On Thursday evening, the Carbon County Republican Party held a Meet the Candidate event to introduce those running for the assessor’s office.
Candidates Amy Schmidt-Peters and Gillan Bishop began their portion of the event by introducing themselves in front of the audience at the Carbon County Administration Building.
Schmidt-Peters began her introduction by announcing that she was born and raised in Carbon County by her father who was a republican coal miner. She mentioned that with her work experience she has lead teams, ran large budgets and is a “fixer” by nature.
“I’m here to serve you,” said Schmidt-Peters. “I just want to fix the office.”
Bishop, the current County Assessor, was up next. Originally from Scotland, Bishop has lived in Carbon County since 2001 when he met his wife at the College of Eastern Utah. Since then, he has raised five of his children in Carbon County, he gained his U.S. citizenship in 2019 and ran for Carbon County assessor in 2020 which he has held ever since. Bishop also mentioned that this year, he will be the only candidate running who has a real estate license in value and property.
“This year, I honestly believe bringing experience and understanding of the role of the assessor is critical to maintain both continuity and to move us forward to a positive place,” said Bishop.
One question submitted was “What professional experience or qualifications do you believe you bring to this position?”
Schmidt-Peters explained that ever since her college years, in which she worked her way up to a doctorates degree, she has wanted to be an accountant. While deployed in Korea, she worked on the base in the finance department. She has worked several jobs while moving around after Korea that dealt with budgets. Over the last nine years, she has been in a role at Utah State University where she has gained leadership experience by leading teams in multi-billion dollar assets, along with state budgets.
Bishop pointed out for education, he has Master of Business Administration. He also has completed thousands of residential homes evaluations as well as commercial. He stated that most of his work has been done with Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT).
“I do think I am bringing expertise in this field,” said Bishop. “I’m bringing education that is specific for this and experience that I have dedicated for myself, as this will be my career.”
Another question submitted was “What measurements would you take to enhance the accuracy, efficiency and effectiveness of the assessor office?”
Schmidt-Peters responded that the assessor’s office already has four staff members that like to do their job and want to do it well.
“I want to be part of that team. I think we could make a great team together and provide Carbon County what they need with fair assessment across their property,” said Schmidt-Peters.
Schmidt-Peters also made a point that it is necessary for the assessor to be in the office for the public to come in for discussions, which she plans on executing if elected.
Bishop expressed with concern that while the assessors at the state level are helpful, the state can also make decisions broadly, which the elected assessor would need to be aware of and be able to push back. According to Bishop, an example would be last year, the state made a decision to increase the value within the county by 25%.
“The assessor needs to be able to have the training and experience to look at that critically,” said Bishop. “That is something that [I’m] 100% committed to do.”
Both candidates were questioned over an hour during the meet the candidates event with questions varying from accountability in the office to positive work environment strategy. To watch the full event, click here.
In closing comments, Schmidt-Peters explained that running for office is an experience that is new to her but she brings 15 plus years of financial and reconciliation experience to the table.
“I like to do what is right. Trust and transparency is what you’re going to get with me,” concluded Schmidt-Peters.
In Bishop’s closing comment, he highlighted several of the positive waves he has made as serving as Carbon County’s Assessor. He worked on passing HB520, the fallow land amendments that protects the farmers green belt status and he pushed back against HB270, multi-county appraisal trust modifications that would potentially halt assessments from being set locally.
