The people in the Guilford County Tax Department are, for the most part at least, pretty nice. However, when it comes to collecting taxes, they take their jobs very seriously, and Guilford County usually ends up somewhere near the top of the list each year when it comes to the percentage of taxes collected versus the amount of taxes owed when compared with other counties in the state.

Reverend and Guilford County Tax Director Ben Chavis runs the department, but this week it’s the county’s assistant tax director – Donna Bailey (pictured above) who’s been chosen to serve on an important worldwide body: the Advocacy Task Force of the International Association of Assessing Officers.

The selection makes Bailey the first Guilford County employee to serve on the prestigious task force, which county officials consider a “significant milestone for the county and the tax department.”

The International Association of Assessing Officers, which was founded in 1934, is a global organization that represents over 8,500 professionals worldwide in the property appraisal and assessment fields.

One stated mission of the organization is to remain “dedicated to promoting fair and equitable property appraisal, assessment administration, and property tax policy through professional development, research, and technical support.”

 The Advocacy Task Force arm of the Association, on which Bailey will be serving, represents assessing professionals and it lobbies for policies considered needed by tax professionals, as well as pushing for legislation that supports equitable property tax practices at all levels of government – whether it be local, state or federal.

The Task Force she’ll serve on also attempts to promote public understanding of property tax issues.

Chavis said this week that he was extremely pleased someone from the county’s Tax Department had been selected for the honor.

“Guilford County is proud of Donna’s service on IAAO’s Advocacy Task Force; this recognition highlights her exceptional expertise and dedication to excellence in property assessment,” he said, adding that Guilford County should benefit from the experience, as will taxing bodies everywhere.

 “We look forward to the positive impact her work will have on advancing equitable tax practices in our community,” Chavis said.

The International Association is a nonprofit, educational, research association, as well as a professional membership organization of government assessment officials and others interested in the administration of property taxes.

The organization is considered a global leader and a preeminent source of “standards, professional development, and research in mass appraisal, technical assistance, assessment administration, and property tax policy.”

It was  first formed when John Donehoo, the city assessor for St. Petersburg, Florida, pulled together a group of municipal and county assessors to create a new group that would train tax assessment professionals and work toward a more equitable assessment system.

At that time, the 1930s, the focus was on a revision of property tax legislation in light of the Great Depression.

In 1959, the name was changed to the International Association of Assessing Officers since it had begun getting members from other countries.

The Association is also known for its Accreditation programs such as the Professional Designation that started in 1952, conferring a Certified Assessment Evaluator (CAE) designation to IAAO members who demonstrated an impressive degree of competence in the field of property assessment.

The Association’s headquarters was located in Chicago from the 1930s until 2005 when the headquarters moved to its present location in downtown Kansas City, Missouri.

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