VAB Backup Documents 07/30/2019 Item # 9A (VAB Minutes 01-14-2019) January 14, 2019
TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEETING OF THE
VALUE ADJUSTMENT BOARD
Naples, Florida, January 14, 2019
LET IT BE REMEMBERED, that the Value Adjustment Board,
in and for the County of Collier, met on this date at 9:00 a.m., in
REGULAR SESSION in Building "F" of the Government Complex,
East Naples, Florida, with the following members present:
VAB MEMBERS PRESENT:
Burt Saunders, County Commission Member
Andy Solis, County Commission Member
Rebecca Earney, Homestead Citizen Member
Erick Carter, School Board Member
Nace Cohen, Business Citizen Member - absent
COUNSEL TO THE BOARD
Holly E. Cosby, Esq.
REPRESENTING THE PROPERTY APPRAISER'S OFFICE
Jennifer Blaje
Annabel Ybaceta
Jack Redding
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CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: The Value Adjustment Board will
please come to order.
MS. COSBY: There we go. Got it. Now we have a hot mic.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Commissioner Solis, would you
lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance.
(The Pledge of Allegiance was recited in unison.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Would you call the roll.
MS. COSBY: Yes, I will. At this point, if everybody could go
ahead and just state their name for the record. And, for the record,
I'm Holly Cosby, Value Adjustment Board counsel.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: I'm Erick Carter,
Collier County School Board member, District 4.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Burt Saunders, member of the
Collier County Commission, District 3.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Andy Solis, Collier County
Commission, District 2.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Rebecca Earney,
homestead member.
MS. COSBY: Thank you all for being here.
I will advise the Board prior to moving forward that quorum has
been attained pursuant to Florida Statute 194.015 and, additionally, I
have reviewed the affidavit of publication and find it sufficient to
proceed.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. Are there any changes to
the agenda?
MS. COSBY: I have none.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: If not, we need a motion to
approve today's again.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: So moved.
SCHOOLBOARD MEMBER CARTER: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
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HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: The next item on the agenda on
the approval of the minutes from August 6th, 2018. Any changes or
corrections to the minutes? If not, is there a motion to approve?
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: I so motion.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Second.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Motion passes.
And we're into general business, and I'll turn to you. I think I'll
just let you go through the agenda.
MS. COSBY: Absolutely.
We have updates from the Department of Revenue and/or the
Florida legislature. So I would go to 3A1, A. For the Department
of Revenue and property tax oversight there have been hurricane
abatement forms, and that's for tax abatement for damage to
homestead property from Hurricanes Matthew, Irma, and Hermine,
and those forms were issued by the Department of Revenue. There
is a -- there was a PTO bulletin with regards to substantial
completions and qualifying improvements, and then there was just a
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status on Florida Constitutional amendments, but none of these things
affect the Value Adjustment Board as far as the Board's operation
goes. It's more application of things during the process. But we
have seen none of the issues arise from any of these changes.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: As we go through the agenda, if
there's anybody in the public that wants to speak, just raise your
hand, and I'll recognize you.
MS. COSBY: I will advise the Board when we get to the
public comment portion in Section 4, we do have a request to speak.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: If there are any other items you
want to speak on, just interrupt and let me know.
That doesn't require any action from the Board?
MS. COSBY: No, sir. And then I'm going to go to 3A2.
There is a property tax exemption bill that is just in its infancy, so it
has not been passed. It's just being discussed. And that would be
House Bill 51 for 2019. And that has to do with additional property
tax exemption, and it is part of your agenda packet. But, again, it's
only in discussions. It has not been passed. So at this point --
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Is this something that you think
we should turn over to the county's lobbying team? Is there
something in this bill that's going to be problematic that we need to --
MS. COSBY: No, no.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: -- keep an eye on?
MS. COSBY: No. It has to do with additional exemptions.
