A bureaucratic mix-up and some fast backpedaling
From the Minneapolis, MN
Star Tribune:
Too many zeros add up to big problems in Carver County
Eric Mattson was not surprised that the small vacant lot he bought last year near the shores of Lake Waconia was increasing in value.
What shocked him was the $189 million market value the Carver County assessor's office came up with for the 55- by 80-foot lot, making it the most valuable property in Waconia and possibly the county.
"It was such an obvious mistake," said Mattson, 41, who was looking at a property tax bill of $2.5 million. "It was over the top. It was very funny."
But the fun didn't stop there:
But no one is laughing at the assessor's office, where the problem started. Neither is anyone at the Carver County Board, the city of Waconia or the Waconia School District.
Those three entities -- which were counting on the $2.5 million in increased property tax collections -- now face the daunting task of raising taxes or cutting budgets to make up for the shortfall.
And what the h&^% happened?
Lundgren said the trouble began in August when a clerk went into Mattson's file to change the designation of the property, at 233 Lake St. E., from homestead to non-homestead to reflect its change in status after its sale.
The clerk filled in the $18,900 proposed valuation, but then mistakenly hit the key to exit the program. The computer added four zeros to fill out the nine numerical spaces required by the software, thus indicating the value was $189,000,000.
Increase by a factor of 10,000
I am very surprised that the three entities didn't suspect something when their property tax base jumped by $2.5 million. That sure would have caught my attention. Instead they just made plans to spend it all. Wonder how they will fare in the next election...
Posted by DaveH at December 7, 2007 10:48 PM