BEAVER FALLS — The idea of a switch to one assessor wasn't well received by town of Croghan residents at an informational session on the topic Wednesday night.
"It's more of a dictatorship," Croghan's David Stevens said of a sole assessorship. "Three heads are sometimes better than one."
Mr. Stevens also complained that the presentation provided the advantages of a single, appointed assessor only without citing any advantages for an elected, three-person Board of Assessors, as the town has now.
Janet LaSell of the state Office of Real Property Services, who made the presentation, said three-person boards typically haven't been as successful as single assessors, although there are exceptions.
"We want to do our own thing," countered Mr. Stevens. "This is Croghan."
About half the towns in New York had elected assessing boards in 1983, while only 16 percent of them had elected assessors in 2006, Ms. LaSell said.
Many towns that have switched to appointed assessors have done so because of difficulty finding qualified people willing to do the job and get the necessary training, she said.
Appointed assessors would also provide a more consistent approach to assessing, be less likely to succumb to political pressure, make the job more of a full-time career and, therefore, provide a more equitable distribution of the tax burden, Ms. LaSell said.
While the switch could be put to a townwide vote, the move also may be made by majority vote of the Town Council. The council will have to decide whether it wants to consider a change, Supervisor John G. Jones said. No specific plan of action or vote has been set.
The lack of a provision in state law to switch back to elected assessors after moving to an appointed one didn't set well with some of the 60 people in attendance.
"You can't go back," said John M. Campany, Croghan. "This is stupid."
Several speakers contended that people in neighboring towns are upset about their assessments, done by an appointed assessor. Some also suggested that the state's perceived push toward appointed assessors is a ploy to suck more tax money from the town.
Ms. LaSell explained that assessed values impact only local — not state — taxes, and that the only goal is to make sure taxes are split equitably.
"It's really the spending that drives taxes, not the assessments," said William M. Vargulick, appointed assessor for the towns of Denmark, Champion and Rutland.
Mr. Jones said the intent of the session was to have an open discussion on the topic, since all but two of Lewis County's 17 towns — Croghan and Lowville — have single, appointed assessors.
In 2001, town residents rejected a proposed single-assessor switch in a referendum.
The 21/2-hour meeting Wednesday also included discussion on the merits of a townwide reassessment.
Several residents complained about the last reassessment, done in 2001. However, Lowville Supervisor Arleigh D. Rice and Ronald Terrillion, chairman of Lowville's Board of Assessors, said the one they did last year went well.
