The property tax assessment process in Maryland is broken, and a task force will find ways to fix it. That’s the thinking behind proposed legislation getting a push from elected officials and tax-payer advocates in Harford County.
With Senator Barry Glassman and Delegate H. Wayne Norman as lead sponsors in the State Senate and House of Delegates respectively, identical bills entitled: “Task Force to Review Property Tax Assessment Procedure and the Assessment Appeals Process.” were recently cross-filed in the Maryland General Assembly.
The co-sponsors of the House bill, HB 204, include every member of the Harford Delegation.
Here’s how Delegate Norman explained the purpose of the task force bill in a letter to his colleagues:
“Under HB 204, the task force would be comprised of Maryland residents with substantive and professional experience in property evaluations. The task force members also would represent all parts of Maryland and have firsthand knowledge about the State’s 24 local jurisdictions.
The ultimate goal of the task force would be to recommend an assessment system that (a) is more uniform, equitable and transparent, and (b) provides Maryland property owners with greater confidence in the State’s ability to conduct property assessments fairly, accurately and consistently.”
The bill calls for recommendations to be made to the Governor no later than January 1, 2011.
A hearing for HB 204 is planned for Thursday, February 4 at 1 p.m. before the House Ways and Means Committee. Harford County Council President Billy Boniface told The Dagger that he plans to attend the hearing in support.
Harford County Executive David Craig will send a letter of support for the house bill and plans to attend the senate hearing when scheduled, according to his Chief of Staff Aaron Tomarchio.
Harford County resident Roy Whiteley owns property in three Maryland counties and regularly challenges his property tax assessments. As the president and founder of Marylanders for Fair Property Taxation, Whiteley plans to support HB 204 with testimony saying that the assessment process can be fixed:
“WE HAVE IDENTIFIED SIMPLE CHANGES IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS THAT CAN EASILY SAVE $15 MILLION PER YEAR. WE CAN SHOW CHANGE THAT COULD ACTUALLY INCREASE THE OVERALL ASSESSMENT BASE, ALLOW TAX RATE REDUCTIONS, AND STILL NET THE STATE AND COUNTIES AMPLE REVENUE TO MEET CONSTANT YIELDS AND SUPPORT THE NEEDS OF OUR SOCIETY.”
Bel Air Tea Party organizer Tony Passaro and Dave Schwartz from Americans for Prosperity are organizing a bus trip to the hearing. So far, Passaro says they have 20 people planning to attend, but there’s room on the bus for more. Passaro wrote in a e-mail:
“On February 4, at 13:00 hours we will be testifying on behalf of the Property Tax Reform Task Force….Join Billy Boniface, David Craig, Pat McGrady, Dave Schwartz, Dave Prodgeon, Joan Ryder, Tony Passaro, Roy Whiteley and a multitude of Patriots speaking out on behalf of HB 204. This essential legislation will ultimately benefit all Maryland Tax Payers.
Busses will leave the Green Turtle Parking lot at 11:00 AM, lunch and beverage will be provided, and return by 4:00 PM. Fare, $25.00 per person.
Call Sylvia DeLong 410-382-4774 for your reservation.”
Similar task-force legislation died last year, but Del. Norman says he hopes this time will be different, citing the changing political climate and the emergence of the Tea Parties. Norman told The Dagger, “We put it in because it was a real problem then, and it is a bigger problem now and tax payers need and deserve a break, even if it is just in dealing with the system by way of a task force. “
Here is the full text of Whiteley’s planned testimony:
“I AM ROY WHITELEY, REPRESENTING MARYLANDERS FOR FAIR PROPERTY TAXATION IN STRONG SUPPORT OF HOUSE BILL 204. FOR SEVERAL YEARS, VERSIONS OF THIS BILL HAVE
COME BEFORE YOU ONLY TO BE SHOVED IN A DRAWER NEVER TO SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY OR DEBATE. IT IS TIME TO CHANGE THAT STONEWALLING ACTION. THIS BILL NEEDS TO BE ACTED
UPON BY ALL OF THE REPRESENTATIVES WE ELECT. MANY OF YOUR AND THEIR CONSTITUENTS ARE HERE TODAY TO REINFORCE THAT POSITION.
