New Castle County Council introduces ordinance to extend reassessment deadlines; residents urge change to appeals' hearsay rule

The New Castle County Council introduced Ordinance 25-020 to extend deadlines related to property reassessment procedures under 9 Del. C. § 1371(f)(d) and scheduled consideration at a special meeting in March at 10 a.m., the council said during an introductory reading of the measure.

The extension affects homeowners currently in or approaching the county's formal appeal process for property assessments. Residents who came to the meeting urged council members to ask the county assessment office to relax the requirement that an appraiser or legal representative appear in person at appeal hearings so that certified appraisal reports can be accepted without live testimony.

Susan Handler, a resident of Sedgley Farms, said she pursued an informal appeal after what she described as an inflated reassessment and later paid $600 for a formal appraisal to meet…