Let’s cooperate with our reappraisal

Once a month, the Custer County Director of Equalization office comes before the Custer County Commission to update the commission on the monumental task it has begun to undertake at the direction of the commission. That task, which they have accepted (as if they really had a choice), is to reappraise every structure in the entire county. It’s a monumental task for such a small office. Not only does this mean the teams have to go out into the field and observe and measure all of the structures, but they then have to enter that information into the county’s database. It’s a project that will undoubtedly take quite a long time, but we know the folks doing it are doing it diligently and are already making good progress.
Unfortunately, we were saddened to hear there are already people who are making the job more difficult than it needs to be.
At the commission’s Oct. 26 meeting, the commission was informed by equalization staff that they had encountered one person already who refused to help them do their jobs. In fact, he wouldn’t allow them on the property and told them to leave. But why? By law, the residents of the county have to let the appraisers on their property to observe their property. State law (SDCL 10-3-23) requires property owners to allow them to enter and inspect all property for the purpose of determining the value of the property.
 By refusing to allow them to do so, you aren’t stopping anything. All you are doing is dragging out the process and making it so they have to get law enforcement involved. Make no mistake—if you throw them off your property, they will be back. The next time they will just have a Custer County Sheriff’s Office deputy with them.
Intially, the county was going to hire an outside firm to do a mass reappraisal of the county, but decided it against it for a number of reasons. The process was going to be extremely expensive, and the top company the county wanted to conduct the reappraisal for it decided it did not want to participate. So, in the end, the county decided to have it done in house, which as we have already stated, is a herculean task for such a small office. The employees of the office seem undaunted, however.
This is a process that has to happen one way or another, and we can assist in this process by being welcoming and accommodating to the county employees who show up on our property to assess our buildings. Welcome them in. Open the gate. Put the dogs away. Offer them a snack or something to drink. They are just doing their job. Being rude to them is completely out of line, and won’t accomplish a thing.
The office is currently working in the Highlands area, and Pringle, you’re up next. Be welcoming!