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Fairbanks BOE denies late-appeal extension for McDonald Mercer Family Trust
Summary
The Fairbanks North Star Borough Board of Equalization voted 5-0 to deny a request from Patricia A. McDonald (McDonald Mercer Family Trust) to accept a valuation appeal filed after the 30-day deadline, citing lack of supporting medical documentation under FNSB code.
The Fairbanks North Star Borough Board of Equalization voted 5-0 on April 18 to deny a request to accept a late valuation appeal from Patricia A. McDonald of the McDonald Mercer Family Trust (PAN 0342220).
The board, sitting as a quasi‑judicial body, denied the “unable to comply” extension after assessing the application and evidence. Ryan Danhauser, deputy assessor, told the board that the extension request, mailed to the assessor’s office on March 7, 2025, included the statement that the appellant’s spouse ‘‘has seasonal affective disorder’’ and that the appellant was traveling from Feb. 4 through March 4, 2025. Danhauser said, “No documentation to support a serious medical or other, similar serious condition or event beyond the taxpayer's control was submitted.”
Under Fairbanks North Star Borough Code 8.16.010(B), the board may grant a late appeal only when failure to file was due to a serious medical condition or another event beyond the taxpayer’s control; routine mail problems or failing to provide a current address do not qualify. Board members said the submission did not meet that standard. Mr. Daczynski, who moved the motion to accept the assessor’s denial, summarized the board’s reasoning: “It does not appear that it was a dire medical emergency that kept the plaintiff … from getting the mail and comply[ing] with the timeline.”
Board members who voted to deny included Miss Ferguson, Mr. Daczynski, Ms. Fouldeau, Miss Fuldo/Faldo, and Ms. Markwood (chair). The clerk will notify the applicant of the denial and of the appellant’s options under borough rule and state law.
The denial was made after the board reviewed the borough’s procedures for unable‑to‑comply determinations and the materials submitted by the appellant. The board noted that inability‑to‑comply affidavits must be supported by documentation, and that the assessor’s office found none in this case.
The Board of Equalization’s rules and procedures (FNSB code 4.04 and 4.28) require decisions be announced in public session and followed by written findings; the clerk will mail the board’s decision to the appellant as required by code.
