Since updated property valuations went out in July, each week Summit County auditors have brought hundreds of appeals to the Summit County Council.
That’s because what the county says a property is worth determines how much property tax the owner pays. In Summit County, the council doubles as the Board of Equalization, the entity that grants or denies property value appeals.
The county council has asked the auditor’s office for more information about some appeals in the group of about 200 up for approval.
However, the auditor’s office says it doesn’t have the bandwidth for that right now.
“Hand entering data also presents additional human error risk. This is an additional workload that the auditor's office does not have the capacity for under current conditions,” the Summit County Auditor’s Office wrote.
County Manager Shayne Scott has been looking into ways to ease the office’s workload.
“They are looking at some technological advancements in software that might be able to facilitate that in the future,” Scott said. “But I think right now, they're asking if they can not provide that information at this time.”
Auditors Chase Black and Cindy Keyes told the council at its previous meeting they’re seeing an “unprecedented” number of appeals this year. That’s after Summit County property values jumped by $17 billion since 2022.
The county is considering hiring a third person to help process appeals.
Other items up for approval at this week’s council meeting include a request from the North Summit Special Recreation District to use grant money to build one sports field in Coalville, rather than the two originally planned.
The county council may also approve two amendments to the Eastern Summit County Development Code, one related to contractor’s yards and the other related to parking for events centers and guest ranches.
The meeting starts Wednesday at 4:50 p.m. at the Summit County Courthouse in Coalville, and on Zoom. Click here for the full agenda.
