On Wednesday night the Eden Town Board set a public hearing for Local Law 3-2021, establishing the office of a single appointed assessor pursuant to Real Property Tax Law, §328. The public hearing will be on October 27, 2021 at 7:20pm. The legal notice will be posted in the Town’s legal paper, The Hamburg Sun. I would like to give some factual information as to why this decision is being considered. First, two out of the three current Eden elected assessors support a decision in favor of moving to an appointed assessor.
The Town of Eden will be the last town to move from a board of elected assessors to an appointed assessor in Erie County. In fact, less than 6% of NYS towns remain with an elected board of assessors. That is less than 60/908 NYS towns (https://www.tax.ny.gov/research/property/assess/training/qualcert/threememberbd.htm). There are many reasons that towns move in this direction which I will highlight but the main reason is that it is good and efficient government. It allows for a consistent approach to assessing as well as a longer term of office (6 years vs. 4 years) which assists with qualification and continuing education. An appointed Assessor has a mandated requirement of continuing education where this is optional for elected assessors. There is an overall savings to the town which results in more efficient practices.
This decision has been contemplated for years and as mentioned earlier has the support of the majority of the current Eden Town Board of Assessors. If residents have questions or concerns in regard to this or anything else pertaining to our town, the Eden Town Board is always available to discuss.