COM 0070.000 2012-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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2012 Tax Board of Review Annual Report 3 (Commercial Appraisers), and support staff in attendance. Also present were Finance Director Nancy Crawford, Deputy Director Deanna Sako, and Deputy Corporation Counsel Craig Masuda. Opening remarks were provided by Mrs. Crawford and Mr. Masuda, who also did a presentation on the Sunshine Law and topics from the 2012 Board of Review Conference. Administrator Stanley Sitko presented information on the Sales Ratio Analysis. The Board was also provided with more time on the agenda to present questions to the tax office personnel and administration which the Board found to be very beneficial. Guest Speaker Lucille Meyer of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) did a presentation on identifying and certifying Kuleana Lands which the Board and all those in attendance found to be very educational and beneficial for tax office purposes. Appeal Hearings Five hundred fifty-six (556) appeals, which included 137 from East Hawaii and 419 from West Hawaii, plus appeals from amended assessment notices (P38s), were scheduled for hearing this tax year. This is a decrease from 1,046 cases in the previous tax year. There were six (6) sessions held in East Hawaii (July 18, 19; September 25, 26; and October 16, 17) and ten (10) sessions held in West Hawaii (July 10, 11; August 7, 8; September 11, 12; October 23, 24; and November 13, 14). Complaint Hearing As required by Chapter 19-97(e), a notice was published on September 7, 2012, specifying a period (September 14 — 28, 2012) within which complaints may be filed by a taxpayer. No complaints were filed. Comments and Recommendations 1. The procedure of rendering an immediate decision in open session upon the completion of the presentation of each appeal case continues to be accepted by all parties and is still the preferred procedure and most efficient process. 2. The workshop, which included the Real Property Tax staff and Board Members held prior to the start of this year's appeal hearings, was immensely informative and productive. Future workshops are encouraged to continue with Board Members and all administrative staff. The Board recommends that the outcome of the Board's annual workshop be transmitted to the appraisal staff at a mandatory island-wide workshop for the appraisers to attend.