BAY MINETTE, Ala. — Penalty interest continues to mount for owners of 10,645 Baldwin County parcels, representing $10.3 million, who have not paid ad valorem taxes due in January.

About 14 percent of delinquent taxpayers are new owners and may not know taxes haven’t been paid, according to Revenue Commissioner Phil Nix.

Tax bills were mailed in October and became due the first business day in January. A $5 collection fee, advertising costs and simple 12 percent annual interest calculated on a daily basis have been added to past-due tax bills.

Property which has not been redeemed by May 26 will go on the auction block the following day at 10 a.m. at the Baldwin County Revenue Commission office in Bay Minette.

Informal hearings for taxpayers who have protested tax bills have been completed. Property owners scheduled to present their protest to the Baldwin County Board of Equalization are not subject to penalties. Tax bills will be provided after individual hearings are complete.

Nix said delinquent bills range from $21 for a subdivision drainage area to $59,000 for an undeveloped parcel on Perdido Beach Boulevard.

“We have sent out supplemental letters to property owners advising them that taxes have not been paid,” Nix said Monday. “And we have tried to contact all of the 1,435 new property owners who have not paid.”

Nix said paperwork may have an attorney’s address or owners may have moved without a forwarding address. Taxpayers also may assume that mortgage companies have paid the taxes.

“Property owners need to check the tax rolls and see if their property is listed in the name of previous owners,” Nix said. “If they have any questions, they should call us.”

Beginning today, Gulf Coast Newspapers is publishing a list of delinquent property owners. The listing includes names and taxes due. Next week, an updated listing will be printed with the deletion of property owners who have redeemed taxes.

During the following three weeks, owners’ names, property description and amount owed will be printed in all Wednesday and Thursday editions of Gulf Coast Newspapers.

The county’s roughly 150,000 taxable parcels represent $6.86 billion, while the net assessed value is $4.51 billion. In 2006, values were $4.051 billion and $3.1 billion, respectively.

For more information, call the Revenue Commission offices at the Fairhope Satellite Courthouse at 928-3002; the Foley Satellite Courthouse at 943-5061; or the Bay Minette office at 937-9561.

Taxpayers in Central Baldwin can drop by the new Revenue Commission Office in Robertsdale or use the numbers listed above for toll-free transfer to that office.