Current source roster
Tulsa County Assessor
County assessor
December 1, 2018–present; verified October 2026
Official biography supplies start day and 2022 reelection. Third-term qualification is attributed; no future term treated as already begun.
People / Government & civic life
John A. Wright
Tulsa County Assessor
A former state legislator whose county office assigns property values, administers exemptions and helps shape the tax base supporting local public institutions.
John A. Wright is Tulsa County’s assessor, an elected official who took office on December 1, 2018, after working on his predecessor’s executive staff. His office determines values used in property taxation; separate institutions set levies and collect the money. Wright also serves on the Tulsa County Budget Board, giving him a vote in collective county spending decisions as well as responsibility for the assessment system.
Legislative experience followed by assessment work
Wright’s official biography lists a B.S. in marketing from Jacksonville University and service representing House District 76 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1998 through 2010. It dates his Administrative Rules Committee chairmanship to 2005–2010 and his majority-caucus chairmanship to 2006–2010. He subsequently spent eight years on the previous assessor’s executive staff before becoming assessor himself. A June 2018 endorsement by Michael Bates identified Wright as Ken Yazel’s chief deputy, providing a contemporaneous description of that professional relationship.
Career & public service
- 1998–2010
State legislative service
Represents House District 76; later chairs the Administrative Rules Committee and majority caucus.
- 2011
Assessment accreditation
Official biography dates initial accreditation to February and advanced accreditation to June.
- October 2016
County-assessor certification
Completes OSU county training program requirements, according to the official biography.
- September 2018
Professional designation
Receives the international association’s Assessment Administration Specialist designation.
- December 1, 2018
Takes office as assessor
Moves from the previous assessor’s staff to the elected office.
- January 2022
Chief-deputy appointment
Contemporaneous report announces Mark Liotta’s appointment.
- 2022
Reelection
Official biography records reelection.
- 2024
Association leadership
Official biography records election by fellow assessors to the state association presidency.
- January 20, 2026
Budget Board motion
Moves to release Visual Inspection Fees reserves; motion passes.
People, institutions and the relationships between them
Following the connections
Each step below represents a documented relationship. Dates and roles belong to the individual links; a path can span different periods.
public officeTulsa County Assessor
personJohn A. Wright
public boardTulsa County Budget Board
The elected office and person remain distinct. The board connection documents shared budget authority.
governmentOklahoma House of Representatives
personJohn A. Wright
personKen Yazel
Historical service and employment explain the transition into county assessment; no ongoing coordination inferred.
professional associationInternational Association of Assessing Officers
personJohn A. Wright
professional associationCounty Assessor Association of Oklahoma
Professional designation and a dated association election are different forms of connection.
Documented relationships
8 documented relationships · Historical and current roles remain distinct.
Historical record
Oklahoma House of Representatives
House District 76 representative
1998–2010
Official biography gives years; exact first and last day not established.
Current source roster
Tulsa County Budget Board
Budget Board member
FY 2025–2026 roster; January 20, 2026 participation
Office-based collective budget role, distinct from valuation authority.
Historical record
Jacksonville University
B.S. in marketing
Graduation year not verified
Institutional self-description; no transcript obtained.
Historical record
International Association of Assessing Officers
Assessment Administration Specialist
Conferred September 2018
Credential award, not employment or a university degree.
Historical record
County Assessor Association of Oklahoma
Elected association president
2024 election
Dated election reported by official biography; not a claim that he remains president in 2026.
Historical record
Greater Tulsa Association of Realtors
Reported real-estate association affiliation
1998–2010
Historical association only. Inactive broker license does not establish current business ownership or income.
Historical record
Ken Yazel
Former chief deputy to Ken Yazel
Documented June 2018, before succeeding Yazel
Reporting relationship, not evidence of present coordination; exact appointment date unverified.
When residents disputed lower valuations
KTUL reported in January 2020 that Crosbie Heights residents objected to sharply reduced land valuations. Resident Fletcher Stewart attributed the change to a developer’s successful protests and said he intended to appeal for a higher valuation; then-Councilor Kara Joy McKee also questioned the figures. Wright defended the office’s work as a reflection of sales evidence and equitable treatment, and discussed homelessness nearby as a possible market influence. Those are the participants’ competing explanations, not independently established causes. The report does not establish the outcome of Stewart’s proposed appeal. The dispute illustrates why a lower assessment can still trouble residents concerned about their neighborhood’s recorded value.
Where other offices enter the process
The county’s FY 2025–2026 budget describes the institutional chain: the assessor converts valuations to assessed values, the Tulsa County Excise Board calculates levies, and the assessor certifies the tax roll to the treasurer for collection. John Fothergill’s treasury then distributes revenues to schools, local governments, Tulsa Community College, Tulsa Technology Center and the library system. Wright’s assessment work therefore connects to a broad set of educational and civic institutions without giving him control over their budgets. His Budget Board vote is a separate responsibility from the assessor’s work of valuing a parcel.
Professional credentials and real-estate experience
The biography records initial assessor accreditation in February 2011, advanced accreditation in June 2011 and completion of the Oklahoma State University county-assessor certification requirements in October 2016. It dates his International Association of Assessing Officers Assessment Administration Specialist designation to September 2018. These are professional credentials, distinct from his university degree. The same biography describes a real-estate broker’s license maintained on inactive status and affiliation with the Greater Tulsa Association of Realtors from 1998 to 2010. Neither statement establishes a current brokerage business, ownership interest or stream of private income.
