Let this serve as your official reminder: If your last name begins with the letter “M” or “I,” then your car or truck tag is up for renewal in June. That’s it. That’s your reminder.

In a decision reached Friday, Chilton County Tax Collector Tim Little announced his office does not have the funds to send out nearly 8,000 tag renewal reminders in June or any month moving forward.

“We already had a tight budget to begin the year, and then we were instructed to cut another eight percent by the county commission,” Little said. “We’re shorthanded already and just don’t have it in the budget to pay to send out the renewals.”

Little said the office would spend an estimated $1,200 per month in total costs to create and mail the thousands of tag reminders. Little said the recent postage increases also had a significant impact on the total costs and the ultimate decision to end the service.

“Beginning with the tags up for renewal in June, we will no longer send out reminders,” Little said. “I hate that we are forced to make this decision, but we can no longer do it.”

The monthly renewals are not required by law to be sent out but have been a courtesy provided by the county’s tax collection office and similar offices around the state for decades.

Little also made it clear that not getting a renewal is no excuse for having an expired tag.

Those recent budget cuts by the office also forced Little to cut out two staff members, reducing his staff to eight.

“We are extremely under staffed and are doing our best to handle everything we are facing,” Little said. He also asked residents not to call his office asking how much the tag renewal will be, rather asking residents to log on to www.chiltoncountyrevenue.com and clicking on the “motor vehicles” section.

Little also urged residents not to wait until the last days of the month to pay their renewal, instead coming to the office earlier in the month to ensure they do not battle long lines and delays.

Little also said he hopes this is not a permanent end to the service.

“I hope we can bring this back at some point,” Little said. “This was not something we wanted to do. It was something we had to do.”

Residents whose last names begin with “P” or “L” will have their tags up for renewal in July.

For a full list of the schedule of when your tag is up for renewal, log on to www.chiltoncountyrevenue.com.