GMASS says NO GLITCH in tax assessments

The Summerville News reported that a possible glitch or some error may have been to blame for the inaccurate Chattooga County tax assessments.

AllOnGeorgia reached out to GMASS to see what the glitch or error was:

“To our knowledge, there is no “glitch in the system”. We have spoken with the assessor’s office, and they are not aware of a glitch either. Please share any information regarding this matter with Mrs. Edgeman (Chief Appraiser) or myself,” Stan King, CEO of GMASS said. 

Chattooga County enlisted the help of Georgia Mass Appraisal Services & Solutions, Inc (GMASS) gmass.net from Norwood Georgia in the recent assessments. The DATA was collected by the Assessors office within a two year time frame. The cost for GMASS’s work was $69,250.

According to King, “GMASS assisted Chattooga County with the current 2023 assessments. The average increase from the prior year assessments was around 37%. Not all properties saw an increase, most went up while others may have seen a decrease in their assessment. The purpose for the change in assessments was to bring their tax digest into compliance (appraise all properties at fair market value). This is a state requirement every year. The 2022 digest was found to be out of compliance.

 If a taxpayer does not agree that the current assessment is a representation of fair market value, we would encourage them to appeal within the 45-day appeal period. You may file an appeal in person or by mail. I would encourage any interested in filing an appeal to speak with their local appraiser (in the assessor’s office) They will be able to go over their property record card to ensure that the factual information is current and to address valuation concerns. Once all appeals are filed, the county (along with GMASS) will be reviewing all the appeals to see if there may be adjustments warranted by the appeals filed. If so, a new adjusted assessment notice will be sent to the taxpayer/appellant in which they will have 30 days to appeal the new assessment. If there are no adjustments found to warrant a decreased assessment, the appeal will be forward to the clerk of court for them to schedule a hearing with the local county board of equalization, arbitration, hearing officer, or superior court.”