Nassau Legislature approves Mangano's assessment changes

The Nassau County Legislature, with only Republican legislators present, voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the first steps in County Executive Edward Mangano's plan to end chronic overassessment of property in the county.

The change is meant to speed up the processing of commercial appeals, which account for about 80 percent of the $100 million in refunds the county pays out annually to owners who say they are overassessed. Mangano said he expects the change to save the county $25 million this year and $91.6 million next year.

Mangano said he was committed to fixing the overall system by improving how the Department of Assessment calculates the taxable value of properties and how the Assessment Review Commission processes all appeals.

Mark Hamer, a real estate executive who heads a team studying the assessment system and recommending changes to Mangano, said Tuesday's action was "a good first step," toward eventual reform.

The eight-member Democratic minority of the legislature boycotted the meeting because the bill had not been filed a week before the meeting as legally required.

The leader of the 11-member Republican majority, Legis. Peter Schmitt of Massapequa, said the bill was filed six hours late, and he would ensure the legality of the measure by having it voted on again at the next scheduled meeting of the legislature on July 19.

"I want taxpayers to know, I want [bond] rating agencies to know, I want everyone to know that we have the votes to pass this measure and reform the assessment system," Schmitt said.

Schmitt said Mangano had wanted the bill approved before a scheduled private meeting Wednesday between county officials and the financial watchdog Nassau County Interim Finance Authority to review Mangano's plans to close projected multimillion-dollar budget deficits.

A spokesman for Minority Leader Diane Yatauro (D-Glen Cove) said the legislative meeting was "a charade to impress NIFA."

The measure would require commercial owners who want to challenge their assessment to file a certified appraisal with the Assessment Review Commission by Oct. 1, or submit a good-faith counteroffer with some documentation to support their claim.

The commission will have 150 days to accept the offer or make a counteroffer. If the property owner failed to provide a certified appraisal or documentation to support his claim, the commission could dismiss his appeal. A commercial property owner has 30 days to accept the county's counteroffer or go to court. In either case, the county will reduce the assessment to its counteroffer while the case is argued in court.

If the county's right to dismiss a protest is challenged and found by a court to be unenforceable, then the county would institute a $4,000 fine when commercial owners do not submit certified appraisals or bona fide offers.