Bill Would Create a County-Wide System to Streamline Property Assessments, Save Millions
Assemblyman Vince Mazzeo on Thursday proposed legislation to bring property tax relief to Atlantic County by creating a shared, county-wide system for property tax assessments, a move that has already enabled Gloucester County residents to save millions per year.
“When I was Mayor of Northfield, I became keenly aware of the complex problems that residents of Atlantic County face, including the incredible property tax burden confounding all of our families,” said Mazzeo (D-Atlantic). “I ran for the Assembly on a pledge to help bring real relief to our residents and I think this is a great starting point.”
Mazzeo’s bill would expand the 2009 “Property Tax Assessment Reform Act” to include Atlantic County as part of a pilot program taking part in a county-based real property assessment system. Under the pilot program, all property would be reassessed every three years using county personnel instead of expensive consultants, keeping assessed values true to market values and eliminating the need for more expensive mass reappraisals.
Currently, only Gloucester County is authorized to take part in the pilot program. The pilot program is already producing a saving of $2.3 million dollars a year for Gloucester taxpayers by creating a countywide tax assessor’s office to remove the duplicitous and unnecessary burden on individual municipalities
“By expanding the program to Atlantic County, we can save taxpayers millions a year and streamline assessments so that every town gets an identical and fair process,” added Mazzeo. “Atlantic County is an ideal candidate for this program because of Atlantic City’s unique status as the only municipality in the state where casino gaming is permitted, resulting in special valuation problems for a sizable portion of the county ratable base.”