BAY MINETTE — Baldwin County Revenue Commissioner Phil Nix said Tuesday he will “not sign away my office” to the state Department of Revenue and the Baldwin County Commission, following a memorandum signed Aug. 20 by the Commission and ADOR which Nix said will allow county and state oversight in his department.

Nix said he will call a press conference Thursday or Friday to respond to a negative state report presented earlier this month, explain his position and also ask the state for staffing assistance, but not administrative directives.

“I am not rejecting state oversight,” Nix said. “They have that right by the (Alabama) code. But there is no need for a memorandum.”

Nix said the Commission’s role is to provide personnel and staff.

“We should not need the Commission to help run my department,” Nix said. “I am the elected official.

“The Commission did not let me respond to the state report and defend it. They turned my office over to the state without giving me an opportunity to defend myself.”

As of late Tuesday, 18,020 property tax appeals were counted, representing a six-fold increase from last year. There are 135,000 taxable properties in Baldwin County.

The increase in appeals follows a recent Alabama Department of Revenue report presented by state ADOR Revenue Commissioner Tom Surtees last week in Montgomery, which was critical of appraisal methodology and cited an appraisal staff which lacked training, supervision, tools and equipment to do their job.

County taxpayers also were prompted to action by a $35 million increase in ad valorem taxes this year.

Nix earlier said the report was based on flawed data obtained by state officials and that his assessment procedures were accurate and based on state-mandated guidelines.

Baldwin County Commission chairman Wayne Gruenloh signed a “memorandum of understanding” agreement with the state Aug. 20 to provide funding for appraisal and mapping decisions in the county under the direction of the ADOR, as well as special training for compliance and computation of assessment and equalization ratios.

Nix blasted the agreement in a letter to Gulf Coast Newspapers, charging that state officials used “hearsay” rather than facts in the report.

He also said the report was prompted by his lack of support for annual appraisals.

“The only thing this (agreement) is doing is reassuring that annual appraisals will continue, and rest, assured, more taxes,” Nix stated. “It all boils down to money.”

County administrator Michael Thompson said the county’s role is to assist Nix, not to direct his office.

“The county is not involved in appraisals or mapping,” Thompson said. “The county is trying to be helpful. Citizens, state officials and the Baldwin County Legislative Delegation are upset.

“The Commission just wants to help and the signed statement (memorandum) was to make that clear, not to take over. We want to do what we can and want the citizens and the ADOR to know we want to help.”

According to chief appraiser Darrell Robinson, all appeals will be reviewed initially in informal meetings with appraisers and property owners. If no agreement is reached, appeals will be heard by the Baldwin County Board of Equalization.

“We have numerous letters saying ‘I appeal taxes’, with no documentation,” Robinson said Friday. “I am not sure if that is a valid appeal, but we will meet with everyone who sent a letter to us, whether they included the required documentation or not.”

BOE meetings should begin in October, Robinson said.

Due to the number of appeals, hearings will be geographically arranged by regions in the county, which may assist the BOE in evaluating appeals, Robinson said.

He also is researching the possibility of holding hearings in Bay Minette and Fairhope and Foley courthouses for citizens’ convenience.

“We need to find out if the satellite courthouses have the infrastructure to accommodate sales files, maps, aerial photography and anything the BOE needs,” Robinson said. “We need conference rooms where we can make sure we can plug in and utilize all of our equipment.”