Residents heckle tax administrator

ABERDEEN — Residents turned out in large numbers, overflowing into the hallways of town hall at a special public meeting held Dec. 10 to discuss the revaluation and reassessment process by which local taxes are determined.

In the standing-room-only council chambers, residents peppered Monmouth County Tax Administrator Matthew Clark with questions about the recent revaluation that was conducted townwide.

While Clark dodged the historic tar and feathers that tax officials were once subject to, he was put on the spot and at times was heckled.

"What is the government going to do about this?" demanded one man in the crowded room, which became hotter as tempers flared.

"This meeting was meant to inform residents of the revaluation process and what they can do if they need to dispute their reassessment," said Aberdeen Township Manager Joseph Criscuolo before the meeting, which started later than its scheduled 7:30 p.m. time because of a power outage across Monmouth County.

A revaluation, according to the New Jersey League of Municipalities Web site, is mandated by state law when properties in a municipality are being assessed substantially below true market value.

The reason for the revaluation is to redistribute the tax burden among property owners more fairly.

According to the site, "Real property is required to be assessed for tax purposes at a percentage of true value set by each County Board of Taxation, and all 21 counties in New Jersey have chosen 100 percent as the level at which property is to be assessed for taxation."

According to Criscuolo, the county will not delay the revaluation, and Aberdeen will proceed with a revaluation, last done in 1992, despite concerns over the current flagging state of the economy.

"Unfortunately, the residents didn't allow Mr. Clark to do his presentation so that they could have been educated on the matter," Criscuolo said during a Dec. 11 interview. "Several residents have called to apologize and would like some more information."

Aberdeen Township Tax Assessor Holly Reycraft agreed.

"Several people stayed to talk with us oneon one, and their questions were answered, but it was unfortunate that many people left without their questions answered because of the behavior of a handful of people," she said. "We have started the meetings with the reval company with residents, and they understand and are not as upset when they learn about the process."

At the meeting, Clark explained the county's position and the obligation to conduct a revaluation on the homes and properties within the municipality.

"The county tax board has to do a statistical analysis of every municipality," Clark said above the din of the noisy crowd. "If a municipality passes, we must do a revaluation. We started this process in 2003 and we are mandated by law to finish it."

According to Criscuolo, the revaluation was ordered in 2004 and the process was too far along for the county to halt any further progress.

The discord in the room was attributed to a confusing letter residents received explaining how to calculate their tax rate, several residents said.

"The letter should have been more informative regarding what the tax rate is and how residents need to calculate it," said Strathmore resident Larry Goldner, who said he is in the finance industry. "The tax rate they sent home in the letter is not correct, and people can't understand how their taxes seemed to jump so quickly."

Goldner said the example of how to calculate a new tax bill that residents were given included an incorrect tax rate in the letter.

"We need to know what the new rate is; [the residents present] have the wrong rate," Goldner said, gesturing from his position in the back of the room to the large crowd in front of him. "If a home was assessed at $150,000 last time and now it is assessed at $350,000 [taxes] are going to seem to skyrocket."

Goldner said that in order to calculate a ballpark figure of a tax bill, residents should multiply the correct tax rate by the new assessment value.

"Compare that to your old taxes and you will see how much it went up," he said.

Carol Wohl, also a Strathmore resident, was disappointed with the meeting format and Clark's inability to give direct answers.

"He [Clark] shouldn't have answered individual questions like this — what a waste of time," she said. "I haven't figured out my tax bill because I haven't gotten the rate yet, but I am higher assessed than anyone I know with comparable homes."

Wohl said that she would be making an appointment to see Reycraft.

"I was told to call and make an appointment with our tax assessor and look at my property record card and see if it jibes with what my home has," Wohl said. "So, I guess I will be coming back down here."

Reycraft clarified why the letter had a different tax rate.

"In my attempt to show how a revaluation does not affect taxes, I used that number as an example on how the tax rate is affected," Reycraft explained. "We don't have a tax rate yet because budgets are adopted late in the year. We won't have a tax rate until July or August."

Reycraft explained that after a revaluation is done, residents can speak to the revaluation company once they receive their new assessment and go over their property record card, pointing out anything that they feel diminishes the value of their property.

Reycraft said the deadline for hearings is Dec. 27.

"The reval company reviews and decides whether to raise or lower the revaluation," she said. "The company then sends a letter to the residents, and residents can then go to the county to file their appeal."

Reycraft said the deadline to file an appeal with the county is May 1.

"There are 14 points on the county's Web site that address various questions residents might have about the revaluation," Criscuolo said. "Our goal is just to get the information out so people can know what to expect."

One resident at the meeting asked about the appeals process by which revaluations and assessments can be adjusted, but before Clark could answer, another resident angrily shouted,

"But the appeals process costs money!"

According to a handout from the Monmouth County Board of Taxation explaining tax appeals, filing fees range depending on the value of the home a resident is petitioning. For assessed valuations less than $150,000, a fee of $5 is charged; $150,000 or more, but less than $500,000 requires a $25 fee; $500,000 or more, but less than $1 million is a $100 fee; and $1 million or more carries a charge of $150.

Before the meeting ended, many residents stormed out of the council chambers to either take cigarette breaks or trudge back to their cars that were parked in the surrounding neighborhoods, since the municipal lot overflowed from the town hall lot.

Nevertheless, Monmouth County is moving forward with the revaluation of Aberdeen properties, Criscuolo said.

"Mr. Clark did touch on [delaying the revaluations] in his presentation. But the problem is even if you put it off, [delaying] it affects the outcome of the revaluation anyway, so if the market is down or up, it is relative because a reval is revenue neutral: it doesn't raise money, it just spreads the needed amount around," Reycraft explained.

According to Criscuolo, the Township Council passed a resolution proclaiming a moratorium on revaluations. The resolution calls on Gov. Jon Corzine to hold or delay all pending and future revaluations until the present condition of the economy is restored.

Additional information about assessments is available on the Monmouth County Web site at www.visitmonmouth.com.