Thank you for visiting the website ("Site") of the San Bernardino County Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector ("we," "us," or "our"). We recognize your concern about privacy and security on the Internet. This Privacy & Security Policy describes the types of information gathered about you from your visit to this Site and establishes how we will use such information. You may not use the Site if you do not agree with this Privacy & Security Policy.
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS:
Information Subject to Public Records Laws and Other Legal Requirements
Please be advised that we are subject to the public records laws of the State of California ("California Public Records Act") and that much of the information you submit to us is public information under these laws. All information you submit to us through this Site (by e-mail, surveys, or otherwise, as described below), including personally identifiable information, may be subject to the disclosure and access provisions of the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements. Consequently, under certain circumstances, we may be required to disclose such information in accordance with the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements.
No Unnecessary Personally Identifiable Information Collected
We do not collect personally identifiable information (e.g., your name, address, email address, credit/debit card number, checking account number or other information which can be associated with you without additional information) when you visit this Site, unless you use our Site to make a payment or purchase or otherwise choose to provide that information to us. The personally identifiable information collected through our Site and the personally identifiable information you otherwise choose to provide to us will be used and retained as described in the remainder of this Privacy & Security Policy.
Information Collected and Stored Automatically
We may collect and store information automatically when you visit our Site for statistical purposes. For example, we may count the number of visitors to the different sections of our Site to help us make our Site more useful to its users. We may also use this information to monitor your compliance with the Terms of Use and the applicable Terms of Payment. The information collected may include such items as the name and domain of the host from which you access the Internet, the Internet Protocol ("IP") address of the computer you are using, your browser software and operating system, and the time and date of your visit. This information does not identify you personally.
Personally Identifiable Information Collected from Emails, Surveys, Etc.
By sending us an email (e.g., by selecting the Contact Us option or emailing), you are sending us personally identifiable information (i.e., your name, address, email address, or other information which can be associated with you without additional information). We store this information in order to respond to your request or otherwise address the subject matter of your email.
From time to time, we may ask you for specific personally identifiable information, such as name and address, the properties on which tax is owed, and other pertinent information, in the form of an inquiry, survey, feedback form, questionnaire, or other means, all with the goal of providing better service. We will only retain the information that you provide in response to the inquiry, survey, etc.
You should know that email and these other means generally are not secure, and may also be subject to the disclosure requirements of the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements.
Personally Identifiable Information Transmitted and Stored for Online Financial Transactions
A user must provide certain contact information, including an account holder's name, email address, and billing address, along with certain financial information, such as a checking account number or a credit/debit card number, card expiration date, and card security code, in order to make a payment or purchase over the Internet. When you use this Site to make a payment or purchase using a checking account or a credit/debit card, you will be transferred to a portion of the Site hosted by our contracted payment processing vendor, PaymentExpress - Grant Street Group. This payment processor will prompt you to enter all information necessary to make such payment or purchase, and will thereafter take all steps necessary to process the payment on our behalf. The payment processor will abide by our privacy and security requirements while collecting such information and processing such payments on our behalf. Please note the following regarding the security of personally identifiable information you provide to us in order for us to process these transactions:
Use of Personally Identifiable Information
As described above, a user must provide certain contact information and financial information in order for the user to make a payment or purchase through our Site. We require that this information be used only for the limited purpose of processing these transactions and as otherwise permitted by the rules and regulations of the applicable credit card associations, debit card networks, credit/debit card issuers, credit/debit card processors, and/or financial institutions. We do not permit this information to be used for marketing purposes and we require that it be retained in accordance with banking and accounting requirements.
Sharing Personally Identifiable Information with Third Parties
We do not share personally identifiable information with third parties, except that we will provide the necessary personally identifiable information listed above to the companies assisting us with processing credit/debit card and eCheck transactions through our Site. In some circumstances, we may also be required by law to disclose certain personally identifiable information in accordance with the disclosure requirements of the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements or we may disclose such information to law enforcement and/or fraud investigatory agencies.
Use of Cookies
A "cookies" is a small text file that a website can place on your computer for the duration of your visit to the Site. It is used only for session integrity during your visit to the Site and not for any marketing or information-gathering purposes.
Our Site uses only non-persistent temporary "cookies" and neither places any permanent information on nor retrieves it from the user's computer. If you want to browse this Site without any interruptions, please make sure that your browser is not set to disable placement of "cookies" on your computer.
Website Links to Other Sites Not Covered by Privacy & Security Policy
This Privacy & Security Policy describes the information we gather through our Site and how we use such information. Our Site may contain links to websites maintained by other County departments, public agencies, or private organizations. Once you link to another website, you are no longer subject to this Privacy & Security Policy, but rather are subject to the privacy and security policy of the website containing the document. You use that website and anything contained on that website at your own risk.
Use of Google's reCAPTCHA
In order to enhance the security of our Site, we have implemented Google's reCAPTCHA. We utilize Google's reCAPTCHA to detect malicious software and provide an additional layer of protection to our Site from spam and abuse. Please be advised that its use is subject to Google's Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Contact Information
Should you have any further questions regarding this Privacy & Security Policy or your interaction with our Site, please contact us at .
Changes to the Privacy & Security Policy
We may add to, delete, or change the terms of this Privacy & Security Policy from time to time. This document will be updated to reflect such changes. By using our Site, you consent to this Privacy & Security Policy, as it is changed from time to time.
Section 27000 of the Government Code requires the county treasurer to "receive and keep safely all money belonging to the county and all other money directed by law to be paid to him and apply and pay it out, rendering the account as required by law."
Section 27002 further requires the treasurer to "keep an account of the receipt and expenditure of all money received or paid out by him or her in books provided for the purpose."
Pursuant to Section 27000.1 of the Government Code and as delegated by the Board of Supervisors, the Treasurer is the authority responsible for the investment and reinvestment of the funds of the county and the funds of other depositors in the county treasury, pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 53600) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5. As such, the county treasurer is held to the prudent investor standard of the law. The county treasurer shall thereafter assume full responsibility for those transactions until the board of supervisors either revokes its delegation of authority, by ordinance, or decides not to renew the annual delegation, as provided in Section 53607.
Section 53601 defines those surplus monies of local agencies which may be invested in defined types of investments set by the State.
Pursuant to Sections 27130 through 27137, each county in the State should annually adopt a County Investment Policy and also staff a treasury oversight committee to review, approve and monitor compliance with the investment policy. The Investment Policy is submitted to the Board of Supervisors during FYQ4 for approval prior to current fiscal year end for the upcoming July 1–June 30 FY.
Pursuant to Sections 53630 through 53684, the responsibility for the depositing of funds is assigned to the county treasurer. In these sections, funds are defined, deposits and securities for deposits are classified and numerous reporting requirements are detailed. Additionally, contracts with depositories and alternative procedures for the investment of excess funds are given.
Section 53684 requires the treasurer to compute interest owed to the treasury and apportion interest to pool participants.
Government Code Section 53850 authorizes the county to issue short-term notes for the purposes of temporary borrowing. The county treasurer has overseen the issuance of these TRANs and investment of the proceeds in San Bernardino County.
The county treasurer has certain oversight responsibilities for local agencies, primarily school districts and community college districts, within the county. Pursuant to Sections 53821, the Treasurer must review all temporary borrowings of any school district, county board of education, or community college district. Click here for the 2012 School Finance Handbook.
The treasurer may also act as the trustee and provide trustee and paying agent services for notes or long-term debt issued by local special assessment districts, benefit assessment districts and school districts.