Property Reassessment

March 31, 2010

Legal action nears to toss out reassessment

Property owner Kopko: County heard appeal after deadline. Officials: Appeals OK until 2009 bills mailed.

By Jennifer Learn-Andes jandes@timesleader.com
Luzerne County Reporter
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Property owner Vic Kopko said he will be filing legal action in a week or two attempting to throw out Luzerne County’s reassessment.

A key focus will be the county’s decision to hear thousands of assessment appeals after the Oct. 31, 2008, deadline, he said.

Kopko maintains that state law requires all appeals be heard by that date, but county officials argued that appeals could be heard until the 2009 tax bills were mailed.

Kopko said he expects other property owners who had appeals after that date will also participate in his legal action.

“It’s our opinion that the county broke the law. The strong-armed tactics of the county have to end,” Kopko said.

The county’s lawyer, Jack Dean, said Tuesday that a judge would decide whether the hearing of appeals after Oct. 31 had any “effect on the process.”

Dean said there was no effect because all appeal decisions became official before the tax bills were issued.

“We’re confident there is no legal effect,” Dean said. “We’re just waiting for his paperwork to respond.”

Kopko said his legal action will be filed after he receives a transcript from his recent deposition of county Assessor’s Office Director Tony Alu. The transcript should arrive within a week, he said.

Kopko, who is represented by William Abraham, said Alu’s testimony was required to gather evidence under oath that appeals were heard after Oct. 31.

Alu acknowledged appeals were heard after Oct. 31 but indicated that he did not know how many, Kopko said. Kopko said he has a news article reporting that more than 4,000 appeals were heard after that date.

Kopko said the assessment appeal on his property was heard Nov. 5, 2008, but county records say it was on Oct. 16 of that year. He questions why the county did not keep the log books of property owners who signed in for their assessment appeals.

“That’s a public document,” he said.

Dean questioned the necessity of deposing Alu when it was already publicly reported that appeals were heard after Oct. 31.

“He’s just wasting everybody’s time and money. That’s all he’s doing,” Dean said.

The logs from appeal hearings weren’t kept because there were sign-in sheets in reception areas to keep track of appointments “for the purposes of that day,” Dean said.

Jennifer Learn-Andes, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 831-7333.

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