&8220;Taxes are the price we pay for civilization.&8221; &8212; Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

I have only known two people in my life that felt they never paid enough in taxes; one was my late father, the other my bride.

A clear conviction that paying a fair amount of tax was a reasonable expectation and that in doing so, they were helping make civilization better, at least partly, lead both to this philosophy.

Others of us believe we should pay our fair share but no more.

Others still choose not to pay taxes for which they are responsible and this group is larger than we might think.

Some 1,113 pieces of property in Shelby County have outstanding taxes due for this past tax year.

Those properties, the owner&8217;s name and the amount of tax due are listed in today&8217;s newspaper on pages 7B-12B; such will be published for the next two weeks as well for any remaining properties with unpaid tax.

Owners of these properties can still pay any delinquent tax.

Certified checks/money orders should be made payable to Property Tax Commissioner. Mailing address is P.O. Box 1298, Columbiana, AL 35051-4088. The physical location is 102 Depot Street, Columbiana, AL 35051-4088. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Property taxes in Shelby County are due Oct. 1 each year and become delinquent Jan. 1.

A tax sale will be held for all unpaid tax properties on the steps of the Shelby County Courthouse on May 1, beginning at 10 a.m.

Regardless of your perspective on taxes, the old saying remains true that there is no escaping death or taxes.

If you happen to have property subject to the upcoming tax sale, the best advice you can receive is to pay your property tax and avoid the coming tax sale; doing so is part of what is expected of citizens. It is also the law.