And I want to get to it to make sure that I speak on it accurately. I
want to say it has to do with widows and widowers.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: I'm sorry. Say it again.
MS. COSBY: I believe that it has to do with widows and
widowers, an additional exemption. No, it's nothing that I find
concerning.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Any questions, comments?
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(No response.)
MS. COSBY: All right. Increases property tax exemption for
residential who are widows, widowers, blind, or totally and
permanently disabled.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. All right. If there are no
questions or comments, let's move on to the next item.
MS. COSBY: That would be 3B, correspondence from
petitioners. As just informational items -- and, of course, today we
have Mr. Suarez here, so I'm sure he'll speak somewhat on his
concerns. But we did receive, on B 1, from Mr. Howell. There was
no petition filed. These are the issues that arose that we had
complaints or concerns lodged by property owners.
So Mr. Howell, he had no petitions filed, but his issues, in
reviewing that, were with the Property Appraiser, not with VAB
function or VAB operations in any way.
With regards to Mr. Davies, he was not satisfied with the
outcome of his Value Adjustment Board hearing and wanted the
Board to review his information over again. I provided him a memo.
It's a three- or four-page memorandum. And it outlines -- it may be
even longer than that, but it outlines that there's no such second bite
at the apple, so to speak, in Collier County, and that his true next step
would be with the Circuit Court --
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay.
MS. COSBY: -- if he was dissatisfied with the outcome of his
Value Adjustment Board hearing.
And then Mr. Suarez has a lengthy history in contacting the
Value Adjustment Board, and I'm sure he'll, again, speak to it, No. 4,
but I will advise the Board that initially his issues were with the
Property Appraiser, actually, and not with the Value Adjustment
Board. I did advise the Value Adjustment Board, the VAB, on that
during our organizational meeting, that that's where it had started.
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We did respond to Mr. Suarez. He did not have a complaint at that
time or a petition at that time.
He had not filed one with 2017 VAB. He just had -- it was
some hearsay and things he had heard from other petitioners.
So -- but then he did file a Value Adjustment Board petition in 2018,
and he prevailed in his petition; his appeal was actually granted. But
then there's quite a bit of back and forth between the Value
Adjustment Board and Mr. Suarez after that on some Value
Adjustment Board website, et cetera.
But at this point, to my knowledge, Mr. Suarez's issues mainly
are with the Property Appraiser, as I read what he's provided here and
what he's going to be talking about today. Again, I'll let him speak
more on what it is that -- what it is that he needs to discuss with the
Board further from his appeal being granted.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. Mr. Suarez, did you
want to come up to the microphone?
MR. SUAREZ: Certainly.
MS. COSBY: We're a little premature. We've still got 3C,
which is board member vacancy.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Oh, okay. Sorry about that.
MS. COSBY: Okay. And I just want to make sure that we get
that on the record still that when we discussed the vacancy of the
alternate homestead member that was pointed by the Board of County
Commissioners, Commissioner Saunders, you wanted to continue to
have that position not vacated but filled. So I'm not sure if the Board
of County Commissioners is still seeking an alternate, but we still
have that vacancy, and we're looking to get that filled.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay.
MS. COSBY: But at this point Ms. Earney shows up, and we're
very pleased and grateful to have her here.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Are we ready for Mr. Suarez?
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MS. COSBY: Yes. We're on to Item 4, which is public
comment. Mr. Suarez, before you speak, I would like to go ahead
and read into the record, "The Value Adjustment Board policy
provides the opportunity at this point in the meeting to address the
Board concerning any matter on this agenda or concerning the Collier
County Value Adjustment Board process.
"The Board will not consider subject matter of any public
comment which is provided with the intention of appealing any
portion of any Special Magistrate recommendation or Value
Adjustment Board final decision. As pursuant to Florida Statute
Section 194.036, the appropriate relief at this time would be through
the circuit court. The maximum time allotted per speaker is three
minutes."
