Fitzgerald tosses reassessments; county will use 2002 data

New Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald announced this afternoon he will not use new court-ordered property assessment numbers.

That means Pittsburgh property owners can ignore the new assessment notices they received last month, Mr. Fitzgerald said at a news conference this afternoon.

The county instead has certified the use of the 2002 values for this year, Mr. Fitzgerald said, and will continue to push for a statewide assessment system that he thinks would be more fair.

His action appears to defy a court order from Judge R. Stanton Wettick Jr., who ordered the reassessment. In all previous meetings to discuss assessment, the judge has been adamant about using the new numbers this year to set property tax rates for the city, the county and all other municipalities and school districts.

Asked if he was worried about going to jail for defying a court order, Mr. Fitzgerald said he believes he is following state law.

"What I'm worried about is taxpayers losing their homes," he said.

Mr. Fitzgerald was surrounded by two dozen Pittsburgh, county and state leaders -- Democrats and Republicans -- when he made the announcement.

Like his predecessor, Dan Onorato, Mr. Fitzgerald said it is unfair that counties surrounding Allegheny haven't reassessed property in decades.

Mr. Fitzgerald said his action would meet the state requirement that the county certify and send out to taxing bodies all assessment numbers by Jan. 15. Because the assessment has not yet been completed -- only Pittsburgh and Mount Oliver residents have received certified numbers thus far -- he concluded that the 2002 numbers should continue to be used.

All informal hearings on new assessment numbers are ending, he said. People who are scheduled for hearings on their new assessment numbers need not show up for those hearings, he said.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl was among those appearing with Mr. Fitzgerald and backing his decision to continue using 2002 assessment numbers.

But Mr. Ravenstahl said he was continuing to recommend that city residents file formal appeals of their new assessments in case Judge Wettick and appeals courts rule against Mr. Fitzgerald's efforts.

Mr. Fitzgerald said new letters using the old assessment numbers are being sent today.

He said he was pleased that Judge Wettick was considering a proposal from the city school district to put off using the new numbers until 2013, but he wants to end the whole process immediately.

Judge Wettick said earlier today that he will rule on the district's request at a status conference set for 2 p.m. Tuesday.

Lawyer Paul N. Lalley, representing the city public schools, wrote in a letter delivered today that using the just-released 2012 property values would make it difficult for the school board to set an accurate millage rate for this year.

Too many successful appeals could dramatically reduce the total tax base -- which is used to determine millage rates and tax bills -- and leave the already financially strapped district short of funds, Mr. Lalley said.

"This does seem to be a serious problem," Judge Wettick said. "We may have to move [application of the new assessments] to the following year."

That delay until January 2013 would give all residents time to request both informal hearings and make formal appeals of their new property values.

Judge Wettick made the comment at a status conference to review progress on the $11 million reassessment project.

First published on January 5, 2012 at 11:38 am