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Supervisor of assessments pitches software to find improper homestead exemptions; seeks salary adjustment
Summary
The county’s supervisor of assessments presented a proposal for software from TrueRoll to audit homestead exemptions and requested a salary adjustment to stay competitive; TrueRoll representatives estimated a typical homestead error rate of 4–6% and proposed a $31,000 annual subscription with a multi‑year option that would waive setup fees.
The supervisor of assessments told the Boone County finance committee Thursday that software offered by a vendor called TrueRoll could identify erroneous homestead exemptions and find eligible taxpayers who were not receiving exemptions.
The supervisor said the county has recurring administrative work on exemptions — from seniors, veterans and other owner‑occupied exemptions — and that errors or omitted filings lead to refunds or additional administrative burden. She told the committee a technology solution could audit exemptions at scale and improve fairness. "By publicly, my salary remaining competitive, that guarantees… you'll get a lot of resumes," she added in a separate request to keep assessment salaries competitive.
Tyler Mastersap, identified in the presentation as a TrueRoll co‑founder, said his company compiles databases from voter registration, change-of-address records, rental and vacancy listings, utility bills and other sources to surface homesteads that are ineligible or homesteads that should be receiving exemptions but are not. "Those individuals that are registered to go to their property and receiving their tax bill, and have never listed their property for rent ... may be eligible and not receiving," Mastersap said.
Braden (last name not specified), TrueRoll sales director, told the committee the vendor tracks results nationally and that counties commonly see a 4–6% error rate on homestead exemptions. He said the typical equalized assessed value associated with one homestead case in Boone County was in the several‑thousand‑dollar range — the company estimated the equalized assessed value impact described in the meeting at roughly $5,000–$6,000 per case, which the vendor said translated to several hundred dollars of tax value per property.
Committee members asked about cost and contract options. The vendor presented two pricing models: a single‑year subscription and a three‑year agreement in which the vendor would waive implementation and technology setup fees. Committee discussion indicated a single‑year cost is roughly $31,000; the vendor said it offered a three‑year option that eliminates an annual tech fee and waives implementation costs to reduce long‑term per‑year charges.
The supervisor of assessments also requested a salary modification to keep the county competitive with peer counties; board members said they supported bringing salary figures up gradually and noted that half of the supervisor’s salary is reimbursed by the State of Illinois.
No final decision or purchase vote was recorded during the meeting; vendors and staff were available to answer questions and committee members asked for additional documentation and contract details before making a procurement decision.
