The proposed fiscal year 2021-22 budget for the Wright County Assessor’s Office will increase by $154,000 over the 2020-21 fiscal year. Wright County Assessor Shari Plagge stressed that its important people remember that this office is a separate entity from the county just as are schools, cities, and extension offices, and that this levy rate is for the Assessor's Office only.
The tax levy paid by property owners because of the Assessor’s Office increase will rise from 48 cents per thousand to 74 cents per thousand, a 154% increase in taxes. The average levy for the Wright County Assessor’s Office has been 62 cents per $1000 over the last 10 years.
In addition, the assessor’s office will spend $41,000 more in the current year through June 30 than what was called for in its original budget. Last spring, the office expected to spend $549,000, but will instead end up spending over $590,000. The jump includes a $6,400 mid-year pay raise for the assessor, a $7,600 mid-year pay raise for the deputy assessor, and $25,000 extra for computers.
Next year the assessor’s office has a budget of over $703,000, a 28% increase. Additional spending includes 12-13% more for salaries, 36% more for health insurance, 45% more for retirement benefits, 25% more for telephone and publications, 133% more for vehicles, 194% more for computers, and $60,000 more to hire a full-time GIS (computer mapping) coordinator.
According to Plagge, the increases in spending are mainly due to an effort to retain staff members. She explained that there is a shortage of assessors and deputies statewide so attracting and keeping staff in that office requires more enticing salaries. Plagge added that new state requirements in the last few years have made the process of becoming an assessor or deputy assessor more expensive as well. It is now required that individuals wishing to be an assessor take three to five classes (taking about two years), costing $500 each, just to sit for the exam to then be put on a list of Department of Revenue possible candidates, to maybe get a job. This, coupled with the amount of retirees as of recent, has created a shortage.
Another reason for the increase, according to Plagge, is that the Wright County Deputy Assessor has also been doing GIS work for Wright and surrounding counties. Now, with the proposed 2021 – 2022 year, it will be separate positions. This means there is a need for additional office equipment and a computer.
The assessor’s office is overseen by the County Conference Board, which is made up of the mayors from each town, the county supervisors, and one person from each school board.
Clarion mayor Duane Asbe said, “These types of things are happening statewide in assessors’ offices. There are staffing shortages. There has been a trend of not being proactive enough over the last few years so now we have to make up for that.”
“The office is caught between a rock and a hard place,” said Belmond Mayor Frank Beminio. “The deputy assessor is leaving for a higher paying job in Franklin County. The state requires deputy assessors to have special education, and there aren’t enough of them in the state to go around. So wages are being driven higher.”
The proposed new budget raises the deputy assessor salary from $64,400 on July 1, 2020 to $72,000 on July 2, 2021, and raises the county assessor salary from $73,600 on July 1, 2020 to $90,000 on July 1, 2021. Plagge noted that the statewide average assessor’s salary is $88,000.
“If we can’t find people to hire, we won’t spend the money, but we might have to hire out GIS services,” Beminio said.
Plagge added that she had cautioned the conference board about these needed changes a few years ago.
