Accomplishments

  1. Complete Digital Tansformation of the Board of Review
  2. Seamless Transition to Work at Home Due to the Covid Virus
  3. Full-Time Commissioner
  4. Reduced Waiting Times
  5. Telephonic Hearings
  6. Suburban Assessor Training and Cooperation
  7. Increased Educational Outreach
  8. Increased Educational Resources
  9. Increased Analyst Education
  10. Improved Transparency
  11. Streamlined Collaboration with the State Property Tax Appeal Board
  12. Future improvements at the BoR
    1. Digital Appeals Processing System
    2. Transparency
    3. Efficiency

Complete Digital Tansformation of the Board of Review

The Cook County Board of Review, which is the highest volume assessment review office in the United States, has transitioned from an obsolete paper filing and review system to a state-of-the-art Digital Appeals Processing System (DAPS). The DAPS is now the finest system of its kind in the nation and was recognized with an Achievement Award by the National Association of Counties. The award honors innovative, effective county government programs that enhance services for residents. Because of DAPS we were able to go from adjudicating 158,000 appeals in 2010 to 253,000 in 2019 while continuing to finish our work on schedule to get tax bills issued by the statutorily required date.

The most recent benefit of the DAPS occurred in March, when the county building was shuttered. The DAPS provided the technology for our analysts to seamlessly transition overnight from working at a centralized downtown location to working at their homes. Our analysts were able to continue analyzing taxpayer appeals at one-hundred percent efficiency and finish the 2019/20 assessment appeal session five days earlier than originally expected.

In addition DAPS makes it possible for taxpayers to create their own electronic file, upload evidence to that file, receive an e-mail notification when their decision is ready, check their file for the Board decision on their appeal and review analyst notes and additional evidence taken into account by analysts when a decision is made.

Meanwhile, taxpayers who are not able to use our technology may still file a paper appeal and submit paper evidence. All evidence is then scanned by Board employees and relayed digitally to our analysts. 

Seamless Transition to Work at Home Due to the Covid Virus

Because of the development of the DAPS five years ago, the Board was able to send our Deputy Analysts home with their laptops and docking stations. They were then able to connect with the County VPN overnight and work from home at a one-hundred percent productivity level. Despite a record number of appeals, our office was able to complete its work several days prior to the anticipated date and tax bills were sent out timely. This assured schools, villages and other governmental bodies that they would receive the revenue they needed to continue providing vital services without having to issue tax anticipation warrants which would have been more costly to local taxpayers.

Full-Time Commissioner

I continue to serve as the first ever full-time hands on commissioner at the Board of Review.

Reduced Waiting Times

Wait times for in person hearings have decreased from an average of fifteen minutes down to two minutes.

Telephonic Hearings

Starting this past March and in response to the closing of the county building, we began offering telephonic hearings. We plan to continue with this while also offering in-person hearings to those appellants who request them.

Suburban Assessor Training and Cooperation

We have kept close contact with suburban Assessors offices, having most of their staffs come to the Board for a two-hour tour and explanation of Board procedures. In addition, I regularly attend the Cook County Township Assessor Association monthly meetings to keep local assessors appraised of what’s happening at the board so they can quickly pass the information on to their constituents.

Increased Educational Outreach

Conducted four-hundred assessment appeal seminars to educate taxpayers about their right to appeal, how to determine if you are over assessed and how to gather evidence of over-assessment. In addition, have made presentations to hundreds of Real Estate groups, Chambers of Commerce, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, Senior Centers and other similar organizations while also reaching out to Polish, Ukrainian, Russian, Filipino, Korean, Slavic and Indian groups. We have also made presentations to School districts, Mayors and Township Assessors about the services offered by the BoR and tax related subjects like the State of Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board so they can be more responsive to their constituents.

Increased Educational Resources

Created danpatlak.com, a comprehensive one stop shop web site for taxpayers with detailed instructions about filing an appeal at the Board of Review and information about other property tax related issues. That site was recently revamped to provide an even more satisfying User Experience. We seek to provide tools to regular property owners so they will feel comfortable filing an appeal without needing to hire an attorney.

Increased Analyst Education

Our staff has participated in a formal education program through classes offered by the Illinois Property Assessment Institute and Illinois Department of Revenue. Over the past ten years, our staff members have earned more Certified Illinois Assessing Officer designations than any staff in the history of the Board of Review.  This assures we perform more quality work and have more consistent decisions.  

Improved Transparency

Transparency is at its highest level ever. Our goal is to be 100% accountable to our constituents.  To that end we have done the following:

  • Publish an Annual Report each year detailing what we do, the number of appeals adjudicated by complaint and PIN, our employee count, budget, number of hearings and number of reductions granted among other pertinent information. Our Annual Report is available to the public on our web site at www.cookcountyboardofreview.com.
  • Created a decision data base accessed on our web site where any member of the public can check the Board’s decisions on cases going back ten years. Decisions can be looked up by appellant name, property address, Property Index Number, Complaint number and attorney name.
  • Any appellant who creates an account can view their decision and any notes from the analysts who reviewed their appeal. This information becomes cumulative over multiple years of appeals so that appellants can look at their appeals and the evidence they submitted from past years.
  • Created an on-line Freedom of Information page where information can be easily requested. The Board has a FOIA officer who replies promptly to all requests.

Streamlined Collaboration with the State Property Tax Appeal Board

Our analysis of Property Tax Appeal Board liability and its potential impact has led to a PTAB department with designated staff to prepare evidence, attend hearings and negotiate settlements. All PTAB files have been digitized and process automation efforts in coordination with the PTAB in Springfield are currently underway. This has resulted in savings for local schools, villages, park districts, libraries and the taxpayers who fund them.

Future improvements at the BoR

Digital Appeals Processing System

Each year, as our budget has allowed, we have made incremental improvements to the most important/significant tool at the BoR, the Digital Appeals Processing System. As a result, we have kept pace with an appeal volume that continues to increase year after year and which has doubled since 2007.  The coming year will be no different. We plan to do the following:

  • Increase d-base and workflow computer speeds
  • Improve system integration for the processing of related complaints within condo and townhouse complexes
  • Integrating analytical tools into our digital evidence and processing work flow.
  • Making market sales data easier to access for our analysts
  • Improving the handling and storage of electronic documents

Transparency

While we have already made significant strides increasing transparency and accountability at the Board, we plan to do even more by increasing data available on our web site regarding appeals filed that has until now required a FOIA request to access. As a result, the public will have instant access to additional Board data and the Board will spend less time responding to FOIA requests.

Efficiency

We plan to make an on-line bulk filing tool available for those who file large numbers of appeals. This will streamline the process for filers and the Board. The result will be fewer input errors and fewer resulting corrections that would otherwise need to be made.

We will work with the State of Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board as they improve their technology to integrate with the BoR’s system. This will improve speed, accuracy and reduce work flow times which will assist in the timely resolution of PTAB cases and the backlog of cases.  

The last of our one million plus paper files (which once contained tens of millions of pages of evidence) remaining from our pre-DAPS era will be disposed of and destroyed as allowed by law. The freed-up space will then be available to other county offices.