Board of Assessors

Minutes of the Board of Assessors Meeting of May 3, 2012 A meeting of the Board of Assessors was held on Thursday, May 3, 2012, in Room 208, 2nd floor of City Hall. The meeting was called to order at 8:15 AM by Chair Marylou Blaisdell. Members Present: Marylou Blaisdell Dominic D'Antoni Kevin Moriarty Assessing Staff Present: Drew LeMay Louise Brown Gary Turgiss Greg Turgiss Cheryl Walley Minutes of the Meeting: The minutes for the meeting held on April 19, 2012 were approved. Abatement Requests Presented: A complete listing of all abatements approved/denied is available in the Assessor’s Office. Two abatements presented by Deputy Assessor Drew LeMay for abutting properties on Amherst Street with the same ownership, were grouped together and the abatement calculated as one. Mr. LeMay explained both of these properties have similar functional issues and he believes they would be sold as one property. The Board asked that this be broken down so they can see what each property's assessment will be when the changes are made. Mr. LeMay agreed and these two were tabled until this information is received by the Board. Appointments: 8:30 - Mrs. Angela Sullivan regarding late filing of Elderly Exemption Application Chair Marylou Blaisdell welcomed Mrs. Sullivan and advised the Board has received all her information regarding the late filing of the application for the Elderly Exemption. Ms. Blaisdell confirmed that according to her letter Mrs. Sullivan's accountant had advised her the deadline to file this application was the same as the deadline to file her income taxes. Mrs. Sullivan said that she had zeroed in on the income tax deadline but by the time she had come in to City Hall to apply it was too late to drop off her paperwork. She told the Board that she now realizes she could have come in anytime between January and April 15th. Ms. Blaisdell asked Ms. Louise Brown, Supervisor of Assessing Administration, if all the paperwork has been received for this application. Ms. Brown advised that at the current time she would say yes but since the application was received late the information has not all been reviewed. She told the Board that if the Board accepts the application late, if any other paperwork is needed the applicant will be contacted and asked to provide whatever is necessary. 1 of 2 MOTION BY Kevin Moriarty to accept the late filing of this Elderly Exemption Application by Mrs. Angela Sullivan due to "accident, mistake or misfortune". SECONDED BY Marylou Blaisdell. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. Ms. Blaisdell continued saying to Mrs. Sullivan that the deadline is set by State of NH law by which the Board of Assessors must abide. Should she have any questions in future years regarding the exemption or filing deadline she should be calling the Assessing Department for clarification. The members of the Board understand the confusion this year surrounding the deadline and are excusing the late filing due to "accident, mistake or misfortune" as allowed by law, but if, in any future year, the application is filed late, the Board will make no exception for the late filing. Mrs. Sullivan acknowledged the importance of filing any future application with the Assessing Department by the deadline. She thanked the Board for their time and left the meeting. Ms. Brown advised the Board members that the Assessing Department now has the schedule for the July bills and she expects to have the July Warrant by the next meeting on May 17th for the Board's signature. Staff Items: Regarding the Humane Society of Greater Nashua's late filing of the A-9 Form, the Board had asked for a written explanation from this organization for the late filing. The Board members had each received a copy of the letter sent by Ms. Jessica Carson, the Director of Finance and Human Resources. This letter explained that the form was filed late due to a human error as they were unaware the deadline had passed. The letter states they have added another email address to which the Assessing Department can send the reminder email and the late filing will not happen again. After some discussion, the Board made the following motion: MOTION BY Kevin Moriarty to accept the late filing of the A-9 form for the property located at 24 Ferry Road, due to "accident, mistake or misfortune". SECONDED BY Marylou Blaisdell. MOTION CARRIED unanimously This year the Board has decided the reason given for the late filing is acceptable due to "accident, mistake or misfortune" however, the organization will be notified that this is the one time a late A-9 form will be accepted. As a courtesy, reminders are emailed by the Nashua Assessing Department to the organizations in Nashua receiving exemptions, but the responsibility ultimately lies with the organization for the timely filing of this form. MOTION BY Marylou Blaisdell to adjourn at 8:42 AM. SECONDED BY Dominic D'Antoni. MOTION CARRIED. Transcribed by Cheryl Walley Department Coordinator 2 of 2