Cullen officials, police officers go unpaid as frozen bank accounts, IRS tax debt deepen town's financial crisis

Members of the Board of Aldermen did not receive pay for June, and police officers have spent nearly a month dealing with bounced paychecks or checks that banks refused to cash, according to town officials.

The crisis stems from levies placed on multiple town bank accounts while the town faces more than $92,000 in unpaid federal tax obligations, according to bank records and IRS documents.

Employees have reportedly endured about four consecutive weeks of payroll problems. Some received checks that were returned for insufficient funds, while others received no paycheck at all. In some cases, bank employees refused to cash the checks.

Police Chief Fannie Rankin and Officer Bryan Montgomery said they have received a combination of bounced checks and checks banks would not cash since June 16. Rankin said bank employees at times told her they could not cash the town-issued checks.

Town officials have reportedly attempted to replace returned payroll checks by issuing new ones, some of which employees said were backdated, even as legal levies remained in effect on municipal accounts.

Alderwoman Bianchi Veal said Tuesday that the payroll account is among those affected by IRS action.

"IRS locked accounts including payroll. The council was not paid for the month of June," Veal told the Webster Parish Journal.

According to Veal, the IRS froze several municipal accounts because of unpaid federal taxes dating to 2016, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

Veal also said Town Clerk Untracey Brittentine has resigned.

Financial records obtained by the Webster Parish Journal show multiple legal actions affecting the town's finances.

A Louisiana Department of Revenue levy dated April 17 froze nine municipal bank accounts totaling $1,631.39. The notice states the funds will remain frozen until the levy is released or a court issues a judgment.

A second notice from Bonvenu Bank dated June 4 cites an IRS levy that froze funds across 12 municipal accounts. The notice says withdrawals will not be allowed until the levy is released and that a $50 processing fee will be deducted when funds are remitted.

Federal IRS records show the Town of Cullen owes $92,259.90 in unpaid taxes and penalties.

The debt includes more than $32,500 in civil penalties tied to a tax period ending in December 2016, along with unpaid employer payroll taxes reported on Form 941 for multiple quarters in 2023 and 2024 and an additional $18,817.26 for the first quarter of 2025.

Under federal law, banks receiving an IRS levy must hold the taxpayer's funds for 21 days before forwarding the money to the U.S. Treasury.

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Read more in the Webster Parish Journal.