Thousands of property owners in Washington County are receiving notices from the local county assessor’s office informing them of potential property tax increases this fall. According to County Assessor Todd Mathes, the notices are necessary to apprise taxpayers of Washington County of an increase in their property’s valuation from last year.

Property taxes are the primary local funding source for school districts around the state. However, Mathes says the Change of Value Notices that his office are mailing out are unrelated to the recent teacher walkouts that occurred around the state earlier this month. Mathes affirms that the more than 11,000 Change of Value Notices would have been sent out by his office this year even if the teacher walkouts had not occurred.

If you do receive a 2018 Change of Value Notice from the County Assessor, Mathes urges you to look it over in its entirety. He points out that several state statutes and instructions for filing an appeal have been included on the notice, which further adds to the “intimidation element” of the form.

If you have any questions about property valuation or the Change of Value Notice, you may contact the Washington County Assessor’s Office at (918) 337-2830 or you may reach Todd Mathes by e-mail at tmathes@countycourthouse.org The County Assessor’s Office is located at 400 S. Johnstone Avenue in downtown Bartlesville and is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.