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Small counties ask state for grants or shared portals as clerks struggle with appeals staffing and costs
Summary
Clerks of small and rural counties told the BOE that limited staff and the high cost of standalone appeals software force manual processes; they urged state grants or shared, open systems and temporary sharing of hearing officers among nearby counties.
Clerks of smaller counties told the Board of Equalization work group that assessment‑appeals administration remains largely manual in many jurisdictions and that state help would be needed for modern case management.
Melissa Kitz, assistant clerk of the board and clerk for Butte County’s Assessment Appeals Board, said her office uses Excel to track appeals and that developing county software has estimated costs “around $200,000,” which she said is unaffordable for many counties. “I have a staff of probably half a person that works with me,” Kitz said. “I receive probably just 200 applications a year, but for me, that is a great deal of data entry.”
Why it matters: clerks typically prepare the hearing calendar, mail notices and communicate with taxpayers and assessors. When clerks lack staff or modern case‑management tools, scheduling, notice and evidence exchange all slow the appeals process.
What clerks asked the BOE to consider
- Grants and permanent funding streams: CCBSA’s assessment appeals subcommittee requested state grants or a standing funding program so counties could procure and maintain case‑management software and reduce local disparities.
- Shared or regional pools of hearing officers and board members: the clerks proposed a statutory change to allow temporary cross‑county appointments so smaller neighboring counties could form a shared panel without separate appointments by each board of supervisors.
- Scalable materials and training: the clerks asked the BOE to develop short, plain‑language fact sheets and standardized training for board members and clerks so counties without in‑house subject matter experts could adopt best practices more cheaply.
- Rules for professional mass filers: clerks proposed rules that would require professional tax agents to certify they have completed a pre‑filing merits check or to use e‑filing when they submit large numbers of appeals in a county, to reduce last‑minute batch filings that create data‑entry surges.
Concluding note: Clerks and small‑county officials said they welcome shared solutions but stressed local integration with each county’s assessor and auditor systems is essential. Several clerks urged the BOE and counties to explore shared procurement or a common portal that could be offered to smaller counties at lower marginal cost.
