Travis County Tax Assessor-Collector Bruce Elfant briefed Travis County Commissioners Court Tuesday about an ongoing investigation into fraudulent motor vehicle transactions at the Travis County Tax Office, calling it an “abhorrent situation." Multiple tax office employees were arrested May 18 on suspicion of fraudulent activities, and a number of employees have been placed on administrative leave, Elfant said. Investigators from the Texas Department of Public Safety served search warrants and arrests were made, he said. While Elfant said he is unable to discuss any specific charges while the investigation in ongoing, he said he is "angry and sickened" by the situation. He said that the investigation began as a result of an internal audit conducted by the Travis County Auditor. “Before last Friday’s events, we had already initiated an internal review of our motor vehicle division to ensure compliance with state law, make necessary improvements where needed and take appropriate and immediate corrective action,” Elfant said. Elfant said the county tax office collects and disperses $4.5 billion each year. “Our ultimate goal is to restore the public’s trust to efficiently and honestly meet the needs of Travis County residents who are paying property taxes, registering to vote or registering their motor vehicles or transferring their titles,” he said. While all satellite tax offices remain closed at this time, the main tax office was reopened by 8:30 a.m. Monday. Beginning Friday evening, tax office staff worked closely with the county auditor, county attorney, county judge, county executive team and many others to assess the office's needs, Elfant said. Travis County is relying on several experts to assist with logistics in the short term and is work on systems “to ensure this never happens again,” he said. The Travis County Tax Office is not yet fully functional, and Elfant said lines will be long and parking will be limited. He encouraged those who need to renew registrations to “skip the trip and renew online” or go to any H-E-B in Travis County. “I’m determined to remove those who cannot be trusted with public dollars,” Elfant said. “We are working closely with the auditor and others to improve our efforts to more quickly identify and address unlawful activities.” While no action was taken at the commissioner's meeting, County Judge Sarah Eckhardt said updates are anticipated over the coming weeks.