THE CREATION OF THIS TASK FORCE TO REVIEW THE PROPERTY TAX ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE AND THE CUMBERSOME THREE-STEP APPEALS PROCESS, WHICH MOST TAXPAYERS DO NOT UNDERSTAND, IS LONG OVERDUE. TAXPAYERS ARE BEING IGNORED BY INCOMPETENT
STAFF THAT ADMINISTER THE FLAWED, OUTDATED ASSESSMENT AND ASSESSMENT APPEALS SYSTEM THAT TIES DOWN ASSESSMENTS IN THREE-YEAR INCREMENTS, HAS DIFFERENT HOUSE
RULES IN EACH OFFICE SUCH AS PLACING SHORT HEARING TIME LIMITS AND PROHIBITING THE RECORDING OF THE HEARING. THUS, MANY TAXPAYERS ARE BEING TREATED RUDELY,UNPROFESSIONALLY, UNFAIRLY, UNEQUALLY, AND WITH TOTAL DISREGARD FOR ACTUAL
MARKET CONDITIONS WHICH GOVERN THE VALUE OF OUR PROPERTY. WE HAVE BEEN IN ADECLINING REAL ESTATE MARKET SINCE 2006, WITH SKYROCKETING FORECLOSURES, BUT ITWASN’T UNTIL JANUARY, 2010 THAT THE DEPARTMENT RECOGNIZED THOSE CONDITIONS AND
FINALLY MADE SOME REDUCTIONS IN ASSESSMENTS TO ABOUT ONE-THIRD OF THE STATE’S 2.1 MILLION PROPERTY TAXPAYERS. WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF US? DID WE NOT SUFFER THE SAME DECLINING CONDITIONS? WE ARE STILL BEING UNFAIRLY ASSESSED AT VALUES 40 TO 50 % MORE THAN THE ACTUAL VALUE OF OUR PROPERTY.
IN PAST TESTIMONY, THE DEPARTMENT OF ASSESSMENTS HAS TOLD YOU OF THE WONDERFUL JOB THEY ARE DOING. IF THAT WERE TRUE, WHY DID ASSESSMENT APPEALS FROM JUST THE SECOND LEVEL APPEALS PROCESS INCREASE LAST YEAR FROM ABOUT 900 TO OVER 16,000? THEY TELL YOU THERE IS NO NEED FOR THIS TASK FORCE, HOW ITS SIZE IS TOO
LARGE, WHICH INCIDENTALLY WILL BE THE SAME SIZE AS THIS COMMITTEE, AND IS THE SAME SIZE AS OUR COUNTY EXECUTIVE’S FINANCIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE, ON WHICH WE SERVE.
NO AUDIT OF THEIR DEPARTMENT HAS BEEN MADE AVAILABLE SINCE 2007 SO THEY AND YOU HAVE NO IDEA OF WHAT OR HOW THEY ARE PERFORMING. WE TAXPAYERS DO!
THE ASSESSMENT SYSTEM IS FLAWED; BROKEN. IT CAN BE FIXED. CHANGES CAN BE MADE THAT WILL BE BENEFICIAL TO BOTH THE STATE AND THE TAXPAYER. WE HAVE IDENTIFIED SIMPLE CHANGES IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS THAT CAN EASILY SAVE $15
MILLION PER YEAR. WE CAN SHOW CHANGE THAT COULD ACTUALLY INCREASE THE OVERALL ASSESSMENT BASE, ALLOW TAX RATE REDUCTIONS, AND STILL NET THE STATE AND COUNTIES
AMPLE REVENUE TO MEET CONSTANT YIELDS AND SUPPORT THE NEEDS OF OUR SOCIETY. WE ARE CERTAIN MANY MORE BENEFICIAL CHANGES CAN BE FOUND. PUT THIS TASK FORCE IN
PLACE WITH INFORMED CITIZENS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING THE PROBLEM FIRST HAND AND LET US SHOW YOU SOLUTIONS. WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, THE LEGISLATURE AND THE DEPARTMENT HAS FAILED US TAXPAYERS BECAUSE THERE IS NO ACCOUNTABILITY FROM THE DEPARTMENT.
