Harris County Appraisal District Board of Directors met Dec. 14

Harris County Appraisal District Board of Directors met Dec. 14,

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

A meeting of the Harris County Board of Directors was held Wednesday, December 14th, 2022, at 9:30 a.m. at the HCAD offices.

Chairman Sullivan called the meeting to order at 9:35 a.m.

A member of HCAD’s Security Team led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Salute to the Texas Flag.

The HCAD Choir performed at the board meeting and were introduced to the board of directors.

Roll Call. The presence of a quorum was established. Chairman Sullivan, Jim Robinson, Kathy Blueford-Daniels, and Jonathan Cowen were present. Martina Lemond Dixon, Ann Harris Bennett, and Al Odom were absent.

Chief Appraiser Roland Altinger and Todd Stewart of Olson and Olson, legal counsel, also were in attendance.

Top Workplace Award. Elma Loreto, HR Administrator, reported on HCAD’s designation of Top Workplaces recognition. All board members present congratulated and thanked HCAD for achieving this top honor.

Recognition of Service Awards and Employees of the Month. Chief Appraiser Altinger and Board member Jonathan Cowen presented a 10-year service award to Francisco Dela Torre of the Information Technology Division.

A 15-year service award was presented to Varmika Johnson of the ARB Operations Division.

Employees of the Month. Chief Appraiser Altinger and Board Member Jonathan Cowen presented employee of the month plaques to Rosemary Collins of the Information & Assistance Division, Dave Helton of the Information Technology Division, Phebbie Nguyen of the Business & Industrial Property Division, and Ramon Smith of the Commercial Property Division.

Comments from Members of the Public. There were none.

Consent Agenda

“All matters listed under consent agenda are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion, there will not be separate discussion of these items. If discussion is desired, that item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered separately.”

Ms. Blueford-Daniels, seconded by Mr. Jonathan Cowen, moved to approve the consent agenda. The motion carried unanimously.

a. Approval of Minutes. Reviewing and approving the minutes of the regular meeting of November 16, 2022.

b. CoStar Realty Renewal. Approving a one-year contract with CoStar Realty Information, Inc. to provide software/database containing industrial, office, market, tenant, and comparable sales data.

c. Cornerstone Renewal. Approving a renewal of a contract for performance and learning management system with Cornerstone for $82,735.

d. Financial Reports. Receiving the district’s monthly financial reports.

e. Bills and Payroll. Authorizing payment of bills and payroll in amount of $5,320,958.75 and a transfer of funds for $740,000 as submitted.

AG Reappointments. Ms. Blueford-Daniels, seconded by Mr. Cowen, moved to consent to the reappointment of Fred Stockton, Damian Prause and Beverly Stevenson to the Agricultural Appraisal Advisory Board. The motion carried unanimously.

Street Level Imagery & LIDAR. Mr. Cowen, seconded by Mr. Robinson, moved to approve the purchase of additional Street Level Imagery and LIDAR, and to authorize the Chief Appraiser to amend previous Interlocal Government Agreement with Harris County including HCAD as a Project Partner for the cost share not to exceed $500,000. Several board members voiced concerns regarding the City of Houston not participating in the cost share project. Board member Jim Robinson stated the critical importance of having this project to improve the accuracy of appraisals, reduce litigation, and to improve taxpayer satisfaction because HCAD would be doing a better job. The motion carried unanimously.

2022 Excess Funds. Mr. Cowen, seconded by Ms. Blueford-Daniels, moved to allocate 1.1 million of the 2022 excess funds to major repairs and rehabilitations fund, and to further allocate whatever remaining 2022 excess funds to the restricted operating reserve. The motion carried unanimously.

2022 GIS Expo. Sarah LaRue, GIS Mapping Supervisor Designee, reported on the 2022 Houston Regional GIS Expo held on November 16th 2022 at University of Houston–Clear Lake. The HCAD GIS Division won first place in the Map Gallery competition with the wall map “Home Sales Heat Up in Harris County” by co-authors Adela Jacinto, Chester Wood, Chona Roberson, Holly McDonald, Joshua Dye, Sarah LaRue, Thang Nguyen. A slide presentation was provided to the board.

Taxpayer Liaison Officer Report. Teresa Terry, Taxpayer Liaison Officer, provided a verbal report to the board. A written report was also provided in the board packet.

Appraisal Review Board Report. Chairman Sullivan expressed gratitude and appreciation to outgoing ARB Chairman, Douglas Sapp, for all the work he has done representing the ARB. Mr. Sapp made his final report to the board on the progress of hearings, attendance by members of the appraisal review board at hearings, and activities of the executive staff and the board’s attorney.

Protest and Hearings. Pamela Tatum, ARB Hearings Manager, reported on protests and hearings, including iFile and iSettle. As of this morning, for the 2022 tax year, 494,936 protests have been received with the majority of them being filed electronically. Hearings are now being scheduled one day per week to complete prior year, correction, and exemption accounts.

Appraisal Matters. Chairman Sullivan commented on receiving his Exemption card in the mail and asked the Chief Appraiser to update the board on the City of Pearland issue. Chief Appraiser Altinger stated that the City of Pearland has moved forward and will be filing bills regarding correcting a truth and taxation calculation after it has passed the deadline.

Executive Session. Chairman Sullivan called the board into executive session at 10:47 a.m. for the purpose of: (a) private consultation with the board’s attorney regarding (i) pending and potential litigation, (ii) settlement of pending appeals to the State Office of Administrative Hearings, (iii) settlement of pending arbitrations under Texas Tax Code Chapter 41A, and (iv) settlement of pending litigation under Texas Tax Code Chapter 42; (b) considering the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of a public officer, or employee, including the duties and appointment of the chief appraiser; (c) considering the deployment, or specific occasions for implementation of security personnel or devices; (d) deliberating the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property if deliberation in an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on the position of the governmental body in negotiations with a third person, as permitted by the Open Meetings Act, Chap. 551, Government Code.

Chairman Sullivan opened the meeting at 11:28 a.m.

Roll Call. Board members Jim Robinson, Kathy Blueford-Daniels, and Jonathan Cowen were present. Ann Harris Bennett, Martina Lemond Dixon, and Al Odom, were absent.

Pending Litigation. Mr. Jonathan Cowen, seconded by Mr. Robinson, moved to approve settlement of pending litigation, arbitrations, and SOAH appeals as submitted by staff. The motion carried with Chairman Sullivan abstaining. A list is attached.

Appeals Under Sec. 42.02 Tax Code. There were none.

Performance and Salary Review of Chief Appraiser. Mr. Robinson, seconded by Ms. Kathy Blueford-Daniels, moved to accept the performance review as presented. A copy was provided to the board.

Adjournment. Upon motion duly made and seconded, the meeting adjourned at 11:30 a.m.

https://hcad.org/assets/uploads/pdf/resources/2023/Boardbook-January-18-2023-meeting-v2-final.pdf