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Wasatch County discusses large BOE appeals; many claims tied to Deer Valley mining claims sent toward state review
Summary
Council accepted assessor-recommended stipulations to close the BOE round after staff explained that a large portion of petitioned reductions relate to state-assessed mining claims and that many disputed values should be appealed to the state rather than settled locally.
Wasatch County Council on Dec. 18 accepted assessor recommendations to close the Board of Equalization (BOE) review cycle while flagging a set of high-value appeals that staff say are state-assessed mining-claim issues and are better resolved at the state level.
Jerry (assessor staff) presented the fifth and final BOE round and said the packet included about $177 million in properties under review, much of which the petitioners initially sought to reduce dramatically. Todd and assessor staff explained that roughly $95 million of contested value centered on Deer Valley/BLX properties and mining-claim assessments. Staff told the council many of those items are state-assessed or involve mining claims that historically were administered by federal or state agencies and that next year those assessments will move to county rolls.
Assessors and council members discussed 'double taxation' concerns raised by developers: petitioners argued they were paying real-property taxes on surface parcels while mining-claim assessments were being added on top of those values. Todd explained that for some parcels mining claims confer full possession and so, under code, the claim-holder’s value may control; for other parcels assessor staff found no encumbrance that would prevent development and declined to stipulate the large reductions petitioners sought.
Staff said some petitions were filed past the state deadline for state-assessed parcels (Aug. 1) and therefore were not appropriate for local stipulation; the assessor’s office recommended sending those appeals to the state where appropriate. After discussion, Steve moved to accept the assessor/BOE recommended stipulated values and to include two additional assessor adjustments; council voted unanimously to approve the motion.
Council members asked staff to track the issue as the state transitions more mining-claim assessments to counties next year and to provide guidance on consistent land valuations with neighboring Summit County where applicable. The council's approval closes the local BOE process for those items and directs petitioners to pursue state-level appeals where staff recommended it.
