SUNBURY - Northumberland County Judge Charles Saylor describes county Commissioner Vinny Clausi's claim that he is taking $4 million from the working people "false and unfounded."
The judge's response came via a statement about Tuesday's decision by a state appeals court to uphold his ruling on July 2, 2010, to reduce the property tax assessment of the Weis Markets Distribution Center in Milton Industrial Park.
Clausi again for a story in Friday's edition criticized Saylor's decision.
In the statement e-mailed to The News-Item Friday morning, Saylor responded, "With the appellate court ruling affirming my decision in the Weis Markets tax assessment appeal, I am now ethically permitted to respond to the false and unfounded claims made by a county commissioner that the ruling somehow is taking $4 million from the working people."
Saylor, in describing what he called "the true facts," said the warehouse was originally assessed at $5,652,800 for 2010. Believing this amount was excessive, Weis appealed to the county board of assessment, which consists of the commissioners. The board increased the assessed value of the property to $6,522,630. Weis Markets then appealed this determination to the court.
"Upon due consideration of all the testimony presented, including the conflicting testimony of the experts presented by both parties, I determined the proper assessed value for that property was $5,409,536, varying from the original assessment made by the county by $243,264," Saylor said. "Of course, the actual tax liability to any municipality is much less, as it is a percentage of the assessed value."
He said Clausi "cannot recklessly impugn another's reputation and integrity by suggesting that there is any favoritism shown to any litigant, by a false distortion of the factual realities of the present case. Actually, the commissioner has wasted significant taxpayer dollars by pursuing a frivolous appeal, expending funds on experts and outside counsel, Timothy Bowers, who charged the county $150 per hour."
Saylor also took exception to a note in Friday's article about the decision that he wasn't available for comment. A News-Item reporter attempted to reach Saylor at the courthouse after normal business hours Thursday.
"Contrary to what is indicated in the article, I was available at all times at the courthouse for comment on Thursday, or even after hours at home," the judge said. "Somehow the commissioner is always reached to make his uninformed comments, but no one else is allowed an opportunity to respond."