Jones County Board of Tax Assessors noted it had been a busy time for the department after the mailing of property assessments, but so far, the number of appeals are low.
Chairman Leigh Stanford called the June 5 meeting to order, and the opening prayer and pledge were led by Board member Joe Rutledge.
Board members Andrea Riley and Justin Kelly were also in attendance.
The business meeting approved one CUVA continuation and the approval of an Error and Relief item, both presented by board secretary and appraiser Kim Adams.
Adams also gave an update about the mailing of assessment notices. She said appraisers made the changes discussed in the last meeting and found more changes needed before the assessments were mailed.
She said the changes were also available for view on the QPublic site.
Adams said she had a complete list of all the changes made for the review of board members.
Stanford said she knew the assessments had been mailed because her phone has been ringing.
Adams gave an appeals update. She said the office has been busy with phone calls.
“We appreciate The Jones County News and the Board of Commissioners for getting the word out about the assessments,” she said. “We want to be transparent, and people are being understanding.”
The appraiser said all the appeals have been routine, and the inquiries have not been unreasonable.
“We appreciate everyone’s patience, and we have a brochure available with more explanations,” she said.
Stanford said she discussed how to explain the assessments with commissioners, and there was good information in the newspaper. She asked the board and staff members if they feel like a town hall event was needed.
Adams said at this time she did not think it was needed.
“The newspaper article and brochure cover most of the concerns,” she said.
Stanford said so far there had been 14 appeals filed.
“I think people understand the tax rate will be adjusted by the commissioners,” she said.
The chairman asked if there were any thoughts from the audience, and Commissioner Sam Kitchens came forward.
“I think all our phones are ringing off the hook. The newspaper had a great article that explains it better than I could. We knew there would be sticker shock, and I think I speak for all of us, we know we have to roll back the tax rate,” he said.
Kitchens said, based on the assessments they have seen, it could be a huge increase, but the board is determined to live within their means and be transparent.
“We know what is needed to operate the county, and we plan to roll back to that,” he said.
Board of Commissioners Chairman Chris Weidner was also in the audience. Kitchens said if the Board of Assessors need to have a public forum, they can count on him and Weidner being there.
Interim Chief Appraiser Jim Davis was the next to speak. He said in his 50 years in the business, he has never seen progress like Jones County has made with property values.
“The staff did this in two months, working seven days a week. That’s above the call of duty,” he said.
Davis said he expected it would take until 2026 to be where they are now.
“Off the chain, this is the best production of work I have ever seen. Fourteen appeals is miniscule,” he said. “The press and the commissioners did a great job to let people know what was coming.”
Davis said the upcoming revaluation would equal out the values. He said he hopes the sales ratio bears out the work. The hidden benefit of that would be the increase in fees from public utilities.
“The staff has done the work. Thank you to the board for the support,” he said.
Stanford said the revaluation was coming up. The Board of Commissioners approved the bid from Technology Appraiser Services, pending legal review.
She said the Board of Assessors need to authorize the commissioners to enter into the contract.
Riley made the motion, and it was approved unanimously.
The meeting was adjourned to enter closed session and reconvened shortly after to adjourn the meeting with no further action taken.
The next meeting of the JCBTA is scheduled July 3 at 5 p.m.
