The Assessor is a constitutionally elected official whose main duty is to set values on property. Fiduciary responsibilities encompass managing, planning, organizing and directing all phases of operations in the Assessor’s Office for producing an annual assessment roll. The Assessor has the responsibility for annually discovering and assessing all property within the county. The Assessor is both a manager of employees and an administrator responsible for carrying out the rules and regulations imposed by property tax laws.

Office Responsibilities

The Assessor is responsible for the creation and maintenance of all mapping/drafting activities for the Assessor’s Office and creation of new assessor parcels from final subdivisions, parcel maps, lot line adjustments, record of survey, deeds and miscellaneous documents. Other functions include tax clearances, tax sales descriptions, LAFCO/tax rate area codes, and public inquiries.

The Assessor is responsible for overseeing all data processing operations, processing all recorded documents and ownership changes, creating and obtaining approval for new forms, and generating state mandated reports. The Assessor is also responsible for all real estate and personal property valuation activities; and valuation of real property ownership changes, new construction, agricultural preserves, possessory interests, oil and gas wells, mines and quarries, pipeline easements, and water companies. It handles all calamity claims, value reviews, Proposition 8 recalculations (declines in value), and Assessment Appeals Board hearings and annually values all personal property and trade fixtures in the county. This encompasses the valuation of business and agricultural properties, boats, aircraft, and apartment houses. The Assessor audits all mandatory accounts – businesses with over $300,000 value of personal property and/or trade fixtures for four consecutive years.

The Assessor’s Office also maintains data used by other government agencies to conduct demographic studies, benefit assessments, and resource identification.