July 2007 Press Releases

Secretary of State to Testify in Washington, DC - July 24, 2007
Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz to testify before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee on S. 1487, the Ballot Integrity Act.

Secretary of State Publishes Newly Revised Property Tax Assessment Appeal Handbook - July 2, 2007
Publications to help citizens and officials navigate the property tax assessment appeal process.

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PRESS RELEASE

July 2, 2007

Contact:  Ginny Colbert, 802-828-2148
 

Secretary of State Publishes Newly Revised Property Tax Assessment Appeal Handbook Publications Help Citizens and Officials Navigate the Property Tax Assessment Appeal Process 

Montpelier. This week property owners around the state will be receiving their new tax assessments which will initiate a fresh round of tax assessment appeals and Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz wants local officials and citizens to be prepared.  To that end, the Secretary of State has published a newly revised handbook titled A Handbook on Property Tax Assessment Appeals. 

Markowitz said, "We hope that our tax appeal handbook will demystify the tax appeal process, helping those conducting the appeals to better understand their roles and responsibilities, and helping property owners be better prepared to make their case before the board.”   Markowitz’s office also makes available a citizen’s guide to property tax appeals titled Are You Appealing? which was produced by the Vermont Institute for Government.

Markowitz said, “In every town in Vermont taxes are assessed on property based on its fair market value.  Citizens appeal their property tax assessment when they believe the listers or local assessor has placed too high a value on their property as compared to other property in their town. When this happens, the town must hold tax appeal proceedings, and in every town the same procedural steps, timetables, and appeal schedules will apply.”   

According to Markowitz, in towns that conduct town wide reappraisals there may be as many as a hundred or more homeowners appealing their property tax assessments.  Markowitz said, “The property tax assessment appeals handbook is an easy to read guide designed to help board of civil authority members, listers and citizens understand the basic laws and best practices of conducting tax appeals.”   

Markowitz said, "My office receives many calls from people wanting to know how the tax appeal process works. Some of these callers are municipal officials who want to know where their responsibilities begin and end. Other callers are members of the public who want to appeal and who need to know their rights as citizens or the mechanics of the process. It is my hope that this publication will be a useful resource for local officials and members of the public to help answer these important questions."

A Handbook on Property Tax Assessment Appeals and Are you Appealing? are free of charge and can be obtained on the Secretary of State’s municipal website at www.sec.state.vt.us/municipal/  or by calling 802-828-2148. 

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PRESS ADVISORY

July 24, 2007

Contact:  Ginny Colbert (802) 828-2148

Secretary of State Deb Markowitz to Testify Before Senate Rules and Administration Committee 

Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz will be in the nation’s capital on Wednesday, July 25, 2007, to testify before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee on S. 1487, the Ballot Integrity Act of 2007.  Markowitz, who is the immediate past president of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), will discuss the challenges faced by state election officials as they seek to improve the administration of elections and meet the mandates of existing federal and state laws.  Drawing on her nine years of experience overseeing elections in Vermont, she will also provide comments and suggestions to ensure that the nation’s elections are transparent and accurate and that there is accountability in the system.

The Ballot Integrity Act of 2007, introduced by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT), provides new safeguards to prevent errors and tampering at the polls, requires states to use voting systems with voter-verified paper records subject to public manual audits in the 2010 federal elections, takes steps to help increase the turnout in federal elections, and ensures that voters are not denied the right to vote by faulty purges of voting rolls.   Other co-sponsors include Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY), Barack Obama (D-IL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Bernard Sanders (I-VT). 

Senator Clinton is also scheduled to testify.

The hearing will commence at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 25 in Room 301 of the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C.

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PRESS RELEASE

July 25, 2007

Contact:  Ginny Colbert (802) 828-2148

Secretary of State Deb Markowitz Testifies Before Senate Rules and Administration Committee

Washington, D.C.  Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz was in the nation’s capital today to testify before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee on S. 1487, the Ballot Integrity Act of 2007.  Markowitz, who is the immediate past president of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), discussed the challenges faced by state election officials as they seek to improve the administration of elections and meet the mandates of existing federal and state laws.  Markowitz said, “It is important to remember that every state faces different challenges as it seeks to improve the administration of elections and meet the mandates of existing federal and state laws.”  

She suggested that the committee continue to gather essential input from state and local officials impacted by the legislation and recommended that the law provide reasonable timeframes for implementation, guarantee full funding for mandates, and allow for maximum flexibility and avoid preemptions of state authority.

Drawing on her nine years of experience overseeing elections in Vermont, she also provided comments and suggestions to ensure that the nation’s elections are transparent and accurate and that there is accountability in the system. Markowitz said, “One thing we have learned in Vermont is that no election system is perfect.  However, with careful planning and with a commitment to transparency and accountability throughout the process, we can ensure that our elections run smoothly, and that the people in our state trust the integrity of the process and the legitimacy of the results.”

The Ballot Integrity Act of 2007, introduced by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT), provides new safeguards to prevent errors and tampering at the polls, requires states to use voting systems with voter-verified paper records subject to public manual audits in the 2010 federal elections, takes steps to help increase the turnout in federal elections, and ensures that voters are not denied the right to vote by faulty purges of voting rolls.   Other co-sponsors include Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY), Barack Obama (D-IL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Bernard Sanders (I-VT). 

A copy of Secretary Markowitz’s testimony is available on the Secretary of State’s website at http://www.sec.state.vt.us/secdesk/commentary/2007comm.html

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