The Manatron Blog

In updating the Manatron IK News area and our Twitter page, I came across an article regarding the availability of individual Social Security Numbers via government websites. Dr. Joe Campana, a privacy and information security expert, produced a video "Stealing Social Security Numbers on the Web" that indicates the ease at which anyone can access this information. 

View video  

In this age of high rates of identity theft, it is vital – I’d argue it should be required – that local governments protect its citizens in every way possible.

Is your data protected? If not, why? Cost? Lack of technology or resources? If these are the excuses we are using, are they valid?

As a property owner, I would expect that my information is protected by my local jurisdiction – that they would make the investment to do this because it is what’s best for me and my neighbors.

Would your citizens be surprised at what they and others can find on your public access website?

If you have questions or just want to find out more about how you can protect the public data on your website, let us know. We have experts on our team that have been doing this for many years.

We have entered the age of “Web 2.0” and social media – Facebook, Twitter, Digg, YouTube, etc. Companies have more ways than ever to get their message in front of their customers – in fact, Manatron utilizes these tools to do just that. As an elected official or county worker, you may be thinking – “I don’t have any use for these things.” Well, that may not be entirely true. Your constituents are your customers – if you don’t effectively communicate with them and provide them with the information they want, when they want it – you put yourself in a position of vulnerability and ultimately jeopardize your chances of re-election. It is important for you to be in control of your message – not the media or bloggers or message board posts.

Many government entities – including the White House – are utilizing the web to communicate with their constituents. Your citizens are becoming more and more web and tech savvy – this means, in order to communicate with them successfully, you need to keep up.

Onvia recently released their Government Market Outlook in which they surveyed over 2400 government execs, managers and purchasing officials in state and local government across the US.  The study discusses the spending trends of local governement from previous years and expectation for 2009.

Some interesting information that they released. Take a look and let us know what you think. Are the findings fairly accurate with what your office is planning to do for 2009? We'd love to hear your feedback.

Did you see the story about the man in South Bend, IN who paid his property tax bill - over $4000 - in change? Talk about a lot of coin...sorry - couldn't resist.

New Haven, CT Tax Collector Hit By Car

Fox 61 WTIC-TV (New Haven, CT) was doing a story on people who owe property tax. While investigating a car with outstanding taxes, the tax collector gets run over by a driver of the car.

A pretty nightmarish situation - but maybe a reason not to confront people face-to-face in order to collect property taxes - just a thought. I'm sure that was not in the plan on this day and they were just going to tow this lady's car, but ultimately, it got out of hand.

Good luck to the rest of you! Don't let this happen to you...

 Watch the video.

All you Tweets out there you can now follow Manatron on Twitter @manatron.  

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Los Angeles Assessor Warns of Property Tax Reassessment Fraud

Check out this news story out of LA County regarding reassessment fraud. I've got to believe this is not the only place these companies are preying on unknowing taxpayers. Is this happening in your jurisdiction?

 Watch the video.

I was eating breakfast this morning, watching the Today Show and what did I see?  Our eGov product in Martin County, FL was used to demonstrate how a bank executive sold his $13M estate to his wife for $100.   Thought you might find it interesting…it was very quick snippet of eGov, but it caught my eye nonetheless.

Watch the video at MSNBC.com 

An entire line of products/publications for every day people on how to purchase Government Foreclosure Property

I really enjoy teaching classes to assessors.  My math teacher background comes in very handy when teaching classes involving statistics or analysis. One of my favorite “ice breakers” to begin a class is the following problem.  I have all the

com•mu•ni•ty (\kə-ˈmyü-nə-tē\ ):  noun
1: a unified body of individuals: as a: STATE, COMMONWEALTH b: the people with common interests living in a particular area; broadly : the area itself c: an interacting population of various kinds of individuals (as species) in a common location d: a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society e: a group linked by a common policy f: a body of persons or nations having a common history or common social, economic, and political interests g: a body of persons of common and especially professional interests scattered through a larger society 2: society at large3 a: joint ownership or participation b: common character : LIKENESS c: social activity : FELLOWSHIP d: a social state or condition

The challenges of the current downturn in the economy are as complex, if not more so, than the skyrocketing economy of the recent past.  Because the assessment process is reactionary instead of proactive, a rapidly changing economy is the most difficult situation that the assessment professional can face.

Well, here we are in 2008 already, I can hardly believe it.  How was 2007 for you?  For me personally, 2007 was a year filled with a lot of joy, but some sorrow too joy because my wife and I

In the first part of "A Property Platform" I introduced GRM iFramework and covered the services it provides. In this, the final part, I will discuss the technologies and building blocks that GRM iFramework provides and wrap it up.  

My dad is always the first person to point out when something is “as good as gold.”  I always think of him saying that phrase this time of year.  Some might suggest that it has something to do with the

As a college student, I studied mathematics and having a background in mathematics brings a special meaning to the word solution.  Like so many fields of study, mathematics provides opportunities to solve problems and typically there are many ways in

It seems that I’ve always been a Jack of All Trades (sometimes called a JOAT) and a master of few if any.  Just ask my wife, she’ll tell you horror stories about some of the things I’ve “fixed” around the house.  But, several years ago when I stumbled into GIS as a career (as everyone did back in the day), I had no idea how much of a demand the GIS industry would place on my JOAT skills.

In the valuation of property for mass appraisal, there are many different opinions on which process is the best.  The desired approach is based on the preferences of the assessor or lead appraiser for the jurisdiction.  Some will argue that the cost approach is most appropriate because it can be uniformly applied to the entire population.  Others will argue that the sales comparison approach is best, because values are based on the interaction of buyers and sellers in the market place.  In some circumstances, the income approach may be thought of as the best process.

It has been ten years since we at Manatron decided to shed a number of our products to focus solely on being the industry leader of property assessment and taxation software solutions. At the time, it seemed a no brainer.