner than last year.

The next step is the budget review, which includes calculating preliminary tax rates, according to Mary Jane Michalak, director of communications for the DLGF.

The various taxing units will have 10 days to comment, followed by a local public budget hearing, she said. The DLGF is obligated to finish the work by Feb. 15.