Who will assess the properties?

Eleven Rock County townships and the city of Beaver Creek will need to replace their property tax assessor in the next 90 days.
Previous assessor Pete Jessen announced Feb. 18 to Land Records Director Tom Houselog that he will step down from the position by the end of 2020.
Houselog met with county commissioners shortly after Jessen’s announcement.
 “We were at a position where Pete would have been done in two years,” Houselog said to commissioners. “It was inevitable — just quicker than we thought.”
In 2017 the state mandated that anyone who appraises or physically inspects real estate for property tax purposes must have an Accredited Minnesota Assessor license.
The accreditation involves completing 400 hours of continuing education plus successful passing of each of the tests.
Completion time is four years and legislators set a deadline of 2022 for all current assessors to meet the new accreditations.
However, many independent assessors like Jessen are choosing to leave the profession instead of completing the new accreditation standards.
“This is the fallout of that legislative change,” said County Administrator Kyle Oldre. “It is probably impacting rural Minnesota greater than the metro just simply due to the shortage (of accredited personnel).”
If the city of Beaver Creek and the 11 townships Jessen currently serves do not hire a replacement within three months, the county assessor automatically takes over the responsibility. Townships and cities are then billed for the assessing work.
The three-person Land Records Office currently completes the assessment of farmland in the county along with the personal property assessment for the cities of Luverne, Magnolia, Steen, Hills, Hardwick and Kenneth.
Vienna Township contracts with independent assessor David Scotting of Pipestone.
According to Houselog, one employee has met the new accreditation standards, with the other two currently on track to complete classes and testing by the 2022 deadline.
Instead of waiting until the 90-day deadline, county officials requested township officials notify the Land Records Office as soon as possible. The Rock County Township Association met Feb. 10.
As township officials discuss options, commissioners will discuss staffing needs, how to transition paper records into digital formats and how the work will flow through the county office.
“We know there will be a lot of work that needs to be done,” Houselog said. “Going forward with the 2021 assessment, we need to start early summer.”