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Douglas County clarifies protest process after rise in non-owner filings
Summary
The Douglas County Board of Equalization approved procedural amendments to clarify how protests of property valuations filed by non-owners or unauthorized agents are handled after a recent increase in such filings.
The Douglas County Board of Equalization on June 3 approved clarifying changes to its real property valuation protest procedures after staff reported a rise in protests filed by people who are neither the property owner nor an authorized agent.
The changes, approved as part of a block vote of Board of Equalization resolutions, define how appointments for hearings are handled when a protest is submitted online by an unaffiliated third party. Catherine Hall, Douglas County administration, said the edits “clarify what that process looks like if someone is not authorized nor the property owner so they have a better expectation of how the process goes when they request an appointment.”
The issue was raised on the record by Commissioner Cavanaugh, who said he had learned non‑owners had been submitting protests and asked staff to explain the change so property owners would be aware. Dan Asch, Douglas County Clerk, told the board that while owners and authorized agents who file a single residential protest can normally schedule their own online appointment, “for unauthorized non‑owners, we want to have a little more say ... so we make sure we’re aware” and can reach out to schedule the appointment.
Teresa from the County Attorney’s Office confirmed the change aligns with state law, pointing to Nebraska statute 77‑1502, noting the statute “contemplates a non owner filing because it has that notification provision in there saying that the owner should be notified.” County Assessor Mike Goodwillie told commissioners the activity is a recent phenomenon and that his office has not experienced widespread contact from third parties about individual property values.
Under the clarified procedures, protests filed online for one residential property by an owner or authorized agent retain the standard online scheduling path; protests filed by unauthorized non‑owners, multiple properties, or nonresidential properties follow a different appointment scheduling flow so staff can verify and coordinate notifications. Catherine Hall described the changes as procedural rather than substantive: “this is more just a clarification of procedure. We’re sort of trying to spell out more specifically what the expectations would be.”
The Board of Equalization approved the block of resolutions, including the amendment, by voice vote 6‑0.
