For third year in a row, Nate Paul is Travis County's most delinquent taxpayer

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correctly show the number of consecutive years that Nate Paul has been the most delinquent taxpayer in Travis County after inaccurate information was provided by the Travis County Tax Office.

For the third year in a row, embattled real estate developer Nate Paul is the most delinquent taxpayer in Travis County, the Travis County Tax Office announced Monday.

Paul — a former Austin real estate developer inextricably linked to the impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — owes more than $3 million on eight properties listed under three limited liability corporations tied to his name, according to a Monday news release from the county's Tax Office.

The delinquent payments were released as part of the Tax Office's annual top 10 list of most delinquent taxpayers. Combined, the 10 property owners owe $5.6 million in 2023 taxes.

“I’ve sent letters and made phone calls hoping to collect the payment in full or work out a payment plan for those struggling to pay, and the property owners on this list are avoiding me,” Tax Assessor-Collector Bruce Elfant said in the news release. “Why take the risk of losing your property because of unpaid taxes?”

Paul also topped the list of Travis County property owners late on paying their 2022 taxes — owing more than $1 million total on six properties listed under three limited liability corporations tied to his name, according to a May 1, 2023, news release from the Tax Office. The largest bill then was for a midsized office space on East Avenue in downtown Austin.

More: Texas Supreme Court pauses Nate Paul 10-day jail stint, grants emergency motion

The list released in 2023 was updated to show that, a few days after the news release was published, five of the six payments that Paul owed were made.

The Tax Office received a notification for bankruptcy on the sixth property, which is on Lambie Street, and while it remains delinquent, the Tax Office currently isn't able to collect payment outside of a bankruptcy court, a spokesperson for the office told the American-Statesman.

An attorney for Paul did not immediately respond to a Statesman request for comment Monday.

Property owners received their tax bills in November 2023 and had a payment deadline of Jan. 31, 2024, according to the news release.

“Unpaid accounts are eventually forwarded to the county attorney’s office, resulting in a foreclosure lawsuit,” the news release states. “Foreclosed properties are sold at a public auction on the first Tuesday of the month.”

The issue of Paul's outstanding taxes comes alongside a litany of additional legal concerns, as the real estate developer who was once celebrated by Forbes faces 12 federal charges tied to financial crimes as well as accusations in Travis County that he defrauded a nonprofit.

The federal charges stem from Paul's effort to deceive financial institutions to secure loans to purchase commercial properties while underreporting his liabilities and overreporting his available cash, federal prosecutors allege.

Joining the original eight-count indictment levied last June, four additional federal charges accusing Paul of committing wire fraud were issued in November. After a motion earlier this year asking U.S. District Judge David Ezra to delay the start of a trial until next year, Ezra placed Paul's case on the docket for November of this year.

Paul is also contending with a punitive order from Travis County state District Judge Jan Soifer, who issued a decision in March to sentence Paul to 10 days in jail for contempt of court as part of an ongoing fraud case.

The Texas Supreme Court stepped in after an emergency appeal by Paul, issuing an emergency stay on Soifer's order, which has yet to be addressed again by the high court since its intervention in March.

In issuing her contempt order, Soifer said Paul had deliberately acted to "thwart the functions of the Court" and charged that he pervasively and inexcusably lied under oath during the dispute with the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation over his financial records and claims that he defrauded the nonprofit.

Long before Ken Paxton, Texas had a mixed history of attorneys general facing indictment

To settle the damages sought by the Mitte Foundation, shy of $2.5 million, Paul is working to execute the sales of some of his properties in Austin, according to court records.

Last year, Paul also found himself embroiled in the biggest political battle in Texas as the House voted to impeach the state's top attorney based largely on complaints about the relationship Paxton had with the Austin developer.

While neither Paxton nor Paul took the stand during a two-week Senate tribunal, much of the argument from prosecutors focused on Paxton's willingness to help Paul in receiving favorable legal assistance to avoid foreclosures on some of his properties and Paul's employment of the woman with whom Paxton was said to be having an extramarital affair.

Ultimately, the Senate acquitted Paxton, largely along party lines, of all wrongdoing, restoring him to office last September.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Nate Paul is Travis County's most delinquent taxpayer for third year