Caroline County officials press state assessors on timing, notice for property reclassifications including utility‑scale solar

Keith Bobick, supervisor for the local office of the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT), told the Caroline County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 4 that changes in property use are reflected on the tax roll effective the fiscal year beginning July 1 following the change.

Commissioner Porter and other commissioners pressed Bobick for details about how and when the office learns that a property has changed use — for example, when agricultural land is converted to utility‑scale solar or to surface mining — and how the county's tax office and SDAT could avoid sending residents to the wrong office for help.

Bobick said SDAT typically learns about large projects through county planning and codes permits, deeds and surveys, and occasionally via news reports or direct observation. He said his local office has five employees; staff typically telework two to three days a week. SDAT performs reassessments on a rotating schedule so each property is reviewed on a…