Who will be the next Plumas County Assessor?
Two colleagues are seeking to become Plumas County’s next assessor: Cindie Froggatt and Amy Hendrickson will be on the June 7 Primary ballot. Froggatt is serving as  assessor after being appointed to the position by the Plumas County Supervisors following the retirement of Chuck Leonhardt.
Plumas News is providing some basic biographical information and their responses to some preliminary questions. They are being presented in alphabetical order.
Cindie Froggatt
Cindie FroggattAge: 58
Occupation: Plumas County Assessor
Family: Tom – Husband of 20 Years, Our children: Travis, Cody, Katie, Kealey &Â Annie
Why are you running to be Plumas County Assessor?
As the current Assessor, I want to continue to serve the citizens of Plumas County fairly and accurately.
What pertinent experience do you bring to the position?
Prior to coming to the Assessor’s office, I was a full charge Bookkeeper which included Customer Service, Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable and Payroll. I came to work for Plumas County as a Fiscal Technician in October 2000. In September 2001, I transferred to the Assessor’s office where my experience helped me promote to Fiscal Officer and Office Manager. In 2016, I was promoted to Assistant Assessor where I began assisting with the Departmental Budget process. Ultimately I became the Assessor in January of 2021.
Name the three most significant challenges that this county is facing and is there a way that the assessor can assist?
In my opinion, the three most significant challenges for Plumas County are economic development, attracting and retaining employees and helping the people affected by the recent wildfires to move forward. The Assessor’s office has been pro-active by assisting the people affected by the recent wildfires in making reductions to values for the structures that were destroyed.
In the wake of the Dixie and Beckwourth Complex fires, has the workload in the office significantly increased with reassessment requests?
The workload in our office increased significantly post fires. Approximately 90% of our workload from the start of the fires through September was assisting taxpayers. With numerous questions regarding their values, where they needed to go for certain services and more. We have also had a tremendous amount of phone calls for address changes so that people can get their taxbills.
Amy Hendrickson
Amy HendricksonAge: 52
Occupation: Chief Appraiser, Plumas County Assessor’s Office
Family: I have three amazing boys; Abe and Cameron, who are grown, both married, living and working away from Quincy. My youngest, Caden, is currently a Senior at Quincy High School. My sister and best friend Kathy Beatty and her husband Mike also live in Quincy.
Why are you running to be Plumas County Assessor?
I have always felt that a strong background in real estate and appraisal work, in addition to quality customer service skills, are vital to running the Assessor’s office. I want to make a difference for my fellow employees by leading with real estate knowledge and comprehension of property tax laws that will enable us to solve complex problems. I want to be the leader who can and will have the hard conversations with taxpayers, employees, and other county departments to solve any issues that may arise. I look forward to being involved as a department head who will lead the county to our next chapter. The last few years have been very difficult. We need strong and consistent leadership.
What pertinent experience do you bring to the position?
I have over 20 years experience in the Plumas County Assessor’s office that began as an Appraisal Assistant. I worked my way through the ranks to become an Appraiser I, Appraiser II, Advanced Appraiser III, and am now the Chief Appraiser. I am familiar with the daily workings of our office and have been instrumental in being able to solve issues that have arisen over the past 20 plus years. I am well versed in property tax laws as they pertain to the Assessor’s Office.
Name the three most significant challenges that this county is facing and is there a way that the assessor can assist?
The three most significant challenges currently facing the County are economic recovery, housing shortages, and communication. The county lost revenue due to the Dixie and Beckworth Fires this past summer. We need to rebuild and capture the new revenue wherever possible. We need to encourage new businesses to come into our communities to help sustain and grow our local economy. The current shortage of housing is affecting the ability of our schools to retain teachers. It is affecting the ability of our business to retain employees.
All three of these challenges go hand in hand. The housing shortage stunts the economic recovery efforts as well as the continued economic growth. We can’t begin to change and improve these issues if we don’t communicate between county departments, the communities, local chambers of commerce, the local business owners, and potential investors.
I believe that the Assessor can be a key player in steering the conversations toward a stronger and prosperous county. We need to work together to correct these issues so that we can grow together.
In the wake of the Dixie and Beckwourth Complex fires, has the workload in the office significantly increased with reassessment requests? Is staff able to cope with the demands?
Yes, the wildfires last summer had a huge impact on our workload in the office. There has been an exponential increase in phone calls, taxpayer foot traffic in the office, and new questions that take time to research and answer. I helped in the Emergency Operations Center while the fires were active which took me away from the office. The staff took turns attending all of the Local Assistance Centers to assist our taxpayers, which took us away from the office and our normal workload. I am currently the Plans and Intel Chief of the Disaster Recovery Operations Center which is an ongoing position and requires weekly participation. This takes me away from the normal workload and duties each week.
Our office was fairly proactive and swift in our response to reassessments due to the loss of structures thanks to our tax system software Megabyte. The team leaders at Megabyte helped guide us through so that there would be a minimal disruption for our taxpayers. Even with the help of Megabyte, because we have been short staffed for sometime, it has caused delays in processing our normal daily duties, answering the more difficult questions as they sometimes require research, and an overall sense of being stretched very thinly. Even though our staff is weary due to the increase in workload, they have been amazing and have risen to the challenge.
