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Box Butte County Board of Equalization reviews protests, adjusts multiple property valuations
Summary
The Board met July 16, 2026, considered property protests and either accepted assessor testimony or approved valuation reductions after inspection or appraisal evidence; the session recessed mid-morning and adjourned at 11:52 a.m.
The Box Butte County Board of Equalization convened at 8:00 a.m. July 16, 2026, in the Commissioner Board Room. Chairperson Steve Burke presided with board members Mike Sautter and Brett Ditsch present; Mike Sautter moved to accept the agenda as printed and the motion carried.
Over the course of the morning the board considered more than 50 property protest hearings. For each parcel the board either accepted the County Assessor's testimony and left the assessment unchanged or approved a reduced valuation. Board member Mike Sautter frequently moved to accept the Assessor's testimony — for example, "Sautter moved to accept the testimony the Assessor presented, which indicates no change at this time," a motion the board recorded and carried on multiple parcels. Chairperson Steve Burke and Brett Ditsch also moved and seconded several reductions, sometimes citing inspection or new appraisal evidence.
Several reductions cited inspections or evidence presented at the hearing; for example, the board lowered the assessed value of the Jeffery MacDonald parcel "after inspection and review" because of property condition and approved similar condition-based reductions for other parcels. The board also approved reductions when claimants produced recent appraisals or sales data. One recorded vote showed a dissent: on Vern Lubash's parcel the vote recorded Ditsch yes, Sautter no, Burke yes, but the motion still carried.
The board recessed at 9:29 a.m. and resumed at 9:42 a.m. The session concluded with Chairperson Burke adjourning the Board at 11:52 a.m. The minutes list parcel-level land, building and total assessed values for each item considered; those totals are recorded in the minutes as entered by the clerk.
