A tax court judge rejected assessor Penny Holenstein's attempt to dismiss the case on grounds it was a "frivolous" action, the Herald reported
MORRISTOWN -- A state tax court judge has ruled that a citizen activist may pursue his attempt to increase the property tax assessment on the Sussex County home of the tax assessor for four towns, according to an account in the New Jersey Herald.
The activist, Jesse Wolosky of Sparta, who has frequently challenged municipal and county officials' actions in court, contends that assessor Penny Holenstein's home in Fredon is under-assessed.
She is the tax assessor for the municipalities of Green, Byram and Stillwater in Sussex County, and Liberty Township in Warren County, according to the Herald.
The 3,300-square-foot colonial on 6.3 acres on a Fredon cul-de-sac, with a swimming pool, barn and backyard view of the Pocono Mountains, was under-assessed at $437,600, according to Wolosky.
During a Tax Court of New Jersey hearing on Friday in Morristown, Judge Vito Bianco rejected a motion by Holenstein and her husband, Michael, to have Wolosky's tax appeal dismissed, the Herald reported.
Bianco ordered the couple to allow an inspection of their home by an independent appraiser chosen by Wolosky, the newspaper said.
In an email to NJ Advance Media, Wolosky praised the judge's decision.
"This was a good day for New Jersey citizens," Wolosky said. "We can hold tax assessors and other government employees to the same scrutiny in property tax valuations that the average tax-paying property owners have to go through."
Holenstein was unavailable for comment on Sunday. But in the court appearance on Friday, she and her husband, Michael, tried to have the case dismissed on grounds it was a "frivolous" action, according to the Herald.
Holenstein's attorney, Deborah Rosenthal, said Wolosky was trying to "harass" Holenstein because of her handling of his tax appeal on a property he owns in Green Township, one of the municipalities where Holenstein is an assessor, the Herald said.
Bianco denied that request, however, saying that if Wolosky can prove Holenstein is under-assessed, "then the case is not frivolous, no matter what the motivations are," the Herald reported.
Wolosky appealed the case to the state tax board after losing his bid to raise the assessor's taxes at the county level.
Wolosky, in another email, said that before the hearing, he and his attorney, Matthew Petracca, tried to settle the case by increasing the Holensteins' assessment to $502,000.
However, he said, "They came back with outrageous conditions," including "I should pay for their attorney fees, apologize, dismiss my case and not talk about Penny's different positions in different municipalities at public meetings."
"They did not want to take our offer because they thought they would win the case, but as it turned out they lost on all points," Wolosky said.
Ben Horowitz may be reached at bhorowitz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @HorowitzBen. Find NJ.com on Facebook.