Town of Rutland Board of Assessors
Meeting Minutes
December 27, 2018 at 8:00AM
Location: Assessor’s Office
Meeting opened at 8:09 AM
Discussions:
The Board of Assessors met with Harald Scheid (RRG President/Assessor), Diane Peterson (RRG Assessor), Rebecca Tuttle (Tax Collector) and Daniel Haynes (Town Accountant) to discuss the issue with the abatements that were granted for the fire at Country Side Estates; Building 7 and the house fire at 79 Irish Lane that caused the FY19 Actual Tax File and LA4 to not balance.
On July 17, 2018 the BOA approved the Real Estate Abatements due to a fire being reported in January 2018. This fire caused the unit owners to be evicted and the building being uninhabitable with an estimated date of return being November 2018. The Board approved to abate the tax for the 3rd and 4th quarters of FY18 (FY18 Actual Bills) and the 1st and 2nd quarters of FY19 (FY19 Preliminary Bills). The Board voted to abate the tax amounts but not an adjustment to the assessed values of the units because they were able to return to their homes in November 2018. After the board meeting, the list of tax abatements was given to the Tax Collector’s Office.
The Collector’s Office entered the abatements on the FY19 preliminary bills causing the FY19 Actual Tax File and the LA4 that was approved by the Department of Revenue to not balance.
The Collector’s Office then contacted the Software Company; VADAR, and was told to resind all of the abatements that were entered for FY19 and this would fix the balancing issue but the Board of Assessors must vote to resind the abatements and vote to accept a new FY19 abatement amount reflecting the 2019 tax rate of $17.89.
Motion to resind the FY19 portion of the abatements for Country Side Estates in the amount of $11,451.90 by Jeffrey Gibbs
2nd by Kevin Jarvi
All in Favor
Kevin Jarvi made a motion to accept the new amount of $12,630.54 for the FY19 portion of the Country Side Estates fire abatements that reflect the accepted 2019 tax rate.
2nd by Jeffrey Gibbs
All in Favor
On August 14, 2018 the Board granted an abatement for the home at 79 Irish Lane due to a fire that caused extensive damage to the inside of the home. The Assessors did do a value adjustment due to the fact that the house is unlivable due to its current condition.
They granted to abate the tax for the 3rd and 4th quarters of FY18 and to the 1st and 2nd quarters of FY19.
The tax was then abated causing the same issue that the Country Side Estates had; making the tax file and LA4 not balance. Again, in order to fix this issue the Collector’s Office has to resind the FY19 abatement. The Board again, has to resind the abatements and vote to re-issue the FY19 abatement. The abatement amount would remain the same as the original voted amount because the Assessors did a value adjustment, unlike the Country Side Estates.
Motion to resind the FY19 portion of the abatement granted for 79 Irish Lane in the amount of $5,006.60 by Kevin Jarvi
2nd by Jeffrey Gibbs
All in Favor
Motion to re-issue the abatement for FY19 for the property located at 79 Irish Lane in the amount of $5,006.60 by Jeffrey Gibbs
2nd by Kevin Jarvi
All in Favor
Set time and agenda items for next meeting: January 8, 2019 8:30 am
Adjourn: 9:15 am
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Kevin Jarvi (Chair)
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Arthur Lincoln (Member)
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Jeffrey Gibbs (Member)
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