2020 Election – Hillsborough Tax Collector

There’s no incumbent in this race. The two candidates are Democrat Nancy Millan and Republican T.K. Smith. I put out my usual call to both but spoke only with Millan. I got a call one day from Smith. It rang three times as I was putting in my headset and reaching for the phone and stopped. Then, rather than a voice mail, I got a text with images of the mailer he’s been sending out. I immediately re-dialed the number, but it went to voicemail. I think that was all intentional.

McMillan has 30 years of experience at the tax collector’s office. In speaking with her she was suggesting some innovative ways to meet the needs of the citizens with some simple common-sense approaches to the many tasks performed by the tax collector. She was open to minor suggestion I made, and I thought she was smart and practical.

Mr. Smith, on the other hand, has offered nothing more than vague bullets about high efficiency and high quality, and taking the tax collector’s office to “the next phase,” whatever the hell that means. He’s got no public sector experience but believes his private sector experience qualifies him. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I don’t want my government run like a business. It’s not supposed to be a for-profit operation.

Smith also glommed onto an issue of “long lines,” and was using a photo of people “out the door taken at a sharp angle. Looking closer you realize the line is long because people are spaced out, and they allow fewer people in the office at a time…the wait is shorter than ever before. So, he appears to be little more than another Republican willing to use dirty tricks in a low-profile election. What will he do if elected?

I’m recommending Nancy Millan based on her years of experience, knowledge of the office and its duties, and her commonsense approach to the office.