Code of Ethics & Standards of Professional Conduct

The purpose of the Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct is to establish ethical and professional guidelines for assessing officers and other members of the Association of Municipal Assessors of New Jersey, and to provide standards by which AMANJ members whose conduct may be in question are judged.

CODE OF ETHICS

Members of the AMANJ shall conduct themselves in a manner that will reflect favorably upon themselves, the assessing profession, the property tax system, and the Association of Municipal Assessors of New Jersey.  Members shall avoid any action which may discredit themselves or these entities:

1) PERFORMANCE:
Perform their duties in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, and apply them uniformly and fairly.  Perform all appraisal and other assessment-related assignments to the best of their abilities, and in accordance with the professional standards of the AMANJ.

2) SELF-IMPROVEMENT:
Strive to increase knowledge and improve professional skills through continued education.

3) ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND RECORDS:
Make available all public records in their custody for review, unless access to such records is specifically limited or prohibited by law, or the information has been obtained on a confidential basis and the law permits such information to be treated confidentially.  Attempt to inform the public about its rights and responsibilities under the law and the property tax system.

4) RESPECTFUL ATTITUDE:
Maintain an open, courteous, and respectful attitude in their dealings with the public and require the same conduct of their subordinates.

5) PUBLIC OFFICIALS:
Cooperate with public officials to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the property tax system, in particular, and public administration in general.

6) CONDUCT AND PROPRIETY:
Conduct their duties and activities in a manner that will reflect credit upon themselves and their profession.  Members shall avoid the appearance of impropriety.

7) PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS:
Claim no professional designation unless authorized by the conferring organization, whether the claim be verbal or written, nor claim qualifications that are not factual or may be misleading.

8) RECOGNITION:
Give full credit to the source of any materials quoted or cited in writings or speeches .

9) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES:
Accept no appraisal, real estate listing or selling assignment or other assessment-related activity that could reasonably be construed as being in conflict, or giving the appearance of conflict, with their responsibilities to their jurisdiction, employer or client.  Accept no appraisal, real estate listing or selling assignment in which they have an unrevealed personal interest or bias, or which they are not qualified to perform.  It shall be improper for an assessing officer to represent a taxpayer in any manner, in any jurisdiction, concerning the determination of assessments.

10) CONTINGENT COMPENSATION:
Accept no appraisal assignment for which their compensation, or that of their employer, is contingent upon or influenced by any condition that could impair their objectivity including, but not limited to: reporting a predetermined value; the amount of the value estimate; reporting a predetermined opinion, conclusion, or recommendation; any other similar action or result.

It is not the purpose of this standard to prohibit the acceptance of all contingency assignments.  It does, however, prohibit the acceptance of contingency assignments for the performance of appraisals where a member is required to render an opinion of value or to testify thereto.

11) ADVERTISING AND/OR SOLICITATION:
Use no advertising or promotion to solicit assessment-related assignments that are not totally accurate and truthful.  Avoid using misleading claims or promises of relief which could lead to loss of confidence in appraisal or assessment professionals by the public.

12) REPORTING UNETHICAL PRACTICES:
Report to the Chairperson of the AMANJ Ethics Committee any unethical practices or other actions by AMANJ members, which could reflect discredit upon the AMANJ, or upon the appraisal or assessment profession.

13) AMANJ AND ITS OFFICIALS:
Cooperate fully with the Board of Directors, the Ethics Committee, and the AMANJ staff in all matters relating to the enforcement of this Code.

14) RESPONSIBILITY OF MEMBERSHIP:
Subscribe to the Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct, and the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association of Municipal Assessors of New Jersey as may be amended from time to time.


STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT

The Association of Municipal Assessors of New Jersey has adopted Standards one through six of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice as follows:

  •     In developing an appraisal, an appraiser must be aware of, understand, and correctly employ those recognized methods and techniques that are necessary to produce a credible appraisal;
  •     In reporting the results of an appraisal, an appraiser must communicate each analysis, opinion, and conclusion in a manner that is not misleading;
  •     In reviewing an appraisal and reporting the results of that review, an appraiser must form an opinion as to the adequacy and appropriateness of the report being reviewed, and must clearly disclose the nature of the review process undertaken;
  •     In developing an analysis, an analyst must be aware of, understand, and correctly employ those recognized methods and techniques that are necessary to produce a credible analysis;
  •     In reporting the results of an analysis, an analyst must communicate each analysis, opinion, and conclusion in a manner that is not misleading;
  •     In developing and reporting a mass appraisal for ad valorem tax purposes, an appraiser must be aware of, understand, and correctly employ those recognized methods and techniques that are necessary to produce and communicate credible appraisals within the context of the property tax laws and the constitutional requirement of uniformity.