Council bill aims
to ease tax appeals

The fee for contesting assessments
would be waived for some

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By Treena Shapiro
tshapiro@starbulletin.com

Property owners should have an easier time appealing tax assessments if the value of their land increases by more than 10 percent from one year to the next, says City Councilman John Henry Felix.

Felix introduced a bill last week that would waive the $25 fee to appeal real property tax assessments for anyone whose property value increased by more than 10 percent.

Those property owners would also have appeal forms and instructions automatically mailed to them along with the assessment notice, Felix said. Those who see more than a 20 percent increase would be given a detailed explanation of how the property tax was determined.

"I want to make the process for appeals more user-friendly," Felix said. "Many people are discouraged from appealing because of the fee."

If passed, however, the bill would have no affect on the fees for filing an appeal this year, when the assessment value for all taxable properties on the island went up 4.7 percent to $8.9 million for fiscal year 2001-02.

All appeals must be postmarked by today.

Felix's district, East Honolulu to Kailua, saw some of the highest average increases -- up 7.8 percent in East Honolulu and up 7.7 percent from Waimanalo to Waikane.

He said he has heard from several residents whose property values increased by more than 10 percent.

Councilman Duke Bainum, whose district also includes East Honolulu, said a constituent came to his office wondering how the value of his 20-year-old building could rise by 80 percent when the only difference was that it was a year older.

"People are confused and concerned about the large increases, particularly in their business values," he said.

Waiving the appeal fee is not necessary, Bainum said, but extending the appeal deadline this year is.

He said he has been working with the mayor to extend the deadline by two months.

"I just don't think we've had adequate time to reassure and explain to the public how those assessments were arrived at," he said.

Mayor Jeremy Harris said, however, that while he would be happy to extend the deadline, Jan. 15 is the date set in the ordinance, and it is up to the Council to change that.

As vice chairman of the Council Budget Committee, Felix said he plans to call another informational hearing next week to try to get more clarification on how the assessments were reached.

"I think we just need to explain to people what happened to the prices," he said, adding that the formula for determining the property values was not clear to him, either.

"If the city can prove these are the right values, so be it."