A statewide professional role
His official biography says fellow assessors elected him president of their state association in 2024. That is a dated leadership event, rather than a claim that he remains president today. The County Assessor Association of Oklahoma separately lists him as Tulsa County’s current assessor. His office describes an employee-training policy that extends advanced-accreditation coursework across the staff, alongside encouragement to pursue further study through the international association. These connections place the office within a professional training network; they do not establish that the associations direct individual Tulsa valuations.
A deputy appointment with institutional continuity
In January 2022, the Tulsa Beacon reported Wright’s appointment of Mark Liotta as chief deputy. Liotta had joined the office in September 2021 with human-resources responsibilities and had previously chaired the Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission. He also had served in the Oklahoma House from 1996 to 2006 and as its Republican caucus chairman. The report said Leisa Weintraub, the preceding chief deputy, would continue as general counsel. This appointment brought another former legislative leader into the assessor’s administration. The dated announcement establishes that transition, without assuming the same personnel assignments continue indefinitely.
A recorded budget decision
At the January 20, 2026 Budget Board meeting, Wright moved to release reserves in the Visual Inspection Fees fund after the budget director reported that nearly all projected revenue had been collected. Fothergill seconded the motion, and all seven members or representatives present voted yes. The same minutes record Wright voting to elect Fothergill vice chair and to approve additional sheriff’s vehicle-repair funding. These are identifiable decisions with recorded outcomes. They establish participation in collective action, rather than unilateral authority over those funds or evidence of personal financial benefit.
Public explanations and avenues for challenge
In a March 2026 Value News account, Wright distinguished assessment notices from tax bills and encouraged owners to challenge valuations they believed were inaccurate. The assessor’s published tax guide describes review through the assessor and the Tulsa County Board of Equalization, followed by a possible court appeal. The office’s outreach brochure also describes presentations for neighborhood associations, professional groups, chambers, churches and real-estate agencies about valuation, exemptions and protest procedures. Such outreach is a public service described by the office; it does not demonstrate a private affiliation with every group attending a presentation.
Election history and documented political support
The official biography records Wright’s 2022 reelection and says the 2026 election cycle qualified him for a third term; that is the office’s account, not a statement that the next term has already begun. Bates endorsed Wright in June 2018 and reported support from outgoing assessor Yazel, framing Wright as a continuation of his predecessor’s approach. The Tulsa Beacon separately endorsed Wright in June 2022. These sources document political support. They do not establish campaign contributions, and their favorable assessments of his performance remain the endorsers’ opinions.
Check the record
Sources & corrections
Research checked 2026-10-16. Roles and financial figures retain their source dates. Sections appear only when supported material is available; an omitted section is not a finding that no such relationship exists.
- Tulsa County FY 2025–2026 budget ↗
primary · Source date 2025-06-09 · Checked 2026-10-15
PDF pp.4,60,62 (printed pp.2,58,60): Budget Board, assessor and treasurer responsibilities. Historical adopted budget, not FY2026–27 actual spending.
- Tulsa County Budget Board — January 20, 2026 minutes ↗
primary · Source date 2026-01-20 · Checked 2026-10-15
February17 agenda packet PDF pp.2–3, January20 minutes items III and VI.B, VI.E. Vice-chair election and recorded votes.
- Tulsa County Assessor — Our Office ↗
self-description · Checked 2026-10-16
About the Assessor, Assessment Process and Appraiser Accreditation; read directly in browser October 16. Institutional biography; degree year unspecified.
- Tulsa County Assessor — official homepage ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-16
John A Wright, AAS — Assessor; responsibility statement and named portrait; verified directly in browser October 15–16.
- County Assessor Association of Oklahoma — current assessors ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-16
Tulsa entry: John A Wright. Cross-check of current office identity.
- Tulsa County Assessor — Community Outreach Program ↗
self-description · Source date 2023-08 · Checked 2026-10-16
Office-authored brochure hosted by Tulsa Chapter OSCPA, revision 08-23; PDF pp.1–2. Historical program description.
- KTUL — Crosbie Heights residents stunned by low land values ↗
independent-reporting · Source date 2020-01-01 · Checked 2026-10-16
Burt Mummolo, January 1, 2020: residents’ objections, Wright response and proposed appeal. No later disposition established.
- Tulsa Beacon — Mark Liotta is chief deputy for the Tulsa County Assessor ↗
independent-reporting · Source date 2022-01-13 · Checked 2026-10-16
January 13, 2022 appointment report; contemporaneous roles and career, not proof of ongoing 2026 tenure.
- BatesLine — John Wright for Tulsa County Assessor ↗
primary · Source date 2018-06-10 · Checked 2026-10-16
Michael Bates June 10, 2018 endorsement; identifies chief-deputy role and reports Yazel endorsement. Opinion source, not performance audit.
- Tulsa Beacon — endorsements ↗
primary · Source date 2022-06-16 · Checked 2026-10-16
June 16, 2022, Tulsa County Assessor — Republican section; outlet’s own endorsement.
- Value News — Property Assessments ↗
independent-reporting · Source date 2026-03 · Checked 2026-10-16
March 2026 account quoting Wright on assessment, appeal and taxation boundaries; claims attributed.
- Tulsa County Assessor — Guide to Property Taxes ↗
primary · Checked 2026-10-16
PDF p.5, remedies: assessor, Board of Equalization, court. Indexed original text read; direct download403.