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Editor Becky Watts: Phone # 770-468-7583 editor(@)pikecountytimes.com
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ZEBULON - The meeting of the Board of Assessors was held in the Magistrate Courtroom on May 21, 2024. Present were Board Members Parrish Swift, Christopher Tea, Lyn Smith, Gary Hammock, and Tim Ingram. Also present were Chief Appraiser Greg Hobbs, Appraisers Danyeal Smithe and Emily Morris, and Becky Watts from Pike County Times in the audience. [Note from the Editor: I understood that both appraisers were there to help with the meeting and helping with the minutes. Unless I missed it, Hobbs is still taking his own minutes. That should be changed asap if it hasn't been changed already. Hobbs never should have been taking his own minutes. It's too much to run a meeting and take down the minutes.]
Call to Order – 11:02 a.m.
Approval of the Agenda
Motion to approve. Discussion. Hobbs asked to do his report down to Section E – Approving the 2024 Notices. Motion to approve with amendment. Approved 5-0.
Invocation
Pledge of Allegiance
Approval of the Minutes.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
Public Comment
Chief Appraiser Report. Moved.
Old Business – None.
X. New Business
a) Remove CUVA for 2024. Staff recommends approval.
Missed this earlier this year. The property is already sold. They requested to get this out, but it wasn’t taken out before the sale. The email came to the office in February 8 and they asked to remove it the week before the sale. Proper protocol is to bring the document to the Board before the sale. The heirs are supposed to go before the Board when someone passes if they want to continue the covenant. She passed in 2023. Discussion. She passed in 2023. They notified us a week before the sale. But this was missed back in February. Consensus to breach it without a penalty based on the death of the owner. Motion to breach with no penalty due to her passing the prior year and the state’s non-continuation of the CUVA. Approved 5-0.
b) Tax Refund/Relief Application
This was filed after April 1. Insurance told him that he is being charged for too many square feet. This may have to be corrected after the notices went out. If we correct it now, we are working outside of normal procedure. He has already notified us so we can correct this at a later time. Consensus for no action at this time.
c) Approve of Breach for New Hope Road
Motion to approve the breach with penalty so it can be sent to the Tax Commissioner to be collected. Approved 5-0.
d) Approval of 2024 Freeport Exemptions.
Members have already been worked and are in the computer. Members took time to look at the work papers that go with the information was already sent by email. Motion to approve based on staff recommendation. Approved 4-1 with Tim Ingram opposed because he doesn’t understand the process. [Note from the Editor: This is inventory for our businesses and industry. The requests for inventory have gone out late, but there will not be a penalty on sending the requested information because it's already past the deadline. Click here to read about it from the Department of Revenue website.]
e) Chief Appraiser Report
Hobbs. Looking at the gross digest. We are adding to the digest every single day. We do our job. Hobbs read a letter stating that the time has come for the decision to be made on values for the 2024 appraisal year. Pike County's current sales ratio is $91 per square foot for current residential property. The level of assessment in Georgia is 40%. Highest ratio on the page is 35% and is below 36%. It will matter next year if this isn’t fixed because next year is a review year. We are deficient right now. Notices will be mailed on what we recommend today. There isn’t enough money on the residential properties in the county. Nearly 80% of this digest is residential property. They are worth more than what we are accessing them for. Ingram asked about commercial and industrial. Only one commercial sale of late so changes can't be made based on one sale. Hobbs is recommending $98 per square foot. This will put us at 38% at $98 per square foot. Tolerance is 36% to 44%. [Note from the Editor: Pike County can collect a check from public utility owners (AT&T, Verizon, Southern Rivers, Georgia Power, etc.) up to 40% based on our sales ratio. If we only collect at 35%, that is all that these utilities have to pay the county.]
The Department of Audits and Sales looks at our data from our office. Hobbs says that this doesn’t take into account the fact that the land is too low. Said that raising the value to $98 this year will soften the blow for next year, which is a review year from the Department of Revenue. Also providing $105 to bring it up to 40% but does not want to go this high. This will be a 7% raise but it would not be wise to leave it where it is now. We are charged with providing fair market value.
Believes that the current staff can visit properties without the help of outside experts. Will continue to visit properties daily. 5 year history. Our values affect each household. We hear it every day. We still don’t know what the Department of Revenue is going to advise us to do. [Note from the Editor: The Department of Revenue has been very slow getting the review back to the county that they said would come back to us in 30 days. It's been more than twice that, and we still don't have it.]
Hobbs said that we are not sitting over there on their thumbs. It was insinuated at the past county commission that the Tax Assessor’s Office wasn’t doing their job and threatened to cut the Tax Assessor. Hobbs. Recommendation is to change this. Tea. When this was changed in 2022, the millage rate wasn’t changed. The assessed value went up because the millage rate wasn’t lowered. Discussion that the Tax Assessor’s Office has a job to do based on the data. We need to follow the recommendation. Also discussed the fact that the Board of Assessors regulates the Tax Assessors Office. Hobbs. We don’t control the Board of Commissioners, but we have to do our job. We have to have a fair value this year as well as next year. Hobbs. It’s unwise to leave it at $91. We’ll tabulate after your decision. They will get it next Tuesday, and this will go out around the end of May. Appeals will happen after that. The Board of Equalization will hear appeals if needed. 45 days to appeals.
