Oftentimes, when Greensboro residents hear about someone getting into trouble over back taxes, the person tends to be someone like "The Queen of Mean" Leona Helmsley or some sort of shyster. It would be understandable, then, if people thought that those who let back taxes build up are villains or bad people.

But the fact is, everyday people can easily fall into trouble with back taxes, too, oftentimes over an innocent mistake. In fact, so can elected officials, accountants and financial professionals -- people whom you think would know better.

To illustrate this point, look no further than Little Falls, New Jersey. There, the mayor recently had to pay off almost $5,000 in back property taxes.

The mayor has said he did not intend not to pay his taxes. He said he was unemployed for two years and things were so tight financially that he had to drain his 401(k) to make ends meet. He said he was struggling so much he ran out of resources every time he got ready to pay his taxes.

Still, the mayor said that even though things got away from him, he had an obligation to pay up. He paid his back taxes shortly after it was learned that he owed them.

Even though the mayor has settled up, it will be interesting to see if this has any impact on his political career. Perhaps it shouldn't; our tax code is infamously hard to understand, so imagine how easy it would be to slip up somewhere and pay less than you owe.

Source: The New Jersey Record, "Little Falls mayor pays back taxes on property," Hannan Adely, Jan. 5. 2012 and "Tax delinquency list includes top elected official," Hannan Adely, Jan. 4, 2012