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Thursday, October 8, 2009
Green introduces bill to revamp BRT

As promised, City Councilman Bill Green this morning introduced legislation that would revamp the Board of Revision of Taxes. Though the legislative process is now officially underway, any ultimate changes would not take place until and unless they were approved by voters on the May 2010 ballot.

Although Council leaders are supporting the bill, it's still unclear where Mayor Nutter stands. Green's legislation differs in some respects from an outline Nutter laid out earlier this week of what matters would need to be included for any legislation that he would support.

Here's some of what Green's bill calls for:

*Abolishing the BRT and replacing it with two new entities, the Office of Property Assessment, which would make property assessments beginning in 2011, and the Board of Property Assessment Appeals.

*The Office of Property Assessment would be headed by a Chief Assessment Officer, who must be a certified assessor or appraiser, and who will be appointed to a four-year term by the mayor and subject to Council approval. The chief assessment officer would establish rules and regulations for the property assessment process.

*The Board of Property Appeals would begin hearing appeals of property assessments in 2011. A seven-member nominating panel would be created to put forward three names for each board opening. The panel would include one appointee each of the City Council president, the mayor, the Greater Philadelphia Association of Realtors, the local chapter of the Assessors' Association of Pennsylvania, the Building Industry Association of Pennyslvania, the Housing Association of Delaware Valley and the Philadelphia Bar Association. The board members, all required to be city residents, would be appointed to five-year terms. Of the board members, two must have 10 or more years experience as certified real estate assessors; two must have at least 10 years' experience as attorneys with residential or commercial valuation expertise, and one must be a homeowners or commercial property owner in Philadelphia.

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Posted by Marcia Gelbart @ 11:44 AM  Permalink | 8 comments
Comments   
Posted 12:44 PM, 10/08/2009
CleanupPhilly
I disagree that the CAO should be subject to Council approval. Council approval is what created this monster. That's why I say this is faux reform in the Green bill, dressed up as the new kid in town. You have to let an assessor be independent.
Posted 12:49 PM, 10/08/2009
CleanupPhilly
The characteristics of the nominating panel sound like what should be required of the Board. The Board itself should be required to be composed of similarly qualified, apolitical members.
Posted 12:51 PM, 10/08/2009
CleanupPhilly
What specific prohibitions in the legislation are there to prohibit quid pro quo and patronage?
Posted 08:19 PM, 10/08/2009
rabbit23
i've looked at green's bill - he took nutter's bill from four years ago, crossed off nutter's name - and put in his own. why does the inky keep writing about green like he's doing something bold when he has yet to have a new idea?
Posted 09:52 PM, 10/08/2009
Sylvia Jones
Nutters bill, for which he got no support, created a three tier process, had the mayor appoint and not a nominating panel. The Board proposed by Green has specific requirements described by heard in the hall. The experts who will give the mayor a list of nominees to choose from take politics out of the process. It is like the above posters don't know how to read. Green is the only person on council with the stones to stand up to his colleagues, the mayor and everyone else who needs to be told the truth. He sued the mayor and won for goodness sake. Give the guy a break and pay attention to the facts, not Nutter spin.
Posted 10:07 PM, 10/08/2009
Sylvia Jones
AND the mayor endorsed Green's bill saying it met the foundational principles he laid out on Tuesday.
Posted 07:25 AM, 10/10/2009
gdw
There is no perfect world. I want these boards to be transparent. If they don't do what they are supposed to do, we should have a way of getting rid of them without a charter change. Does the bill remove workers from the School District of Philadelphia's payroll?
Posted 01:40 PM, 10/14/2009
concerns25
At least we are not New Jersey!!!!!
8 comments
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The Philadelphia Inquirer's Jeff Shields, Marcia Gelbart, and Patrick Kerkstra take you inside Philadelphia's City Hall.
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