Schuylkill County officials released a statement Wednesday on their decision to hire a Massachusetts company for $6.6 million, plus $144,500 a year for a software subscription, and a one-time software fee of $375,000 perform the first property reassessment since 1996.

“The Schuylkill County Board of Commissioners unanimously selected Vision Government Solutions as the vendor to perform the countywide reassessment and technology update for the Schuylkill County Tax Assessment office. Vision was chosen after an extensive evaluation process for the Request for Qualifications and Quotes published in August 2022.”

The board said Vision has extensive Pennsylvania reassessment experience and is familiar with the county’s legacy systems and data.

“With offices near Harrisburg, they have numerous licensed Certified Pennsylvania Evaluators on staff and currently serve 27 Pennsylvania counties,” the statement said.

The project director is Tim Barr of Middletown and the On-site Project Supervisor is Charlene Kechula, CPE of Shenandoah.

“A lawsuit filed against Schuylkill County by local real property owners in 2018 suggested the county’s property assessments were no longer fair and consistent and are in violation of the Pennsylvania Uniformity Clause. Rather than continue with costly litigation, it was determined that a countywide reassessment was the best path forward for equitability and legal compliance. The county entered into a consent decree with the plaintiffs on May 16, 2022, which mandates a reassessment be completed and new property values implemented no later than Jan. 1, 2026,” the statement said.

“County, municipal, and school real estate taxes are calculated for each property annually, based on the Fair Market Value at a given point in time, referred to as the base year. Under Pennsylvania law, this base year thus be used for assessments until a new base year is established by a countywide reassessment. The current base year for Schuylkill County assessments is 1996, also the year of the last countywide reassessment.”

Commissioners said field data collection will begin in early 2023.

Vision will conduct site visits, mail surveys, and conduct in-person town hall style meetings. The company will inform residents about what section of the county they are working.

The proposed value is planned to be mailed to property owners in early 2025. Property owners will have the opportunity to correct any errors found in property characteristics. An official Value Change Notice will be mailed to property owners by July 1, 2025.

Property owners will have 40 days to file a formal appeal.

The new values will be effective for the tax year of 2026.

Additional information will be available in the coming weeks.