Exceptions made to assessment rollback

The valuation of business equipment and commercial property in Bonner County will remain at 2006 levels, the county commission decided Tuesday.

The decision amends the commission’s initial proposal to cancel all the 2006 assessments. Now, the county plans to roll back 2006 assessments except for those on $344 million in new construction, business equipment and commercial property.

The assessor’s office asked the commission to exclude those categories – areas where there were few appeals – to speed up the process.

The assessor has until Aug. 31 to calculate the new assessed value for the county and send new assessment notices to property owners.

The assessor’s staff questions whether it can get the monumental task done in time because many of the new calculations on thousands of parcels must be done by hand.

The rollback ultimately could stall the county budget process, which would also affect local cities because the levy rate that’s used to calculate property taxes might not be known by budget deadlines.

Some people question whether the commission’s move is legal.

The commission made the surprise announcement July 14 to cancel the 2006 assessments, alleging that too many mistakes were made in the calculations and that property owners didn’t have adequate time to appeal.

– Erica Curless

Athol

Burning cats suspected cause of wildfire

A small forest fire that caused about $1,000 in damage in Athol is believed to be the work of arsonists who set two cats on fire.

Timberlake Fire Chief Lane Wintermute reported the fire to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Department after noticing the cats had been doused with a flammable liquid and set ablaze.

According to a sheriff’s deputy report, three teenage boys were at the home where the 911 call originated, one with burns on his feet. The boys told the deputy they were inside playing video games when they noticed the fire outside and went to put it out, causing the boy’s injuries.

Three red gasoline containers were found in the front yard of the home of one of the boys, 20 feet from where the fire began. About an hour after the deputy left, the father of one of the boys called back to say he did not believe they were involved and that “lately there have been disturbances in and around the area of his residence.”

– Sam Taylor

Olympia

Same-sex marriage ruling expected today

After months of speculation and waiting, Washington’s highest court will rule today whether the state’s same-sex marriage ban is constitutional.

If the state Supreme Court sides with two lower courts and throws out the ban, Washington could become the second state to allow same-sex marriage. And unlike Massachusetts, Washington has no residency requirement for marriage. The court opinion will be posted at www.courts.wa.gov at 8 a.m.

– Richard Roesler