THE STATE CONTINUES TO SPEND MONEY WE TAXPAYERS DON’T HAVE AND CANNOT AFFORD. WE ARE LITERALLY BEING ASSESSED AND TAXED OUT OF OUR HOMES, FARMS, AND BUSINESSES. CHANGES MUST BE MADE TO MAKE ASSESSMENTS AND ASSOCIATED TAXES FAIR AND EQUITABLE WHILE REFLECTING CURRENT MARKET CONDITIONS.
WE WANT HOUSE BILL 204 OUT OF COMMITTEE AND BEFORE THE FULL BODY OF LEGISLATORS WE ELECT STATEWIDE. WE ARE CERTAIN THEY WILL DO WHAT IS RIGHT FOR THE STATE AND ITS TAXPAYERS BY PASSING THIS LEGISLATION. WE URGE YOUR APPROVAL RECOMMENDATION AND PASSAGE OF HOUSE BILL 204. WE TAXPAYERS NEED IT AND DESERVE
IT.”
Does Roy know his caps lock is on? Or does he plan on shouting his whole testimony?
Be careful what you wish for….
Yes, house values are falling, but historically, they’ve mostly risen.
I’ve seen proposals to make these assessments on a yearly basis. Which may be fine when the market is falling, but when it starts to go back up, everyone is going to whine because their taxes go up each year.
The State does 1/3 of the assessments every year. If you do them more often, you’ll be creating 3 times more workload for the state. Which means they’ll need to hire more help. Which means that they’ll have to raise taxes to pay for the extra help…
I believe there is also a cap on the amount that they are allowed to raise your property taxes, if they assess more often, it gives them more opportunities to hit that cap, right?
Most of these rules were set in place (and seemed mostly fair) when property values did nothing but go up, now the times have changed, but how long is it going to last? Do we really want to re-write the rules for the rare period in time when the value of property actually went down?
Again, in a form Mr. Whiteley can read (a nod to cdev)…
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!
Does anybody in this town have any foresight? This is a bad idea. Where’s the outrage from the tea baggers? This is something that is only going to cost us all money in long run A LOT of money.
I keep thinking, how will this legislation screw me? Although it may sound good on the surface, what will our legislators pull out of this down the road when property values start to increase? Makes me feel a little uneasy – sick and tired of hearing elected officials telling us they know what is best for us even if we don’t want it!
Yes, Roy knows his caps lock is on. It makes it easier to read without glasses when we are testifying. The TEA baggers support our work because it is not a bad idea. We are constantly being screwed by a bureacracy that has no accountability to us taxpayers. Many of our properties are being unfairly and unequally assessed. A better system can be attained that will be fair to all. Create the task force and let us see what ideas can be developed. It would be a volunteer force. Nobody gets paid. What harm would it do? The findings are not law or mandatory. This is the way new and better government can take place. Join in. Roy Whiteley
Marylanders for Fair Property Taxation
516 Walters Mill Road Forest Hill, Maryland 21050-1428 (410) 879- 7993
February 5, 2010
HB 204 Property Assessment/Appeals Task Force
Yesterday, (Feb 4) we had the privilege of addressing the Ways and Means Committee on HB 204. We were fortunate to have more of you attend in support of this measure than we have had in previous years. While the group was not overwhelming, it was nonetheless significant enough to be noticed. Hopefully, we can do even better when the senate version, SB 458, is scheduled for hearing.
