Gonsalves Hosts Property Tax Grievance Forum

Legislator Norma Gonsalves (R-East Meadow) of the 15th Legislative District, which includes East Meadow and portions of North Merrick and North Bellmore, held a forum about property tax grievance assistance and advice on Wednesday evening at the to address resident’s concerns about the process. Representatives from both the Nassau County Assessment Review Committee and the Assessor’s Office were present to answer questions.

Helen McQueen, of the Assessment Review Committee, explained that it is every resident's right to grieve their assessment, which is what property taxes are based on. She gave an overview of the online process and detailed some of the main functions that are critical to pay attention to while filing your objection.

“When you look at the assessment, most people don’t know what it stands for,” McQueen said. “It is much easier to look at the market value. This is what the county says I could sell my property for if I put it on the market. I can understand by looking at that and see if I should file a grievance.”

With the impeding snowfall,  the library decided that they were closing early but leaving the meeting room open for the forum. Gonsalves said that “there was no way I was not going to be here.” She believes that this forum is vital for local residents of the community to learn how the grievance process works.

“I thought it was very helpful,” said Westbury resident and patron Ellen Braunstein. “In fact, I had come one other time and I thought this was more thorough. I really appreciate it.”

Though most Nassau County residents should have received their assessments already, many at the meeting did not get the information in the mail. McQueen said that it is best to call the Assessor’s Office or check the county website to find out what the assessment for a house was, since the process of grievance began Jan. 1 and ends on Mar. 1.

Certain factors can easily affect the value of a home, including proximity to a park, school, main road, commercial businesses and golf courses, and it is critical to list them on your grievance so that the assessment committee can easily identify the factors that contribute to home value.

Residents had many vital questions, including one about using a third party to file a grievance and if that gives someone a better chance of gaining the committee's approval.

“It doesn’t sway us in the least,” McQueen stated in regards to this questions. “You do not need to use anybody. There is no special trick to filling out the forms.”

The County representatives and Gonsalves fielded several more questions at the end of the session, leaving some residents somewhat disappointed with the system as a whole.

“It as helpful in terms of filling out the forms so that you don’t need to go through someone else instead,” said East Meadow resident Haipi Cai. “However, there are so many unanswered questions and questions that cannot be answered still. You never get answers in terms of the property taxes. That part I am not satisfied with.”