About BC Assessment

BC Assessment produces independent, uniform and efficient property assessments on an annual basis for all property owners in the province.

Structure

BC Assessment operates as an independent, provincial Crown corporation, governed by a Board of Directors.

The Chief Executive Officer of BC Assessment is supported by an Executive Committee. The Board is appointed by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.

BC Assessment's Head Office is located in Victoria. Its 18 Area Offices are situated in various geographic locations throughout British Columbia.

Mandate

The mandate of BC Assessment is to establish and maintain uniform real property assessments throughout British Columbia in accordance with the Assessment Act. The Act also requires that BC Assessment produce annual rolls with assessments at market value.

Assessors determine the market value of land and improvements and enter those values on the Assessment Roll. For 95 per cent of all properties on the roll, assessed value is the market value as of July 1. The remaining five per cent are subject to legislative restrictions.

BC Assessment is structured in the following units:

• Office of the Chief Executive Officer
• Planning, Audit and Legal Services
• Business and Customer Services
• Assessment
• Corporate Services
• Communications

Office of the Chief Executive Officer

Responsible for:

• Overall management and co-ordination of BC Assessment's functions, operations, products and services
• Serving as the main point of contact for the Minister responsible for BC Assessment, the Office of the Premier, and other senior government officials and assessment bodies.

Planning, Audit and Legal Services

Responsible for:

• Liaison with Ministries of government on assessment issues
• Research and development of assessment and valuation policy
• Provision and management of legal support services
• Legislative and regulatory support services
• Development of assessment standards
• Audit of assessment rolls
• Coordination of contract administration for First Nations Assessment services
• Performance enhancement programs (Operational Review, Continuous Improvement Measures)
• Information Policy initiatives
• Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy

Business and Customer Services

Responsible for:

• Valuation & Assessment Services
• Market, Non-market & Special Use
• Practices & Processes
• Business & Customer Core Services
• Quality Assurance
• Appeal Coordination

Assessment

Responsible for:

• Performance of field operations for the entire province
• Direct reports with Assessors, Deputy Assessors and Office Supervisors who are responsible for field operations
• Development and application of programs and systems for the valuation, classification, and defence of specialized properties throughout the province

Corporate Services

Responsible for:

• Financial Services
• Human Resources
• Information Services (oversees the operations and development of information technology and services)
• Marketing products and services (Client Service Solutions)

Communications

Responsible for:

• Producing print and web communications materials to help the public understand the property assessment process
• Building greater awareness for BC Assessment products and services with different communities