Davis County hears Structural Steel appeal, agrees to partial audit adjustment pending final math

The Davis County Commission on Friday heard an appeal from Structural Steel over a state audit that the company says improperly added work-in-progress and capitalized internal labor to its personal property assessment.

Donald Ray, attorney for Structural Steel, told the commission the company resubmitted a 25-page packet asking the county to adjust assessed personal property taxes and argued many entries in the state audit were “just numbers” without supporting detail. Ray said the biggest disputed item was yard improvements that the company contends should be treated as real property rather than personal property, and that a $265,102 equipment line was the result of duplicated entries on the balance sheet.

An assessor’s staff member summarized a review by Gina, a state auditor who examined the company’s filings. The staff summary, presented to commissioners, shows the auditor would have removed certain items had she received more documentation, including duplicates and unfinished construction costs. “The auditors have already said that $12,252.82 is definitely what they would have changed at this point,” an assessor staff member told the commission.

Company counsel and county staff debated accounting practice: Structural Steel said a prior CFO capitalized internal labor and journaled wages to fixed-asset accounts, producing what the company now calls miscategorized entries; county staff and commissioners said the auditor removed items she could clearly identify as non-personal property but left others where documentation did not justify removal.

The parties compared totals during the meeting. Structural Steel’s application lists an outstanding amount of about $23,004.36 for the years in question before penalties and interest; staff and commissioners said a consensus reduction of $12,252.82 would lower the currently disputed tax amount by that figure, leaving a remaining disputed balance that they described as subject to further review and final calculation.

Commissioners said they were inclined to prioritize accuracy and consistency with past decisions and asked county staff to verify the math. Rather than make an immediate ruling, the commission agreed to take the appeal under advisement and to have staff prepare a revised invoice and formal decision reflecting the agreed-upon adjustments once final documentation and calculations are received. No formal vote was recorded during the session.

Ray said Structural Steel would provide clarifying documents if requested; county staff said a short, precise written summary of disputed line items would help them resolve remaining differences quickly. The commission set a procedural expectation that any further communications be recorded in writing to avoid ex parte issues.

The meeting ended with commissioners asking staff to include consideration of penalties and interest in the final decision and with an adjournment at 11:50 a.m.

The matter will return to county records when staff issues the written decision and revised invoice.