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Pool of UCAD volunteers thinned by term limits


Meghann Garcia

Managing editor

Term limits, eligibility requirements, and a willingness to serve are factors affecting Uvalde County Appraisal District’s appraisal review board composition, which was discussed Tuesday evening when UCAD directors approved two renewed appointments.

The appraisal review board is tasked with resolving disputes between the appraisal district and taxpayers.

Current members of the appraisal review board are William E. Kolinek, Virginia Limon, Walter W. Tidwell, Raymond Velos and Antonio R. Zamarripa. Each of the five members is a resident of Uvalde.

UCAD directors re-appointed Velos and Tidwell on Tuesday. They were first appointed in 2016 and 2017, respectively, to one-year terms.

UCAD chief appraiser Roberto Valdez said that once Kolinek, Limon, and Velos’ terms end, they will have to sit out at least one term. The appraisal review board limits members to three consecutive terms, and the positions are generally filled in staggered two-year terms.

“It’s our loss,” said Tony Moreno, one of three UCAD board members present for Tuesday’s meeting.

“It’s getting hard to find people who want to do it,” Bennett said of volunteer service on the review board.

To be eligible for service, prospective members must have resided within the appraisal district boundaries for two years.

Members may not be members of the UCAD board of directors; UCAD employees or officers; board members for or employees of any of the taxing entities within the appraisal district’s boundaries; or employees of the state comptroller’s office. Members may also not be closely related to a property appraiser.

Valdez said members must be available for multiple hearings throughout the summer months. The appraisal review board considers information provided by taxpayers protesting appraisals and other UCAD actions, and the chief appraiser before making decisions. Member decisions are binding for the tax year in question.

Ag advisory

According to property tax code, the agricultural advisory board advises the chief appraiser on the valuation and use of land that may be designated for agricultural use or that may be open space agricultural or timber land within the district. The advisory board meets with the chief appraiser once or twice a year to inform him of the trends in the agricultural community.

Currently, the UCAD agriculture advisory board has five board members and two advisory members.

The board is to comprise three or more members who are five-year resident landowners. Members, who are not paid, serve staggered two-year terms. UCAD employees and directors may not serve on the board.

Current members of the agricultural advisory board are Jimmy Carnes, Katherine Ann Gourley, William C. Nack, Eugene Verstuyft and William Watson. Advisory members are Richard B. Taylor and Jessup C. Yeaman.

Carnes, Gourley, Taylor and Yeaman are residents of Uvalde. Nack and Watson are residents of Utopia, and Verstuyft is of Sabinal.

mgarcia@ulnnow.com, 830-278-3335

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