Murphy – The Cherokee County Board of Equalization and Review met on July 26 to hear an appeal of a property tax decision affecting Cherokee County Commissioner Jan Griggs and her husband, Joe, continued the hearing to Monday, but then cancelled it.
Since the initial hearing on July 26, board chair Christie Standish said she consulted with the county’s lawyer and came to several conclusions:
u The board adjourned on April 20 and according to state law cannot sit later than July 1 unless an appeal was filed before the board adjourned.
u Griggs’ appeal was not filed before the board adjourned.
Standish concluded that her board has no jurisdiction to hear the Griggs’ appeal and cancelled further hearings.
The conflict arose after staff from the Cherokee County tax assessor’s office examined the Griggs’ property and discovered that it had under-reported agriculture acreage (which is taxed at a value of $1,200 per acre) and over-reported forestry acreage (which is taxed at a value of $330 per acre).
The result was a bill for underpaid property taxes of $488.
Griggs said she found a notice on her door on March 15 informing her that a tax appraiser had been by to look at their 86.9 acre spread in western Cherokee County. His findings had several contradictions from a revaluation of the property done in January 2020, she said.
The findings identified a campsite where the Griggs store a mobile home, a finished garage the Griggs said is unfinished, and heart pine floors where the floor is made up of old oak.
“I was shocked to find several things totally inaccurate,” she told the board, adding that those pieces will be appealed in 2024.
The Griggs’ appeal on July 26 was over the $488 Tax Assessor Teresa Ricks said the couple owed for misreporting their forestry and agriculture acreage.
The Griggs claim the acreage discrepancy has been overlooked during two previous revaluation periods and wondered why they would be subjected to a penalty now. Jan Griggs alleges that Ricks is retaliating against her over a run-in between the two over how Ricks was dressed in the office.
“She can’t be fair or impartial,” Jan Griggs said, referring to Ricks.
The Griggs admit that their acreage numbers were inaccurate. A tornado took out three acres of timber in mid-2021 and Joe Griggs cleared the fallen timber, resulting in pastureland.
“I didn’t think anything of it — until now,” Joe Griggs said, calling the situation “an honest mistake, if anything.”
The difference in value is 1.75 percent of their total land value, far below the 10 percent threshold the Internal Revenue Service identifies as a “substantial change.”
The can see their property taxes go up following the next revaluation, but not in the interim because the change in value was insubstantial.
Ricks said the Griggs’ forest land has not been part of an active forest management plan since 2016. The Griggs were notified of the status several times in 2021.
She said the reexamination of the Griggs property showed $12,000 in property value that was not being taxed.