Boards of Revision Launch New "Night Court"

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Media contact:
John Kohlstrand (216) 698-2099 or jkohlstrand@cuyahogacounty.us
Nicole Dailey Jones (216) 263-4602, (216) 338-0863 or ndjones@cuyahogacounty.us 

Evening Hearings Will Make it Easier for Taxpayers to be Heard

CLEVELAND —In an effort to improve customer service and make county government more accessible to taxpayers, the Cuyahoga County Boards of Revision will start conducting a select number of hearings during the evening.

The “night court” pilot program begins tonight (Tuesday, July 12) when two boards of revision will hear 14 complaints each starting at 5:30 p.m. In all, the Boards of Revision will hear challenges of property values on four Tuesdays and four Thursdays over the course of the next month.

The evening hearings are believed to be the first ever offered by the Cuyahoga County Boards of Revision. They represent just the latest customer service improvement put forward by Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald. Other recent improvements a new Fiscal Office dress code, and drive-up service today and tomorrow for taxpayers trying to meet the Wednesday, July 13 deadline to pay second-half property tax bills for 2010.

“For people working hard to make ends meet, it can be a real sacrifice to take time off work to come downtown and be heard,” FitzGerald said. “Hopefully, by offering ‘night court’ at the Boards of Revision, we can make this process a little bit easier for people.”

Cuyahoga County has established seven boards of revision to hear complaints from people who believe the value established for tax purposes on a particular parcel is inaccurate. Most complaints are filed by owners who believe the value on their own property was set too high; but state law also permits property owners to challenge a neighbor’s value, including a value that seem too low. Complaints are normally due March 31 to challenge values established for the preceding tax year.

For more information on the boards, visit bor.cuyahogacounty.us

  
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