Feb 2, 2016 By Harry Funk 3 min read

Most Mt. Lebanon commissioners said they favor continuing a property assessment appeals program for 2016.

The municipal budget includes $25,000 for 125 tax appeals at $200 each.

At the commission’s Jan. 25 discussion session, municipal finance director Andrew McCreery presented information about results for 2015 and what types of properties could be targeted in what would be the program’s fourth year.

The basis for 2015 appeals was set at properties meeting the criteria of “50 percent or below the calculated-price home value, given inflation, divided by your assessed value,” McCreery explained.

As a result, the municipality ended up filing appeals on 26 properties with sale dates between 1989 and 2014.

“The increase in assessment value was $4.381 million,” McCreery told commissioners, resulting in about $19,700 extra tax revenue for the municipality.

Going into 2016, five more properties have been identified at less than 50 percent of calculated value, all sold last year. In addition, McCreery said, 69 properties fall within the range of 51 to 55, and 121 from 56 to 60 percent.

Sixty-one of those were sold in 1999 or before, 90 from 2000-09, and 44 from 2010-15.

“Some of those properties might fall off,” McCreery explained, noting that 41 originally were identified using the 2015 criteria.

“I did not do the exhaustive research to know that either we’ve appealed, they’ve appealed, may even have gone to the board of viewers and got a settlement,” he said, referring to the panel that hears tax assessment appeals for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. “That could all be flushed out if the ’16 program was initiated.”

Commissioner Dave Brumfield recommended appealing properties with assessed values at 55 percent or below the calculated price, which is based in part on comparable properties in the municipality.

“I definitely still think this is a necessary and worthwhile program,” he said. “I think we’ve shown that it is not, as some people like to pretend, a ‘newcomers’ tax.’ Less than 10 percent are last year’s sales.”

Brumfield was referring to what affected property owners called the appeals during the first two years of the program. For 2013, only properties sold in 2011-12 and meeting other criteria were considered. The years of sale considered for 2014 were between 2006 and 2010, along with 2013.

“I think we are on the right track, and I think this is kind of what we saw at the beginning,” Kelly Fraasch, commission president, said. “But we knew we needed to make a couple of steps and figure it out in order to get to this point.”

Commissioners John Bendel and Steve Silverman also said they also support continuing the program in 2016. Steve McLean, who joined the commission in January, expressed opposition.

“I’d shift the $25,000 you have budgeted in there and maybe put it toward the deer program,” he said.