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Dickinson County sets August cutoff for property conveyances used in annual tax levy calculations
Summary
County commissioners adopted a resolution formalizing an August 31 cutoff for recognizing real property conveyances for the current tax year, a change county appraiser Lisa Berg said will allow departments time to verify conveyances before certification deadlines.
The Dickinson County Commission on Sept. 11 adopted a resolution designating Aug. 31 as the cutoff date for recognizing real property conveyances that change legal descriptions (splits/combos) for current-year property tax levy calculations. County Appraiser Lisa Berg told commissioners the earlier deadline gives GIS and appraisal staff time to complete conveyances before county certification deadlines.
Berg said the county clerk must certify the tax roll by Nov. 1 and the county is asked to recertify by Oct. 1. “She has sent us, in about mid August, sends us a cutoff date to prepare for certification,” Berg said. Berg recommended an Aug. 31 cutoff so the appraisal and GIS departments can complete conveyances and have values reflected in the current year; conveyances filed after that date would be deferred to the following Jan. 1.
“Sometimes it takes a little longer. I try to assist Jennifer to make sure everything does checks and balances before I send it up to her,” Berg said, referring to the county clerk’s certification process.
Berg told the commission that the cutoff does not remove the appraiser’s statutory duties; rather, it provides administrative clarity and reduces the risk that late-filed conveyances will be recorded without balanced certified values. “There is no statutory requirement for the county appraiser to allocate value after January 1. That is a mandated service that we do. We'll still do that on the ones that are filed timely,” she said.
Commissioners adopted the resolution by voice vote. The measure makes the August 31 date official for Dickinson County’s 2025 certification process and instructs staff to defer any qualifying conveyances filed after that date to Jan. 1 of the following year.
The action follows a presentation from Berg and related discussion in the work-study portion of the meeting; the resolution was then added to the regular agenda and approved in open session.
