BENTONVILLE — Benton County officials said they’ve seen relatively few property tax appeals in 2013.
The county’s Board of Equalization has completed its work for the year. The board meets annually to hear appeals from property owners who disagree with the county’s assessment of their property’s value for tax purposes.
The board had sat on 221 appointments concerning 893 parcels of property since it began work in August, said County Clerk Tena O’Brien. The board’s last scheduled day to meet was Thursday. Property owners who disagree with the board’s decision still have until Oct. 14 to appeal to Benton County Court.
At A Glance
About Property Taxes
Sarah Daniels, Benton County comptroller, said property taxes are one of the county’s biggest revenue sources. Daniels said the county budgeted for $23,537,895 in property tax revenue for 2013. Daniels said the county’s is projecting a 3.1 percent increase in property tax revenue for 2014, which would bring in $24,267,570.
Source: Staff Report
The board had 315 appointments concerning 1,269 parcels of land in 2012, O’Brien said. The overall result of the board’s decisions in 2012 was to lower the assessed value of the properties involved by $79,740. The county will review the results and adjust its 2013 property assessments accordingly once all of this year’s cases are resolved, O’Brien said.
County Assessor Bear Chaney agreed 2013 has been a slow year for property tax appeals.
“I’ve been over there a few times checking on things, asking them if there’s anything they needed,” Chaney said. “I really haven’t heard any complaints.”
The Equalization Board typically sees a spike in appeals in years where there is a county-wide reappraisal. Benton County’s next county-wide reappraisal is set for 2016, Chaney said.
There have been four cases appealed from the Equalization Board to Benton County Court so far this year, compared to 26 cases that were appealed to county court in 2012, O’Brien said. The county judge presides over cases in county court, and if property owners are still dissatisfied they can appeal from county court to Benton County Circuit Court.
County Judge Bob Clinard said the four cases he’s heard this year have been pretty simple and mostly resolved with the property owner and the county compromising on the value of the property.
“One of the things I’m happy about is it appears the economy is leveling off because there are fewer people appealing their tax values,” Clinard said. “Starting back during the recession in 2008 and 2009, you had a lot more people concerned about changes to their tax bills.”