And I will go ahead and start that clock once Mr. Suarez
approaches.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Good afternoon.
MR. SUAREZ: Good afternoon. How you doing?
MS. COSBY: Afternoon.
MR. SUAREZ: I just prepared a statement. I'll read it and
kind of go over it.
My name is Carl Suarez. I was one of the VAB petitioners at
this year's VAB hearing.
I just wanted to present a brief summary of my experiences and
suggestions for process improvement.
For my hearing, the magistrate handed down a favorable ruling
with my property being reduced approximately 30 percent to the level
I requested.
During the process, I discovered significant errors -- areas of
improvement. A few of the problems include, one, the Property
Appraiser's been violating the rights of citizens for decades by
denying them the right to use the Property Appraiser's own
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assessments against them.
I have letters from both the general counsel for the State Senate
and the general counsel for the Department of Revenue that clearly
state this denial is illegal and a violation of taxpayers' rights, yet this
issue was still left unaddressed this year nearly six months after they
were informed in writing by both these authorities.
Two, the Property Appraiser is in violation of state laws that
require them to document their mass appraisal process and Sunshine
laws to make this information available to the public. They were
informed of these violations nearly a year ago. It is my
understanding this problem is also unaddressed and yet to be
corrected.
During the discovery process, the Property Appraiser did not
respond to my public-information request or minimally responded.
The Property Appraiser is selectively redrawing the effective
property boundaries for tax purposes of selected properties in
long-established neighborhoods, such as the Moorings, without
change, documentation, clear explanation of any sort or any new
measurement or survey.
During my hearing, the Property Appraiser tried to defend their
significant errors in their mass appraisal valuations by using
properties that were clearly poor comparables when excellent
comparables were available, which I presented in my hearing.
Furthermore, the valuation of those poor comps in many cases
disagreed with the roll and online valuations by greater than a
100 percent. In the private sector, this is called fraudulent
accounting by rigging up a second set of numbers.
Despite the fact that the corrections in my property valuation
required a change in their mass appraisal models for properties that
are in my neighborhood, nothing will be done to refund the money to
most of those affected by those errors, as the Property Appraiser will
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simply issue a refund to me for this year and not alter their flawed
methods or results.
This is the equivalent of discovering an accounting error for one
customer that affects a large group of customers but designed to issue
only one refund and pocket the rest of the funds.
This is a particularly salient point as, for example, in 2017, it
appears -- that appears to be a down year, I found a dozen examples
of double digit errors in reductions by the magistrate.
If you take my case, for example, this propagates into hundreds
of properties affected by each magistrate's reduction due to the nature
of the mass-appraisal process where refunds are not being issued, not
taking into account the many cases that do not come to the surface
because of the illegal practices to restrict access to information or
denial of evidence.
These points I have made illustrate a sample of the problems I've
discovered. It's a local problem that is costing Collier County
taxpayers potentially hundreds of millions of dollars in errors
annually. Something needs to be done.
Regards, Carl.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Did you provide a written copy of
that?
MR. SUAREZ: Yeah, I did, and I read it quickly because three
minutes, I didn't --
MS. COSBY: Actually, Mr. Suarez, you were right at just
about three minutes. That's fantastic with the three minutes there.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Thank you.
MR. SUAREZ: Okay.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Is there -- what is the -- first of all,
what should we be doing with that? Should we be providing that to
the Property Appraiser?
MS. COSBY: Yes. The property -- do we have
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representatives from the Property Appraiser's Office today? Okay.
I'm hopeful that they've probably taken some notes from Mr. Suarez's
statement. Do you all have a copy of what Mr. Suarez printed? If
not, we can be sure to get that to your office. But aside from that,
the Value Adjustment Board is an independent entity. They can't
control the Property Appraiser.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Understood. I'm just wondering
what would be appropriate for this board to do. Would it be
appropriate for us to direct this letter to be delivered to the County
Commission as well, or do we just give it to the Property Appraiser,
and that's the end of it?
