‘Inexcusable’: Keller mayor calls on TAD to extend protest deadline amid website failures
Keller Mayor Armin Mizani is calling on the Tarrant Appraisal District to address technological failures that have left Tarrant County homeowners with fewer options for protesting their sky-high property values.
Mizani penned a letter to Chief Appraiser Jeff Law and beseeched him to “explore all available options to remedy this issue,” including extending the May 15 protest deadline.
A TAD spokesperson told the Star-Telegram Monday that TAD does not intend to extend the protest deadline, although many county property owners are still unable to access their accounts on TAD’s website.
“This is inexcusable,” Mizani wrote.
Since values started going out last week, Tarrant County many property owners have been unable to access TAD’s website, with pages locking up, failing to download or timing out.
When users finally gain access, the “online protest” button takes them to a form to schedule a hearing. In prior years, users had the option to enter a different value and receive an immediate settlement offer. That’s known as automated market review.
“TAD’s inability to address its website issues, known since 2022, will significantly reduce the window for taxpayers to protest their assessments conveniently — and that’s only if the repairs are made in time and hold up to what I imagine will be overwhelming website traffic once this tool goes live,” Mizani wrote.
And, it’s not just convenient for homeowners; access to this tool is mandated by Texas tax code.
A TAD spokesperson said Monday that the automated market review tool will be available within 10 days.
“Taxpayers should not be on the hook for TAD’s inability to safeguard its website functions as required by state law,” he wrote.