Delegate Wayne Norman made great remarks in introducing the bill and its need for passage. Delegate Susan McComas testified in strong support of the measure. Additional verbal supporting testimony was provided by the writer, Nick Loffer Americans for Prosperity, Tony Passaro, Bel Air TEA Party, Maureen Harper, AFP, Ellie Dieglemann, and Samuel Ownings, Chestertown farmer/developer. Several other signees were to testify but the usual strategy of delaying potentially controversial bills until late in the day coupled with hours of sauna like temperatures in the hearing room took its toll forcing a number of our supporters to leave early. This appears to be a normal method of wearing down the taxpayer and eliminating any effort of taxpayers to voice their opinion. Unfortunately, for those who were not prepared for the long haul in waiting out this tactic and finally being heard, we lost some of our audience. These hearings are an eye opening, trying experience for the first time participant of this legislative process. We were pleased to see Delegate Mary Dulaney James, Senators Barry Glassman and Andy Harris and assistant/candidate Kathy Szeliga step out of their respective hearings to stop by to chat with us and offer support of Delegate Norman’s bill.
Written favorable testimony was also supplied by County Executive David Craig and Council President Billy Boniface. Each had pressing business commitments that prevented them from making in person statements. Both have indicated intent to attend SB 458, the senate version of this bill when it is introduced. Joan Ryder, Realtor, submitted a favorably written statement. Maryland Association of Realtors Director of Regulatory Affairs, Mark Feinroth testified and with Bill Castelli, Vice President of Government affairs also submitted written testimony. Unfortunately, no other written support was in evidence in support of this measure. That is most disappointing, since just like numbers in the audience are recognized so are written comments. Please submit written comments as well as e-mail messages. We hope that many of you submitted supportive e-mail messages but we have no way of checking what might have been sent in other than from the few folks who sent us copies of their submissions.
In what we see as the ultimate slap in the taxpayer’s face, the Department of Assessments and Taxation has the audacity to hire an Annapolis lobbyist to oppose the will of the taxpayer. This Department, which supposedly serves the taxpayer, spends taxpayer’s dollars to send a lobbyist to make lame arguments against a study that could be beneficial to both the State and its taxpayers in lieu of having one of their own staff testify if they truly feel that this taxpayer initiative is in any way harmful to the well being of the State or its taxpayers. They argue that Legislative Auditors conduct a review of the Department every three years. True, but the last audits in 2004 and 2007 contained several pages of problems which from reports we have received from reliable sources, certainly have never been corrected. This would undoubtedly be concurred with by any taxpayer that has ever appealed an assessment. The current audit, conducted in the summer of 2009, is mysteriously unavailable for scrutiny!!!!
The lobbyist argues the size of the task force, which would be 24 citizens from each State jurisdiction plus one SDAT member would be “overwhelming”. Note that the committee conducting the hearing has 23 members plus a sizeable staff!!!! We testified that Tony Passaro and the writer currently serve on Harford County Executive David Craig’s Financial Plan/Policy Advisory Committee. This group of 24 business people and staff personnel are asked to help update the Harford County financial policy which has not been updated in 12 years. The group has been meeting since December, weekly on average, for two hours. We are asked to finalize a report by the first week of March and are on track to do so. The SDAT lobbyist claims “it would be very difficult to complete such a massive undertaking (meaning the task force study) in 6 months”. Obviously, he has more experience with under performing bureaucrats than with task oriented, overachieving business people. The lobbyist’s final argument is that “this Task Force would require the Department to divert personnel from other responsibilities; there are no existing positions to provide the effort that would be required to conduct this review”. Makes one wonder how they evaluate their own performance or solve in-house problems, doesn’t it????
It is not too late to write to your Delegate or to members of the Ways and Means Committee to urge support of this measure. PLEASE FIND THE TIME TO DO SO. WE NEED THIS BILL TO PASS FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL PROPERTY TAXPAYERS!!!!
Remember, Nothing Happens Unless We Make It Happen!!!!
LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU AT SB 458 HEARING — Roy Whiteley
Roy, thank for the detailed response. Just one question though….What have you been smoking my man?
Roy don’t call them “TEA Baggers.” Joe will come crucify you!
Using the “tea bagger” term is just stupid and immature. All it does is give them a reason to attack you for being an asshole instead of paying attention to your arguments. It’s like getting into a heated argument with someone and you start dropping f-bombs. Once you start doing that all the other person hears is “F you!”