MS. COSBY: We provide it to the Property Appraiser, make
sure they're aware of it. Mr. Suarez has been in full contact. Are
you still discussing with the Department of Revenue, or are you --
MR. SUAREZ: Yes.
MS. COSBY: Okay. So he still has -- he has been, and I will
say I am relieved that your issues are not with the Value Adjustment
Board, because if there were some, that's what we have control over.
That would be within our jurisdiction, and that would be what I
would discuss with the Board is how we control things. But
hopefully Mr. Suarez's concerns, hopefully, if there are any that are
valid, I mean, at this point it's just allegations, but if any of that is
valid, hopefully the Property Appraiser will take those --
MR. SUAREZ: Can I add just one point.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: If you'll come to the microphone,
just one more minute.
MR. SUAREZ: There are a couple --
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Wait till you get to the
microphone.
MR. SUAREZ: Okay. There are a couple points that you
might go through there that may be procedural type things that would
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be instructions for the magistrate, such as, you know, the point about
being able to use assessments and have two different sets of numbers,
you know, where they're arguing against me that it's worth twice as
much when they say it's only worth half as much on their own
assessment.
So, you know, those kinds of issues, I think, are things where,
you know, it could be filtered out in the VAB hearing and you
tell -- you tell the Property Appraiser if you're going to present
evidence, you've got to make sure it agrees with your valuations, and
then also, you know, some of the things like where, you know, they
were redrawing property boundaries, you know, without -- you know,
they need to provide an explanation, you know, that they're
redrawing property boundaries. There's no documentation for it.
So that lack of transparency, I think, is something that they -- that
you guys can at least point out, and making sure they're consistent in
the hearings, so...
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Thank you.
MS. COSBY: Mr. Suarez, what I will tell you is, just so that
you -- because there were some times when I was reading some of
your emails that it's possible that you don't have a full understanding
of the entire process.
So what I will convey to you, and I think is probably going to be
helpful in you having a clarification on this, is that when special
magistrates are trained, they get trained from the Department of
Revenue, and there's Department of Revenue training every year that
the department sets out, and it's actually stated in the rules and the
law that it's inappropriate for the Value Adjustment Boards to train
the special magistrates.
Even if I have an orientation, it has to be based on local things
that are just not set forth in the rules. But, otherwise, the
Department of Revenue has been tasked by legislature to train the
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special magistrates and set forth that training.
So if there's things that are lacking in the training that you
believe special magistrates need to understand, definitely convey
those to the property oversight department at the Department of
Revenue and, I mean, they respond to everything.
MR. SUAREZ: Yeah. I don't understand exactly what all the
boundaries are --
MS. COSBY: Yes.
MR. SUAREZ: -- between the different groups.
MS. COSBY: Sure.
MR. SUAREZ: I'm just pointing out that that might be an area,
but I wasn't sure.
MS. COSBY: No, absolutely. So I want to make sure that I
respond to you --
MR. SUAREZ: Okay.
MS. COSBY: -- in any of the areas that you bring up this
afternoon, and one of those is training of magistrates. I don't want
you to think that the VAB is taking a blind eye to any of your
concerns. It's more I want you to understand when you suggest
something, where that actually needs to go.
So special magistrates are trained every year through the
Department of Revenue training, and you can access that on the
Department of Revenue's website under their Property Oversight
Department, and anybody can access it. It's all public.
And you can actually take this training, and that may also give
you a better oversight and understanding of the Value Adjustment
Board process and just what everybody's roles are in the process.
And when you have an issue, where -- who can fix that problem,
so to speak. And then at that point, if you find any of that training
lacking, certainly reach out to the Department of Revenue and tell
them.
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MR. SUAREZ: And great. No, I just wanted to get this
information on the record but, you know, I assumed that most of it
was going to be handled through the Department of Revenue, but if
there was overlap, at least you had the information.
