KDKA Radio Editorial - Rethinking Reassessments

The following is an editorial by KDCA Radio Regional Vice President Michael Spatchapoli. This week, Allegheny County's Government Review Commission weighed in on an issue that has persisted for decades. Property reassessments. The nine-member board, which is designed to look at government operations, is recommending Allegheny County be reassessed every four years. During the first year of a newly elected county executive's term, the recommendation comes as Allegheny County Council is weighing its own legislation that would require reassessments every three years. Allegheny County's last county-wide reassessment was in 2012. With a tight housing market driving home prices higher and the effect of the pandemic eroding the value of downtown office towers, we agree that reassessment should be done on a regular basis. Doing them every four years would keep the issue from becoming a political hot potato and would give property owners and taxing bodies a more realistic window to deal with any changes in the market. This has been an editorial by KDCA Radio Regional Vice President Michael Spachapoli. To view a transcript, go to kDKAradio.com.