List of Tax Refunds
– The list of tax refunds totals $80,364.27 for 70 refunds. The list has been reviewed by the solicitor’s office and is recommended for approval. The Superintendent recommends approval of this list.
Lebo Citizens reader and former manager of Allegheny County’s Office of Property Assessments, Mike Suley wrote this opinion piece in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Allegheny Co. tax appeal deadlines are unfair
No other county in Pennsylvania forces you to pay taxes before your tax assessment appeal is resolved
October 14, 2014 12:00 AM
Allegheny County is the only county in Pennsylvania that forces you to pay taxes before your tax assessment appeal is resolved. For example, the appeal deadline in Allegheny County is March 31, 2015, for the 2015 tax year, yet 2015 county, Pittsburgh and city school district bills will be mailed out before the appeals deadline. It’s not fair to pay first and appeal later. There are city residents still waiting on retroactive appeal decisions for this tax year.
Under home rule, the appeal deadline has been changed at least 20 times. In 2013 the county changed the deadline again to give property owners and taxing bodies a “second chance” to appeal for the same tax year because a prior county ordinance permitted appeals before the tax bills went out. This was done even though tens of thousands of the previous appeals were unresolved and awaiting disposition going into the 2013 tax year.
Allegheny County politicians have complained for years that the county’s citizens should be on a level playing field with other counties. We’re not. It’s time to have an appeals deadline with resolution before the tax bills go out.
MIKE SULEY
Mt. Lebanon
The writer, an assessment consultant, is former manager of Allegheny County’s Office of Property Assessments.
Allegheny County is the only county in Pennsylvania that forces you to pay taxes before your tax assessment appeal is resolved. For example, the appeal deadline in Allegheny County is March 31, 2015, for the 2015 tax year, yet 2015 county, Pittsburgh and city school district bills will be mailed out before the appeals deadline. It’s not fair to pay first and appeal later. There are city residents still waiting on retroactive appeal decisions for this tax year.
Under home rule, the appeal deadline has been changed at least 20 times. In 2013 the county changed the deadline again to give property owners and taxing bodies a “second chance” to appeal for the same tax year because a prior county ordinance permitted appeals before the tax bills went out. This was done even though tens of thousands of the previous appeals were unresolved and awaiting disposition going into the 2013 tax year.
Allegheny County politicians have complained for years that the county’s citizens should be on a level playing field with other counties. We’re not. It’s time to have an appeals deadline with resolution before the tax bills go out.
MIKE SULEY
Mt. Lebanon
The writer, an assessment consultant, is former manager of Allegheny County’s Office of Property Assessments.
9 comments:
Among other indicated insults, the County and local taxing bodies will charge 10% interest and penalties on late tax payments, but will not pay taxpayers interest on excess taxes collected oftentimes two years previous to an eventual appeal settlement.
So I am waiting for them to vote on money that is legally owed to me? I realize it's a formality but the previous commenter is right that some of it was paid two years ago!
Exactly right 8:26.
The taxing bodies could hold thousands of $$$ of your money for years and feel no obligation to pay interest because they denied you access to money rightfully yours
that you could invest, pay off a loan or go on vacation with.
The taxing bodies excuse, honestly, is that they do not pay interest because the appeal laws and regulations do not specifically allow for such; and, because of that, funds for interest payments are not budgeted.
That's like saying that because there is no specific law that toilet paper is required, governments will not supply it in public lavatories.
"Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth."
— Abraham Lincoln
Unfortunately, Abe for the state where you spoke those memorable words-- that government perished a long time ago and we let it happen.
Mike,
Is the newcomers' tax a spot assessment in your opinion.
John
John,
I'm not Mike, but it's not a spot assessment. The municipality has a right to appeal the county's assessments just like individual property owners have the right to appeal. However, I think Mt. Lebanon's use of the appeal power is abusive and functionally is no different than a spot assessment by the county. But Mt. Lebanon doesn't have the power to assess so they really can't be accused of conducting spot assessments. The appeal program might be considered discriminatory and possibly unconstitutional.
-Bob
Bob,
I would argue it is a spot assessment as part of the appeals process.
John
Under state law, county assessors are not permitted to spot assess. There is no provision about spot assessing in the appeals legislation. In Texas, taxing bodies are not permitted to appeal individual properties...only the district if it is out of whack. Your state lawmakers could change the appeals statutes if there was pressure to do so. The laws should be changed so that homeowners could argue assessments on the street that are similar with dissimilar tax bills. Uniformity in taxation is guaranteed in the state and U.S. Constitutions.
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