Tempers of some Whitehall Township residents flared last week when they traveled to the municipal building to pay their taxes and discovered the office was closed — for two days straight.

According to a message posted on the township’s Facebook page, the Aug. 22 and 23 closures were due to a staffing issue.

“The closing is being caused by one tax clerk on preapproved leave, one tax clerk came down with a serious illness and the third tax clerk not wanting to work by herself,” Tina Koren, Whitehall Township treasurer, said Aug. 23.

There is a collection box for the tax payments but no one in the office to process the payments and provide a receipt to residents.

Koren said she is unable to process payments because she is not a union member.

“We have many unhappy taxpayers and are unable to process any revenue being brought into the township from development, contractors, etc. It has been two days without depositing any revenue into the bank,” she said. “We now have over a million dollars in revenue that has not been processed and forwarded to the school district and township.”

The township is readying an online bill pay system, which is expected to be operational by the end of the month, Koren said.

Requests for comment, via email and phone, to Whitehall Township Mayor Joseph Marx Jr. Aug. 23 were unanswered.

Whitehall Township issued a formal statement Aug. 27, noting it would not publicly comment on personnel matters.

“It is the township’s position that confidential information regarding employees should not be shared or discussed in public. Recently, allegations related to tax office employees, other township employees, the township administration and township board of commissioners were made on social media and to the press,” the statement read. “Rest assured, the township has taken all appropriate steps to address concerns regarding the tax office and will continue to support township employees and address all appropriately raised concerns.”

The statement addressed the procedures put in place in the tax office and its receipt of money from residents.

It said, in part, “The township recently received recommendations from an outside auditor on best practices to ensure the security of the tax office. ... These rules prevent the township from simply reassigning employees to the tax office or using temporary staff if there are times when staffing is limited.”

According to Koren, the tax office is having personnel issues and she has requested assistance from township officials but alleged she has received none.

Whitehall Township’s statement read, “The township treasurer has the power under the township Home Rule Charter to appoint such other employees as she determines are required to perform her job functions. The treasurer has not appointed any of her own employees to assist with duties that she believes are not being properly performed by township employees.”

Koren said she has contacted an attorney because she believes she is being forced out of the position.