From the Shelbyville News:
After defending against a glut of property tax appeals that began last year, the Shelby County Assessor's Office is out of money to fend off more appeals.
County Assessor Anne Thurston has reached out to county and Shelbyville officials for help with some of the more egregious assaults - those by multi-million dollar companies within the city limits.
Pilkington North America, Inc. and PK USA have appealed their assessments for 2012 and 2011-2012 respectively, which could cost the county a combined total of $182,000 in tax dollars if they win their appeals.
Thurston is asking for help to pay for the necessary appraisals conducted by certified appraisers that research and document properties. Costing anywhere from $15,000 to $20,000 per appraisal, it is a source of last resort for the assessor's department, reserved for cases where hundreds of thousands of dollars are at stake and/or the disagreement reaches the Indiana tax courts.
The appraisal doesn't guarantee a win in court, but it certainly helps the odds, Thurston said.
"There's no guarantee I will win, but it is a guarantee that I won't lose right off the bat," she said.
Thurston has already paid approximately $16,000 in appraisal fees relating to Kroger/Atlas Logistics' appeal which is challenging the county over 2011-2012 assessments and alleged errors in 2009 and 2010 and about $12,000 so far defending against Meridian Automotive System's appeal for 2009-2012.
The county stands to lose $917,000 in tax dollars if a state tax court rules in the favor of the two companies.
All four continue in the tax appeal process despite having lost in at least one of the appeals process, which starts with an informal meeting with the assessors office where 99 percent of appeals are resolved and leading all the way to the Indiana Supreme Court if they are not.
"We're looking at $1 million and that's in revenue," Thurston said. "We need to cut our budget and if we can save these, we may not have to cut our budget."
Thurston met with the Shelbyville City Council to explain what her department does and how Shelbyville benefits.
"We all agreed that we needed to work closer together; that's the commitment that the city has made," Shelbyville Mayor Tom DeBaun said. "The consensus among the council was if there was a way we could help out we will. We just need to know in what form that is and how that is done.
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http://www.shelbynews.com/articles/2013/09/18/news/doc5238ae6515ede813429368.txt