MS. COSBY: Absolutely.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Thank you, Mr. Suarez.
All right. We'll move on then.
MS. COSBY: Do we have any other members of the public
here today to comment?
(No response.)
MS. COSBY: Seeing none, we'll close the public comment.
MS. COSBY: Moving on to Item 5, VAB members and/or staff
comment. Do the Value Adjustment Board members have anything
that they'd like to discuss or add today?
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: I'll start on the left.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: I have no comment.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: I have no comments.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: No comments.
MS. COSBY: Ms. Earney?
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: None.
MS. COSBY: Martha, do you have anything?
THE CLERK: (Witness shakes head.)
MS. COSBY: I have none as well.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. Then on to Item 6,
adoption of special magistrates' recommendations.
MS. COSBY: Yes. I just want to advise before we adopt all
of those, we do need a motion for that. I've reviewed every single
one to make sure --
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Do you need a separate motion for
each one or --
MS. COSBY: You can go ahead and do it all at once.
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CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. Why don't you explain
what the five items are real quickly, and then we'll take a motion.
MS. COSBY: These are the different types of appeals that we
have received this year in the Value Adjustment Board through the
process, and we've got homestead exemption petitions, portability
transfer petitions, wholly exemption petitions, tangible personal
property, and then residential and commercial value petitions or
appeals. And every petition that was heard that has a
recommendation issued today for you-all to consider and to adopt, I
have reviewed every single one. I can advise that they are legally
compliant.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. Let's see if there are any
questions or comments from the Board on any of these five items.
All right. There's no public comment on those. Then we need a
motion to approve the five items.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: I'll motion to
approve.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. We have a motion and
second. Any questions?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It passes.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: We'll move on to Item No. 7,
adoption of certification of the Value Adjustment Board. This is the
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tangible personal property.
MS. COSBY: Yes, sir. This is just the certification for the tax
roll through the end of the year, the end of the VAB session, once all
petitions have been heard. And the first one is for the tangible
personal property.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. If there are no
questions, then I'll entertain a motion to approve.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: So moved.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It passes unanimously.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Item No. 8, adoption of
certification of the Value Adjustment Board real property.
MS. COSBY: Same, except this is real property and not
tangible.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Any questions, comments?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Then we need a motion.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: So moved.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
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CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It passes unanimously.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Number 9, adoption of tax impact
of the Value Adjustment Board.
MS. COSBY: Yes, sir. That will be Exhibit 9. That is the
impact overall of what the Value Adjustment Board process had on
our taxes in Collier County.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. Any questions from the
board members?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Then we'll entertain a motion to
approve.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: So moved.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It passes unanimously.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Item No. 10, this is to permit the
Value Adjustment Board counsel to review VAB website to ensure
compliance and consistency.
MS. COSBY: Correct. We need a motion. I just -- during
the process if at any point I need to check it to make sure that all of
our links work, that the website for the Value Adjustment Board
contains the informational -- information -- statute information that it
needs to contain pursuant to law, I check that.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Do you have to ensure compliance
with disabled Americans?
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MS. COSBY: No, I do not have an ADA requirement. I have
a content requirement.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. All right. Are there any
questions from the Board?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Then we need a motion.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Make a motion.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. A second.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Second.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All in favor, signify by saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All opposed?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It passes unanimously.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: And now we need to set the date
for the 2019 Value Adjustment Board organizational meeting. And
you're looking at Monday, August 12th at 9 a.m.
MS. COSBY: We are.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Yeah. Let me ask you a question.
Does it have to be in August?
MS. COSBY: It does not, but it should be. It should be close,
because the TRIMs come out in August.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: The only reason I'm asking is the
County Commission generally takes the month of August off.
MS. COSBY: You recess in August.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: So we're typically -- that's a month
that we're not meeting, and this is right in the middle of that. Can
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we do this -- can it be at the -- in July? Or is that too soon? Or can
it be the first week of September?
