Celebrate the importance and value of Kaua‘i County assessors

Employees who work behind the scenes, never in the public eye, normally don’t get a lot of press. After all, who really wants to talk about doing math or spell checking all day?

They do, however, often play beneficial and crucial roles for their employers — and their community.

Take assessors, or appraisers depending on which state you’re in, for example. While you might not see them around on a regular basis, these government officials play a direct part in your everyday life by determining the value of real property for taxation purposes.

Revenue from real property taxes is used by local governments — yes, Kaua‘i County, too — for law enforcement and fire protection services, road construction and many other services that benefit the community.

Tuesday was National Assessors Day, so the International Association of Assessing Officers and Kaua‘i County are encouraging industry partners and the public to celebrate the importance and value of assessors.

National Assessors Day is observed annually to raise awareness about what assessors do, how they do it and how it makes the community work safely and efficiently.

Sixteen employees of the Kaua‘i County Real Property Division completed the “Fundamentals of Real Property Appraisal” International Association of Assessing Officers 101 course earlier this month. Staff members who attended included appraisers, technical staff, supervisors, a program manager, a tax manager and the county finance director.

“Mahalo to our Department of Finance team for continuing to provide our county with the tools our island needs to run smoothly” said Kaua‘i County Mayor Derek Kawakami. “Investing in education and training leads to a more knowledgeable and effective workforce. This ultimately benefits the hardworking taxpayers in our community by enhancing customer care and streamlining service.”

Assessors are trained to determine the fair market value of property, and they are only responsible for determining the property value for tax purposes.

Tax rates, on the other hand, are set by local legislative bodies such as city, county or town councils.

International Association of Assessing Officers members are committed to providing fair and equitable property valuation assessments.

The association considers the following cornerstones for providing those assessments:

• Appraising properties regularly to determine fair market value.
• Following International Association of Assessing Officers technical standards on assessment and office operations.
• Allocating adequate resources to jurisdictions to carry out the assessing function in accordance with best practices.
• Providing assessors and assessing staff with training and ongoing professional development.

International Association of Assessing Officers technical standards guide property tax assessment officials, tax policy analysts and administrators.

Public trust in performance is the foundation of credibility, and local government assessors follow the association’s code of ethics, which notes that members must embrace the highest ethical principles and pursuit of excellence, accountability, transparency, inclusivity and responsiveness must be integral to their behavior.

National Assessors Day not only raises awareness about what they do and how, it also reflects the value assessors bring to their community by helping fairly determine property values.

For more information, contact the Kaua‘i County Real Property Assessment Division at 808-241-4224, rpassessment@kauai.gov or click here.