Members of the County Board of Equalization agreed to continue the sequential or "shotgun" hearing schedule used last year, saying the format reduces long gaps between cases and makes better use of staff and members' time. The board also described a new procedural check intended to minimize last-minute postponements requested by the assessor's office.

Board member Scott (retired naval officer) said the approach helped members get into the work quickly: "I think I'd rather be ... immersed and get into it," and he said he would vote to continue the format. The board discussed limiting long idle gaps between hearings so staff and appellants do not wait for extended periods.

The board described how hearings previously were scheduled around appellants' availability, often leaving 30–60 minute lags between cases. Under the shotgun approach, hearings move sequentially so panels can proceed without long breaks. The board noted their longest session last year ran about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Assessing staff had initially raised concerns that field employees returning from inspections could be disadvantaged by tighter scheduling, but board members said they had not since received additional complaints from the assessor's office. The board intends to continue the sequential schedule while accommodating reasonable requests.

On postponements, the board told staff to contact petitioners before granting an assessor-requested postponement. "If that happens, we'll put a call into the petitioner before we do any work to postpone just to see if they're in agreement," a board member said. The change is intended to reduce administrative work and avoid surprises for appellants who may have planned to appear.

The board also confirmed it will continue to allow remote participation (phone or Zoom) when members or appellants cannot attend in person, noting some large commercial appeals may include out-of-state representatives. Members emphasized an effort to keep hearings service-oriented and to put appellants at ease during proceedings.

The board said it will meet on Wednesday mornings at 9 a.m. for hearings and will maintain the shotgun format unless further operational issues arise.