When he first ran to be a Commissioner on the Cook County Board of Review, Dan Patlak said he wanted to have the best trained staff at the Board. He promised that his staff would take continuing education classes and would work toward becoming Certified Illinois Assessment Officers (CIAO). Several staffers are closing in on attaining that designation; while most others will continue taking continuing education courses.
In order to receive the CIAO designation, a student must successfully complete and pass 60 hours of courses. To receive the CIAO designation, students must understand the cost, market and income approaches to value, mass appraisal techniques and property tax administration. To maintain the CIAO designation, one must take 60 additional hours of course work every four years.
Analysts hired by Commissioner Patlak have taken classes available through the Illinois Department of Revenue such as" Intro to Sales Ratio" or classes from the Illinois Property Assessment Institute. All of the classes taken directly pertain to the job of property analyst at the Board of Review. Some of the classes Board analysts will take this year include "Basic Assessment Practices," "Introduction of Mass Appraisal Techniques" and "Property Valuation." Several analysts have even paid to take these classes out of their own pockets including travel costs for classes not available in the Chicago area.
Commissioner Patlak collaborated with the Illinois Department of Revenue and Illinois Property Assessment Institute to conduct many of the classes at the Board of Review in 2013. This makes it easier to attend these courses at less cost to Board of Review employees and taxpayers.
"Knowing our craft better will enable us to continue doing the best job possible," said analyst John Dyslin. "When a homeowner or business owner appeals their property assessment, they should know that the analysts reviewing their cases are educated and qualified to do the job. That is why attending continuing education classes is so important."