This collection scheme is extremely flawed, it has cost homeowners their homes, their equity and peace. This targets the most vulnerable in a community, the poor and the elderly. Because they own the home outright. Portnoff has the local government agencies believing that it affects scoff-laws and slumlords. They boast how they can pass the fees to the homeowner, but the only fees passed are the fees incurred when contracting with Portnoff.

There are three property tax bills, the county, borough and school district. The county collects with the Tax Claim Bureau, the school district started collection with Portnoff 25 years ago and the borough recently switched to Portnoff in 2021. This is one house with 3 tax bills and Portnoff attaches fees to 2 bills. Charging for attorney fees and costs twice for one house.

The face value of the tax bill is the amount owed to the local government, plus 10% penalty, the 5% fee for the tac claim bureau and a 40 dollar fee for postage on the initial letter. From the inflated total they charge interest and add attorney fees, costs

1. Portnoff contacts local governments to solicit their services with a presentation filled with half truths and false statements,=FRAUDULENT MISREPRESENTATION.

2. Portnoff aggressively pursues homeowners sending numerous legal documents with threats of legal proceedings and outrageous fees to compel payment in coercion tactics- ABUSE OF PROCESS -using legal process to accomplish a purpose not intended for.

3. Does the goal of the government (taxes) validate the means being used to accomplish that goal? Hiring a third party for-profit debt collector that triples your bill and takes your home if you don’t pay up hardly justifies the action. The Tax Claim Bureau is a less restrictive way to accomplish that goal. SUBSTANTIVE DUE PROCESS

4. Per Portnoff’s contract required to be signed by the municipalities, Michelle Portnoff and all lawyers employed by her are appointed as Solicitor to file liens on properties and file fraudulent amounts owed acting under the Color of Law while violating the ETHICS ACT.

5. Also per contract, municipalities agree the fees charged are reasonable and payments are applied to attorney fees first, any additional costs second and the actual taxes are paid last. PA STATUTE 8429 in Pennsylvania deals with the application of payments made by taxpayers to local taxing authorities. It specifies that taxes should be applied first to the tax amount, then to interest, penalties, and finally to other fees or charges. PA STATUTE 2962 (e) states that statutes supersede local government ordinances.

6. The federal priority statute, 31 U.S.C. § 3713, provides that, when a debtor of the United States is insolvent and not in bankruptcy, it must pay its debts to the government first before paying any other creditor. Its purpose is "to secure adequate public revenues to sustain the public burden,"

7. The Municipal Claim and Tax Lien Act singles out a class of tax debtor, (equal protection clause) and imposes a legislative punishment without a judicial trial. The legislation amounts to a prohibited Bill of Attainder.

   Art. 1, sections 9 and 10 of the U.S. Constitution.

8. If it is permitted to delegate tax collection, the law must create standards:

   Before any agency can decide whether a contract is contrary to public interest, it is necessary to find out what is or what is not in the public interest. The power to make such determination rests with the legislature. Without such declaration, the agency would be without a standard or criterion.
   

   Accordingly, the legislature must surround such authority with definite standards, policies and limitations to which such administrative officers, boards or commissions, must strictly adhere and by which they are strictly governed. If the legislature fails, however, to prescribe with reasonable clarity the limits of the power delegated or if those limits are too broad; its attempt to delegate is a nullity.