Yazoo County leaders will be bringing in an outside consultant for the second time to provide accurate figures from the county tax assessor’s office to set the millage rate for the upcoming fiscal year.
During the recent board meeting, the Yazoo County Board of Supervisors approved the hiring of Bruce Templeton, an outside appraiser who has assisted the Yazoo County Tax Assessor’s office over the past few years. The county board said the costs associated with Templeton’s assistance will be coming out of the tax assessor’s office budget.
Unless Templeton assists the county to provide the necessary figures, Supervisor Cobie Collins said the county board will not be able to determine the millage rate for the upcoming fiscal year.
“We will not be able to set the value of a mill until we get those figures,” Collins said. “Hiring Bruce Templeton is costing us an unnecessary expense, but we have no other choice.”
When Templeton assisted the county the first time within the tax assessor’s office, his work cost the county about $1,500. The county board said any costs associated this time will come from the tax assessor’s budget.
Yazoo County Tax Assessor Denise Robertson was not present during last Friday’s meeting.
“If she (Robertson) is not going to do it, we will be sitting her waiting on what to set a mill for in August,” added Supervisor David Shipp.
Templeton has been hired in the past to assist Robertson’s office, including in 2021 when he discovered an $11 million difference in Robertson’s assessed value figures for the county. However, Robertson said her figures were correct, despite the $10,798,415 million dollar difference that would have led to a hefty tax increase within Yazoo County.
The discussion last week was brought to the table when county leaders asked Chancery Clerk Quint Carver if he had received the figures from Robertson’s office yet.
“She (Robertson) hasn’t given me anything,” Carver replied. “She gave me the homestead applications. The land roll is supposed to be printed again in June. We had that discussion about two months ago. I was not convinced that everything was going to go off without any problems. Were you convinced?”
“I have been over there two times to try to see how (Robertson) is coming,” added Collins. “Each time, she has not been there.”
County Administrator Donna Kraft suggested that the board ask for Templeton’s assistance again.
“As far as the spreadsheet we need to work with, we are going to have to go ahead and engage (Templeton) to do it because (Robertson) has made that clear,” Kraft said. “I don’t think she has any intention of doing it. I don’t think we are going to have any choice but to try and engage (Templeton) to do that for us because (Robertson) still stands by that ‘it is Donna and Quint’s job.’”
Kraft also said since she became the county administrator in 2004, the spreadsheet figures had always been provided by the tax assessor’s office.
“Even prior to becoming county administrator, the spreadsheet has always been provided by the tax assessor to assist us in determining the millage needed,” Kraft added.
Kraft has been a county employee for over 40 years.
The county board approved to bring Templeton back on board to acquire the necessary figures.