More discussion. We are a bedroom community, properties are lower than should be, and we need to make sure that we are assessing commercial and industrial are where they need to be so everyone is paying their fair share. It needs to be uniform. How long has commercial been at the current price? Since 2021. Hobbs said that we haven’t looked at all 10,400, but we are working on having people in the field on a daily basis on this. Back in 2019 when we failed the first ratio study, it was fixed in 2020. In 2021 and 2022, the rapid rise in values across the country of 46% still affected us. 56% of counties failed in 2022. We are going to have to adjust it next year. The millage rate can’t go below 14 mills for the Board of Education, and they were concerned with a raise in taxes for the Board of Education because of this. We need to raise to $98 this year, and we can drop it next year if needed. Last time, we fixed it in a non-audit year before and still ended up too low. But another member says that we need to handle this now.
Motion to increase the base price to $98 per square foot to ensure that the county is above the required 36%. Motion fails. 2-3 with Swift and Hammock in favor with Tea, Smith, and Ingram opposed.
We could have a gross increase next year to $105 per square foot. Maybe if we do the walk around and if there are those who are not paying their fair share, maybe that will help. Our number works hand in hand with the millage rate and what the school board and county commission decide to go. [Note from the Editor: Thank you to the Board for their lengthy discussion on this matter. I am learning the process and not sure that this was the right way to go because we already know that we are low (and that gives local utilities a break with the county), but they talked this through from both perspectives. The price per square foot is going to go up next year without a doubt. Hopefully these outrageous selling prices will go away at some point because that is what is pushing our taxes to an unreasonable level and has the Department of Revenue breathing down our neck. There is a boots on the ground walk around for every parcel (residential and business) included in the current budget.]
e. Approval of mailing 2024 notices.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
Real Property
a. Fair Market Value Revisions.
Staff recommends approval. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
b. Fair Market Value – None
c. 2024 CUVA and FLPA
Conservation and Forest Land. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
d. Homestead exemptions 69 LE over 70 non-income based.
Staff recommends approval. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
e. Homestead exemptions. 59 L1 non-income based.
Staff recommends approval. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
f. Homestead exemptions: 67 S1 regular homestead exemptions.
Staff recommends approval. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
g. Homestead exemptions. 1 L& over 70 income based.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
2. Personal Property
a. Burden. 2012 Honda Civic LX. Motion to go with $6488 for the tax base. Approved 5-0.
b. Branton. 2016 Toyota Tundra SRJ. Motion to go with $19,000 for the tax base. Approved 5-0.
c. Arnold. 2014 Ford F150. Hobbs looked at this vehicle. Transmission is shot. Average price is $13,642. Motion to go with $13,642. Discussion. We have to follow policy even if the transmission is bad. It’s about $7500 for the transmission. Rough condition is $6700. Average $8200. Both are running though. He paid $3500 for it. There is some rust on it. Maybe go with the rough condition because of the transmission. Motion to go with $6745 based on the condition of the transmission.
D. Smith. 2014 Toyota Tacoma. Paid $14,000 for it. $20,075 is the tag value. Average price is $16,000. Motion to set at $16,000. Approved. 5-0.
Public Comment.
I thanked the Board for walking through everything. I am learning new things and will pass that along.
Board Member Report.
Christopher Tea. Maybe need address the manual in a workshop so we can talk through that one thing (policy with vehicles that are in bad condition). Will set the time for the workshop at the next meeting.
Tim Ingram. Where is our budget report?
Talked with Planning and Zoning about the trucks up on Hwy 19 next to Gresham Road (on a piece of possibly AR zoned property). Been told that it is grandfathered and hasn’t been asked to look at it.
Motion to adjourn. 12:21 p.m.
Click here to read: "BREAKING NEWS: Commission Votes to Appeal Fine and Request a State Review of the Board of Assessors" http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/BREAKINGNEWSrequestforreview2.2.24.html
Here are links to past meetings that Pike County Times has attended. [Note from the Editor: There is another meeting on June 4, 2024 at 11 a.m. at the EMA Building if the public would like to attend. I attended the April meetings and will be getting them online soon.]
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - March 7, 2024 - 11 a.m.
http://pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor3.7.24.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - February 6, 2024 - 4:30 p.m.
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor2.6.24.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - January 18, 2024 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor1.18.24.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - January 4, 2024 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor1.4.24.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - December 19, 2023 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor12.19.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - December 5, 2023 - 11:30 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor12.5.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - November 9, 2023 - 11:30 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor11.9.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - October 17, 2023 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor10.17.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - October 3, 2023 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor10.3.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - September 19, 2023 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor9.19.23.html
BOARD OF ASSESSORS REGULAR MEETING - September 7, 2023 - 11:00 AM
http://www.pikecountytimes.com/secondary/taxassessor9.7.23.html