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VAB updates evidence-exchange and telephonic-hearing procedures after state rule changes
Summary
The Hernando County VAB adopted updated evidence-exchange rules and local telephonic/hearing procedures to align with recent state guidance: each party must exchange evidence 15 days before hearings, and telephonic/electronic hearings will be available without the prior notary/qualifying requirements.
The Hernando County Value Adjustment Board on Aug. 7 adopted revised procedures governing evidence exchange and telephonic hearings to reflect recent state administrative changes. The board approved a package of legal resources and local administrative procedures (M1–M7 and N1–N3), and separately approved updated telephonic/hearing procedures that remove prior local qualifiers and the notary requirement for remote participants.
Counsel Holly E. Cosby explained the evidence-exchange change is intended to make the process fairer: “Each party must provide their evidence to the other 15 days prior to the hearing, period,” she said, reading the updated requirement into the record. Under the prior practice petitioners were required to provide evidence first and request the property appraiser’s materials in order to receive them in writing; the new rule makes a simultaneous 15-day exchange mandatory.
The board also adopted new local policies to implement state rules that require VABs to permit electronic hearings beginning Jan. 1. The local change, already implemented in Hernando County ahead of the state deadline, removes prior qualifiers (such as medical need or distance) and eliminates the prior requirement that a remote participant secure a notary and file an affidavit. Instead, magistrates will administer an oath directly during electronic hearings, as is already common in other court settings.
Some board members raised concerns about verifying a remote participant’s identity without a notary, and asked staff to monitor how the changes work in practice. Clerk staff said hearings are live-broadcast from the dais and recordings are posted to the county website, and magistrates indicated they will confirm names, addresses and petition status on the record.
The motions to adopt the forms and procedures were moved and seconded and were recorded as carried unanimously.
