Board of Equalization

Meetings:

Public may attend hearings. All hearings, generally, begin @ 9 am. If you wish to attend, contact BOE clerk for instructions.

NOTE: Dates/time subject to change.

To view or participate in the Board of Equalization meetings via video broadcast, click the link below:

To listen or participate in the Board of Equalization meetings via audio only, follow the instructions below:   

• Dial: 509-222-2397
• Enter the meeting number: 2488 145 6494 followed by #
• Press # when asked for the meeting ID number

Board of Equalization Information:

Members of the Board of Equalization are appointed by the Board of County Commissioners for the purpose of hearing appeals involving property valuations. The BOE is a quasi-judicial body who considers questions of valuation/equalization of property assessments, not levy rates or the amount of taxes due.  Statute and voters in your taxing district establish WA tax levy rates.  

Before filing a petition requesting the Board of Equalization to hear your case, you should reach out to the Assessor’s Office at 509-735-2394 and review your appraisal with them to review square footage, number of bedrooms, type of heat, etc. to ensure the information is correct. If you have a compelling case, they will likely change the valuation on your property avoiding the need for a petition/hearing.

FILING AN APPEAL: You must file a petition by July 1st of the current assessment year or within 30 days of the date on the "Change of Value Notice" (postcard) from the Assessor's office. If you are filing an appeal due to a change in value, your petition MUST have attached a copy of the value notice received from the Assessor. To protect your appeal rights for the current assessment year you must file a protective appeal with the Board of Equalization within deadlines stated above. A petition must be filed for each parcel under protest. Per RCW 84.40.0301 the Board of Equalization must presume that the Assessor's determination of value for your property is correct. To contest the value, the burden of proof is on the taxpayer. According to (WAC 458-14-046[6]a), the taxpayer must provide clear, cogent and convincing evidence that shows the valuation is flawed or invalid. Examples of acceptable evidence are: comparable sales, contractor estimates of cost to cure, letters/documents from government agencies/experts regarding development limitations, deeds describing impact of easements, appraisals, excise documents of property sale, photos, and maps, however, arguments regarding amount of tax, assessed value of other properties, percentage of assessment increase, personal hardship and matters unrelated to market value are not evidence the Board can consider.

If you are to prevail at a Board of Equalization hearing, you must prove your requested valuation to the Board with evidence.  Typically, this evidence is in the form of “comparable” sales of real estate properties as similar as possible to your property. 

Comparable means:

• Property must be comparable to your house type. A one-story house should be compared to a one-story house sale. A two-story house sale should not be used to justify a requested valuation for a one-story house. You may use the Assessor’s website or other websites like Zillow or Realtor.com to find real estate sales near your property. Real estate listings are not sales and should not be used to justify your property’s valuation.
• To make the sales of like property as close as possible to your property, you are allowed to make reasonable adjustments. Adjustments may be made to square footage, house age, condition of your home, quality of your home, and other relevant factors. Be prepared to demonstrate to the Board the reasonableness of your adjustments. The Board has developed a Comparable Sales Worksheet to assist you in the preparation of your evidence. 
• Pay attention to the Assessment Date. It is the first day of the year in which you received your Notice of Change in Valuation. Comparable sales should occur within three years before the Assessment Date. You are encouraged to time adjust your comparable sales to the Assessment Date at a rate of 6% per year. If you include sales after the Assessment Date, you are encouraged to time adjust the sales back to the Assessment Date.
• The Board only considers total property value. When real estate is sold, there is no separate value provided for the land. However, as required by WAC 458-07-030(4), the Assessor assigns a value to the land. These assigned values are consistent from house to house in each area for all lots of less than one acre. Adjustments for lot sizes of less than one acre are not appropriate. View lots are valued higher than non-view lots. For lots of more than one acre, land is sold on a downward sliding scale. This means the first acre is the most valuable. The second acre is worth less than the first acre and so on.
• Another factor considered in comparable sales is the distance from your property. The further the distance from your property, the less comparable the sale is. Try to find comparable sales less than two miles from your property.
• Your comparable sales must have had exposure to the real estate market. This means no private sales, bargain sales, or distressed sales can be used in your valuation.
• To have your value sustained at the Board meeting, your evidence must rise to the legal standard of Clear, Cogent, and Convincing (highly likely). This requirement is set by Washington state law. This standard sits about half-way between the legal standards of Preponderance of Evidence (more likely than not) and Beyond a Reasonable Doubt. Clear, Cogent and Convincing is a very high standard. Your evidence must be compelling and clearly show the Assessor was incorrect in their valuation of your property.

NOTICE:

IF ANY OWNER/AGENT OF ANY TAXABLE PROPERTY WHO FEELS THERE ARE INEQUITIES IN THEIR 2025 ASSESSMENT FOR TAXES PAYABLE IN 2026 AND/OR EXEMPTIONS MAY FILE A PETITION PRIOR TO JULY 1, 2025 (WAC 458-14-056). APPEAL FORMS CAN BE OBTAINED FROM THE BOE CLERK OR BY CLICKING ON LINK BELOW. YOU'LL APPEAR BEFORE THE BOE AT A TIME/PLACE APPOINTED BY THE BOE CLERK.

Notice of Meeting of the Benton County Board of Equalization

Notice is hereby given that the County Board of Equalization will convene at 9:00 am on October 23rd, 2025, at the Administration building, Room 104, Kennewick, Washington, and will continue in session and adjourn from time to time for a period of not less than three (3) days, and not to exceed twenty-eight (28) days.  Meetings will be held on October 23rd, 29th, and 30th, and at other times as required, to publicly examine and equalize the assessments extended in the current year on the taxable property of said county, for taxes to be levied in the year 2025, for collection in 2026, and to correct all errors in valuation, description, or qualities of property assessed by the assessor.

The owner or agent of any taxable property who feels there are inequities in their assessment or exemptions may file a petition and appear before the board at the time and place appointed. 

Appeal forms may be acquired from Benton County BOE, at 7122 W Okanogan Pl, Building E330, Kennewick, Washington.

Schedules and Contact Information:

BOE Clerk Schedule: 
(subject to change)

Please reach out to schedule a meeting with the BOE clerk via email at  BOE@co.benton.wa.us or via telephone at (509)786-5604.

Or

Email or Call
BOE@co.benton.wa.us / (509) 786-5604

Please note: the BOE Office observes lunch from 12:00pm to 1:00pm 

Address for scheduled hearings:

Links and Resources:

• Washington State Department of Revenue Property Tax Information and Property Tax Appeal Forms 
  • Use Appeal Form 64 0075 (Taxpayer Petition for Real Property)
• Assessor's webpage 
• Appealing Property Assessment to the BOE  Treasurer's webpage 
• WA State Dept. of Revenue-Forms
• Exemptions/Deferrals  WA State Dept. of Revenue                  
• RCW's/WAC rules
• WA State Board of Tax Appeals

BOE Contacts

• George Romano, Chairman
• Peter Smith, Member
• Chuck Wierman, Member
• Jared Fielding, Alternate Member
• Marisol Thomas, Clerk