Iowa General Assembly Banner

 
Text: SSB00050                          Text: SSB00052
Text: SSB00000 - SSB00099               Text: SSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

Senate Study Bill 51

Conference Committee Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Section 1.  Section 427.9, Code 1995, is amended to read as
  1  2 follows:
  1  3    427.9  SUSPENSION OF TAXES, ASSESSMENTS, AND RATES OR
  1  4 CHARGES, INCLUDING INTEREST, FEES, AND COSTS.
  1  5    If a person is a recipient of federal supplementary
  1  6 security income or state supplementary assistance, as defined
  1  7 in section 249.1, or is a resident of a health care facility,
  1  8 as defined by section 135C.1, which is receiving payment from
  1  9 the department of human services for the person's care, the
  1 10 person shall be deemed to be unable to contribute to the
  1 11 public revenue.  The director of human services shall notify
  1 12 the board of supervisors of the county in which the assisted
  1 13 person owns parcels, as defined in section 445.1, of the fact,
  1 14 giving a statement of a person receiving such assistance of
  1 15 the tax suspension provision and shall provide the person with
  1 16 evidence to present to the appropriate county board of
  1 17 supervisors which shows the person's eligibility for tax
  1 18 suspension on parcels owned, possessed, or upon which the
  1 19 person is paying taxes as a purchaser under contract.  The
  1 20 board of supervisors so notified, without the filing of a
  1 21 petition and statement as specified in section 427.8, shall
  1 22 order the county treasurer to suspend the collection of all
  1 23 the taxes, special assessments, and rates or charges,
  1 24 including interest, fees, and costs, assessed against the
  1 25 parcels and remaining unpaid by the person or contractually
  1 26 payable by the person, for such time as the person remains the
  1 27 owner or contractually prospective owner of the parcels, and
  1 28 during the period the person receives assistance as described
  1 29 in this section.  The director of human services shall advise
  1 30 the person that the person may apply for an additional
  1 31 property tax credit pursuant to sections 425.16 to 425.39
  1 32 which shall be credited against the amount of the taxes
  1 33 suspended.  
  1 34                           EXPLANATION
  1 35    This bill removes the requirement that the department of
  2  1 human services notify the appropriate county boards of
  2  2 supervisors to suspend taxes when a landowner or a person
  2  3 purchasing land under contract in the county receives state
  2  4 payment for care either as a recipient of supplemental
  2  5 security income or state supplementary assistance, or as a
  2  6 resident of a health care facility.  Under the bill the
  2  7 recipient of state payment for care is now responsible for
  2  8 notification of the board of supervisors.  
  2  9                      BACKGROUND STATEMENT
  2 10                     SUBMITTED BY THE AGENCY
  2 11    Currently the department of human services (DHS) is respon-
  2 12 sible for notifying the county board of supervisors in a
  2 13 county in which a client owns property and receives either
  2 14 supplemental security income (SSI) or state supplementary
  2 15 assistance (SSA) or is a resident of a health care facility
  2 16 and the state is paying for care so that taxes can be
  2 17 suspended.  Several problems exist for the department in
  2 18 complying with this requirement.  Due to federal regulations
  2 19 on confidentiality, the DHS cannot automatically forward names
  2 20 of property owners who receive the above listed benefits to
  2 21 the counties.  Also, because SSI eligibility is determined by
  2 22 SSA, financial information is not readily available to the DHS
  2 23 to determine if the recipient owns property and its location.
  2 24    To comply with both the Iowa Code on tax suspension and
  2 25 with federal regulations on confidentiality, the income
  2 26 maintenance worker is required to send out a notice to the
  2 27 client about tax suspension.  The client is to indicate on
  2 28 this form if they own property on which taxes can be
  2 29 suspended, location of the property, and if they want their
  2 30 taxes suspended.  The income maintenance worker forwards the
  2 31 notice to the appropriate county board of supervisors.  If the
  2 32 client later becomes ineligible for any of the above listed
  2 33 benefits, the income maintenance worker must then send notice
  2 34 to the appropriate county board of supervisors to terminate
  2 35 the suspension of taxes.
  3  1    As this is not a federally mandated procedure and as it is
  3  2 not a condition of eligibility for the programs administered
  3  3 by DHS, the requirement should be changed so that DHS will
  3  4 provide the information to all recipients about this
  3  5 provision, but it shall be the client's responsibility to
  3  6 contact the county to have taxes suspended.  The counties
  3  7 would have to determine the method by which they would
  3  8 determine when tax suspensions should be lifted.  The
  3  9 enactment of this bill would reduce DHS worker time spent on
  3 10 programs not required for eligibility for DHS-administered
  3 11 programs.
  3 12    It should be noted that the DHS is also required to notify
  3 13 clients about tax credits, but that the clients are
  3 14 responsible to contact the county in order to apply for such
  3 15 credit.  
  3 16 LSB 1291DP 76
  3 17 cl/jw/5
     
Text: SSB00050                          Text: SSB00052
Text: SSB00000 - SSB00099               Text: SSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index
Return To Home Iowa General Assembly

index Search: Senate Bills and Amendments (76th General Assembly)

© 1996 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa

Comments? webmaster@legis.iowa.gov.

Last update: Thu Feb 8 16:38:58 CST 1996
URL: /DOCS/GA/76GA/Legislation/SSB/00000/SSB00051/950125.html
jhf