Property Reassessment

January 29, 2010

Reassessment under Pa. review

Consultant retained after citizens complained about process used by contractor.

By Steve Mocarsky smocarsky@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
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In response to complaints from property owners against 21st Century Appraisals president Robert Barr, an expert in mass assessment techniques is reviewing Luzerne County’s reassessment process for the state.

Ray J. Michalowski, a prosecuting attorney for the state Department of State’s Office of Chief Counsel, sent a letter dated Jan. 27 to property owners who filed a professional licensing complaint against Barr related to the countywide reassessment to update them on the complaint status.

Michalowski wrote that the focus of his office is to determine whether the assessment methods used by Barr “were appropriately designed and implemented, resulting in a fair tax assessment according to state law and applicable assessment standards.”

He noted that his office doesn’t have jurisdiction to alter assessed property values, but is limited to determining whether Barr “acted in accordance with his duties as a certified Pennsylvania evaluator.”

He also noted that his office’s review could not begin until all of the local levels of assessment appeals were completed.

“Now that those appeals have been completed, an accredited expert in mass assessment techniques will be reviewing the matter in its entirety, a time consuming task given the extensive scope of the materials and data under review,” Michalowski wrote.

He also noted that state Sen. Lisa Baker and state Rep. Karen Boback were instrumental in advocating on the property owners’ behalves to have his office complete “a fair and comprehensive review of the entire reassessment process.”

He said he would keep Baker, Boback and the complainants up to date on progress as the investigation continues.

Harveys Lake property owner Michelle Boice earlier this month had said an investigator had interviewed her and that she knew of several other property owners who were also interviewed. She had said her goal was to get 21st Century evaluators’ licenses suspended or revoked, hampering the company’s ability to work on other reassessment projects.

The action won’t prevent Luzerne County’s reassessment from taking effect, she had said.

Boice had said she focused her complaint on “gross mistakes” in the reassessment data collection. She doesn’t believe field data collectors were properly trained.

Earlier this month, 21st Century representative Tim Barr had said he was aware of the complaints and is confident the company has fulfilled all obligations.

He said certified evaluators must follow state regulations, called “Uniform Standards of Appraisal Practices,” when performing a reassessment and believed company evaluators were “completely in compliance with all standards.”

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