NOTICE: Petitions for the 2024 Value Adjustment Board cycle are due by 5:00 PM in the office or midnight for online filers on Friday, September 13, 2024.
As Clerk of the VAB, the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller’s BMR office, 4th Floor, Bldg. F, Main Campus, receives and processes petitions, maintains a VAB database, and schedules and records the hearings.
In addition to the processing of petitions, our office plays a critical role in streamlining the communication between the petitioner and the Property Appraiser’s Office during the VAB process. These discussions can lead to the petitioner withdrawing their petition or getting a related settlement without the petition ever going to a VAB hearing, saving time and costs for our citizens.
In the last VAB session, we had 1300 petitions involving 1484 parcels. Through proactive engagement with the community, 916 of the 1484 parcels, or roughly 60% of the parcels in the last session, were withdrawn or settled. This is an excellent outcome for all.
The Value Adjustment Board (VAB) settles disputes between taxpayers and the County’s Property Appraiser. Taxpayers are notified in August of their property’s assessed and market values in a Truth in Millage (TRIM) notice. First, a taxpayer should take any assessment concerns to the Property Appraiser for further evaluation. Second, a taxpayer may file a petition with the Value Adjustment Board if he or she feels the Property Appraiser’s assessment, classification, or exemption status for their property is not correct.
The VAB is an independent entity and is not affiliated with the Property Appraiser or the Tax Collector. Board membership consists of two county commissioners, one school board member, and two citizen members who approve and hire special magistrates to settle disputes during scheduled quasi-judicial hearings.
At a VAB hearing on value, the special magistrate will determine if the assessment complies with applicable law and professionally accepted appraisal practices. This determination is based on evidence produced by the Property Appraiser. The special magistrate will also determine if the market value exceeds just value (or is less than just value, if applicable) based on evidence produced by the petitioner. At a VAB hearing involving denial of a classification or exemption or involving portability transfer, the special magistrate will determine if the petitioner is entitled to the classification, exemption, or portability transfer requested by the petitioner based on evidence produced by the petitioner. A taxpayer may institute legal action in the circuit court at any time during the VAB process.