MS. COSBY: I will say this: We do not have to set this today.
We can -- I was not aware that the board recessed -- like in Lee
County, they recess in July, so I wasn't aware that the Board recesses
in August.
And if that's the case, then -- and it's all -- the whole month of
August, August 1st through the 31st?
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Actually, we typically have a
meeting the second Tuesday in July. We don't meet again until
September. So if we could do this in September, that would make
sense but -- I don't know. Andy?
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: That makes perfect sense to me.
MS. COSBY: So at this point the Value Adjustment -- the
Board is going to reject the Monday, August 12th date; is that
correct?
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Unless we have to meet in August,
I would suggest that.
MS. COSBY: We don't have to.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay.
MS. COSBY: We don't have to.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Well, if you can accommodate
that, because I know a lot of folks like to try to get out of town in
August because of that recess, and this would kind of interrupt that.
MS. COSBY: Sure.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: The First Monday is Labor Day;
September 2nd is Labor Day. Does it have to be on a Monday?
MS. COSBY: No. I think -- well, I think Mondays are
important because that's -- there's another meeting on another day, so
Mondays is typically when this room is available. I wasn't prepared.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: There won't be a Monday, that I'm
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aware of, that first Tuesday in September which is what,
September --
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Third.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: -- 3rd.
MS. COSBY: We are not in a position at this point to set a
date, because we'd have to check with room availability and
whatever. So at this point I'm going to say that the safest and best
thing to do is just state on the record that the Board objects to
August 12th and any other day in August and that you'll permit the
VAB admin to come up with a different date that would be
reasonably and mutually convenient to all VAB members.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: It sounds like that first week in
September would be desirable.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Yeah.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay. All right.
MS. COSBY: Well, we've get Labor Day, like you said, and
the day after Labor Day is always a crunch, especially because
administration and I get together and get that packet done. So we
can't actually do anything the day before a meeting if we did it on the
3rd. If there was anything else to do, we'd kind of -- it would be
difficult.
So why don't we just go ahead and, on the record, Value
Adjustment Board objects to August 12th, and we will -- Evan and I
will work together to forward other potential dates. We'll poll the
audience and come up with something that's mutually convenient for
the Board. Does that work?
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Do you want a motion to that
effect or just our nod?
MS. COSBY: Let's go with a motion since we --
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Get a motion to reject that date,
direct staff to come up with a date --
Page 19
January 14, 2019
MS. COSBY: Not August.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: -- not in August.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Yeah, I'll make the
motion.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Second.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: All right. All in favor, signify by
saying aye.
HOMESTEAD MEMBER EARNEY: Aye.
COMMISSIONER SOLIS: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Aye.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER CARTER: Aye.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: That passes.
Is there any other business that we need to deal with?
MS. COSBY: Would it be okay if we did July if we had to?
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Yeah. And I would go as early in
July as possible because, again, we break that second Tuesday in
July, and then folks sort of disappear for a few weeks.
MS. COSBY: Okay.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Okay.
MS. COSBY: I have no other business.
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: Any other comments from the
Board?
(No response.)
CHAIRMAN SAUNDERS: No public? Otherwise, we are
adjourned.
*****
There being no further business for the good of the County, the
meeting was adjourned by order of the Chair at 2:24 p.m.
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January 14, 2019
VAB CHAIRM •
ATTEST:
CRYST INZEL, CLERK
" .�;.
'. 1=:',: ,-,,, '' '','-‘t!') 1;;:i. 4 - 0(0. e_ . .
Attest lto Cha s'14 c'
ignature'eniy4, ; -r
These minutes approved by the Board -ikAll 301 2 p n , as
presented v` or as corrected .
TRANSCRIPT PREPARED ON BEHALF OF GREGORY COURT
REPORTING SERVICES, INC., BY TERRI LEWIS, NOTARY
PUBLIC/COURT REPORTER.
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