Gordon Friedman

Statesman Journal

The Oregon Department of Revenue has posted online the names and addresses of 100 delinquent taxpayers.

The department's website lists the top 50 delinquent personal income filers and the top 50 delinquent businesses.

Together, they owe more than $43 million in unpaid taxes. The department's move is meant to encourage tax compliance and collection of delinquent taxes said Chris Wytoski, collections manager for the Personal Tax and Compliance Division.

Here are some notables on the list:

Randy Jeffers, Woodburn, $3.8 million

According to the list, Randall "Randy" Jeffers of Woodburn owes the most in personal income taxes to the state at more than $3.8 million. Jeffers could not be reached for comment for this story.

Jeffers has been in trouble with the state before. In 1996, the Oregon Attorney General ordered his company to repay people it had misled about potential earnings from selling prepaid wireless cards.

Jeffers was CEO of telecom companies WOW Mobile and Liberty International. In a 2010 video, he said people could get "amazing" returns if they sold his products.

Jeffers is also tied to BidsThatGive, a now defunct online auction site that claimed to provide aid to children in impoverished countries. Numerous online posts tell stories of people putting money in their BidsThatGive account and then being unable to bid on products or withdraw their money. The company has an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau, and its Las Vegas phone number is disconnected.

In videos on his YouTube channel, Jeffers promotes himself as a "network marketing" coach. He ends all his videos with a catchphrase: "Here's to your absolutely incredible success." His websites appear disconnected, though a Randy Jeffers Twitter account actively posts inspirational quotes.

Andrew Wiederhorn, Portland, $535,000

Also on the list is Portland businessman Andrew Wiederhorn, who owes $535,000. Wiederhorn amassed a reported $140 million fortune as founder and CEO of Wilshire Credit Corporation, according to a 1999 profile by Willamette Week. Wilshire Credit later collapsed, Wiederhorn went to prison for filing a false tax return, sold his 10 bedroom mansion and moved to California where his capital company owns a major stake in the Fatburger fast food chain.

You W. Tan, Salem, $677,000

Little is online about You W. Tan other than what they owe to the state, and that they were named on Marion County documents detailing the foreclosure of a home. Assessment records indicate Tan is a co-owner of at least six homes in the Salem area.

Mike Zuro, Keizer, $533,000

Mike Zuro is the owner of the now-closed Rock Solid Marble & Granite in Keizer. Multiple online reviews accuse Zuro of stealing from them. In one review, a customer says they prepaid Zuro $6,000 for a job and never heard from him again. "Watch out for this guy and company," the reviewer wrote. Zuro was not able to be reached for comment.

Standoff cost Oregon $2 million, but who will pay?

The top delinquent business is Courtesy Staffing of Boardman, an employment agency which owes more than $500,000, according to the list.

"We tried to resolve these debts with the taxpayers using other collection methods, but they haven't paid," Wytoski said in a statement.

Putting the names and addresses of individuals and businesses who are delinquent on their taxes may seem like public shaming at best, an invasion privacy at worst. But all of the posted information is public, collected from tax warrants. Wytoski wrote: "We want Oregon's taxpayers to know that our use of this new collection and compliance tool doesn't change the level to which we safeguard their personal information, nor does it authorize us to share or post other information."

California also posts an online list of delinquent taxpayers and corporations. Since the inception of its public list in 2007, California has collected more than $494 million in taxes.

You can find Oregon's list of delinquent taxpayers online at http://oregon.gov/DOR/Pages/delinquent.aspx

gfriedman2@statesmanjournal.com, (503) 399-6653, on Twitter @gordonrfriedman or Facebook.com/gordonrfriedman

Speed limits on some Oregon highways to go up Tuesday

Will Creekside Golf Club close? It depends on neighbors