Gardner City Board of Assessors approves May motor vehicle excise abatements, reviews FY26 valuation filings

The Gardner City Board of Assessors voted Tuesday, June 3, 2025, to approve and sign the May 2025 motor vehicle excise abatements and received an update from the assessor on filings and the office’s work on fiscal year 2026 values.

The action matters because abatements reduce taxpayers’ bills and the assessor’s valuation filings and omitted/revised assessments affect the property tax base used for the FY26 budget cycle.

During the meeting, the board accepted the minutes from April 22, 2025, by motion and then reviewed and signed the motor vehicle excise abatements for May. The assessor presented a total abatement figure of 633,445 (as stated at the meeting) and said the office sends the reports to the city auditor after signing. The motions to accept the minutes and to sign the abatements were moved and seconded and carried by voice vote.

In an assessor update, the assessor said the office submitted the LA-3 qualified sales report on May 27 and that it was approved on May 30. The assessor also reported submitting omitted and revised assessments—which the assessor described as corrections for bills omitted in prior runs—and said that submission and approval occurred on May 30. An LA-13a filing was also approved on the same day, the assessor said. The assessor told the board the office had a fiscal year 2026 budget hearing with the finance committee the previous month, at which they presented line-item spending and salary comparisons compiled from job postings going back to August 2024.

The assessor added that all real estate exemptions and abatements had been acted on and that the office received notice of an informal hearing filing at the Appellate Tax Board (ATB) for 33–49 Parker Street. No further board direction or additional formal actions were recorded on that matter during the meeting.

With no other business, the chair called for and the board approved a motion to adjourn.