HF 616 (LSB 1113HZ (2) 86)

HOUSE FILE 616

BY  COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

(SUCCESSOR TO HF 192)
(SUCCESSOR TO HSB 29)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to property tax credits and assessment by modifying filing deadline provisions, modifying requirements relating to property assessment notices and equalization order notices, modifying provisions relating to property assessment protests and assessor informal reviews, and including effective date and applicability provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 426C.3, subsection 2, paragraph a, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  (1)  Claims for the business property tax credit against taxes due and payable in fiscal years beginning before July 1, 2016, shall be filed not later than March 15 preceding the fiscal year during which the taxes for which the credit is claimed are due and payable.
   (2)  Claims for the business property tax credit against taxes due and payable in fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2016, shall be filed not later than July 1 preceding the fiscal year during which the taxes for which the credit is claimed are due and payable.
    Sec. 2.  Section 441.26, subsection 1, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  The director of revenue shall each year prescribe the form of assessment roll to be used by all assessors in assessing property, in this state, also the form of pages of the assessor’s assessment book. The assessment rolls shall be in a form that will permit entering, separately, the names of all persons assessed, and shall also contain a notice in substantially the following form:
  If you are not satisfied that the foregoing assessment is correct, you may contact the assessor on or after April 1 2, to and including May 4 April 25, of the year of the assessment to request an informal review of the assessment pursuant to section 441.30.

  If you are not satisfied that the foregoing assessment is correct, you may file a protest against such assessment with the board of review on or after April 7 2, to and including May 5 April 30, of the year of the assessment, such protest to be confined to the grounds specified in section 441.37.

Dated:  .. day of ... (month), .. (year)

...........

County/City Assessor.
    Sec. 3.  Section 441.26, subsection 2, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  The notice in 1981 and each odd-numbered year thereafter shall contain a statement that the assessments are subject to equalization pursuant to an order issued by the director of revenue, that the county auditor shall give notice on or before October 15 8 by publication in an official newspaper of general circulation to any class of property affected by the equalization order, that the county auditor shall give notice by mail postmarked on or before October 8 to each property owner or taxpayer whose valuation has been increased by the equalization order, and that the board of review shall be in session from October 15 10 to November 15 to hear protests of affected property owners or taxpayers whose valuations have been adjusted by the equalization order.
    Sec. 4.  Section 441.28, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   441.28  Assessment rolls —— change —— notice to taxpayer.

   The assessment shall be completed not later than April 1 each year. If the assessor makes any change in an assessment after it has been entered on the assessor’s rolls, the assessor shall note on the roll, together with the original assessment, the new assessment and the reason for the change, together with the assessor’s signature and the date of the change. Provided, however, in the event the assessor increases any assessment the assessor shall give notice of the increase in writing to the taxpayer by mail postmarked no later than April 1. No changes shall be made on the assessment rolls after April 1 except by written agreement of the taxpayer and assessor under section 441.30, by order of the board of review or of the property assessment appeal board, or by decree of court.
    Sec. 5.  Section 441.30, subsections 1 and 2, Code 2015, are amended to read as follows:
   1.  Any property owner or aggrieved taxpayer who is dissatisfied with the owner’s or taxpayer’s assessment may contact the assessor by telephone or in writing by paper or electronic medium on or after April 1 2, to and including May 4 April 25, of the year of the assessment to inquire about the specifics and accuracy of the assessment. Such an inquiry may also include a request for an informal review of the assessment by the assessor under one or more of the grounds for protest authorized under section 441.37 for the same assessment year.
   2.  In response to an inquiry under subsection 1, if the assessor, following an informal review, determines that the assessment was incorrect under one or more of the grounds for protest authorized under section 441.37 for the same assessment year, the assessor may, on or before April 25, recommend that the property owner or aggrieved taxpayer file a protest with the local board of review and may file a recommendation with the local board of review related to the informal review, or may enter into a signed written agreement with the property owner or aggrieved taxpayer authorizing the assessor to correct or modify the assessment according to the agreement of the parties.
    Sec. 6.  Section 441.35, subsection 2, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  In any year after the year in which an assessment has been made of all of the real estate in any taxing district, the board of review shall meet as provided in section 441.33, and where the board finds the same has changed in value, the board shall revalue and reassess any part or all of the real estate contained in such taxing district, and in such case, the board shall determine the actual value as of January 1 of the year of the revaluation and reassessment and compute the taxable value thereof. If the assessment of any such property is raised, or any property is added to the tax list by the board, the clerk shall give notice in the manner provided in section 441.36. However, if the assessment of If all property in any taxing district is raised revalued and reassessed, the board may shall, in addition to notices required to be provided in the manner specified in section 441.36, instruct the clerk to give immediate notice by one publication in one of the official newspapers located in the taxing district, and such published notice shall take the place of the mailed notice provided for in section 441.36, but all other provisions of that section shall apply. The decision of the board as to the foregoing matters shall be subject to appeal to the property assessment appeal board within the same time and in the same manner as provided in section 441.37A and to the district court within the same time and in the same manner as provided in section 441.38.
    Sec. 7.  Section 441.37, subsection 1, paragraph a, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:

   Any property owner or aggrieved taxpayer who is dissatisfied with the owner’s or taxpayer’s assessment may file a protest against such assessment with the board of review on or after April 7 2, to and including May 5 April 30, of the year of the assessment. In any county which has been declared to be a disaster area by proper federal authorities after March 1 and prior to May 20 of said year of assessment, the board of review shall be authorized to remain in session until June 15 and the time for filing a protest shall be extended to and include the period from May 25 to June 5 of such year. The protest shall be in writing and, except as provided in subsection 3, signed by the one protesting or by the protester’s duly authorized agent. The taxpayer may have an oral hearing on the protest if the request for the oral hearing is made in writing at the time of filing the protest. The protest must be confined to one or more of the following grounds:
    Sec. 8.  Section 441.37, subsection 3, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  For assessment years beginning on or after January 1, 2014, the board of review may allow property owners or aggrieved taxpayers who are dissatisfied with the owner’s or taxpayer’s assessment to file a protest against such assessment by electronic means. Electronic filing of assessment protests may be authorized for the protest period that begins April 7 2, the protest period that begins October 15 9, or both. Except for the requirement that a protest be signed, all other requirements of this section for an assessment protest to the board of review shall apply to a protest filed electronically. If electronic filing is authorized by the local board of review, the availability of electronic filing shall be clearly indicated on the assessment roll notice provided to the property owner or taxpayer and included in both the published equalization order notice and the equalization order notice mailed to the property owner or taxpayer if applicable.
    Sec. 9.  Section 441.49, subsections 2 and 4, Code 2015, are amended to read as follows:
   2.  a.  On or before October 15 8 the county auditor shall cause to be published in official newspapers of general circulation the final equalization order.  The county auditor shall also notify each property owner or taxpayer whose valuation has been increased by the final equalization order by mail postmarked on or before October 8. The publication and the individual notice mailed to each property owner or taxpayer whose valuation has been increased shall include, in type larger than the remainder of the publication or notice, the following statement statements:
  Assessed values are equalized by the department of revenue every two years. Local taxing authorities determine the final tax levies and may reduce property tax rates to compensate for any increase in valuation due to equalization.  If you are not satisfied that your assessment as adjusted by the equalization order is correct, you may file a protest against such assessment with the board of review on or after October 9, to and including October 31.

   b.  Failure to publish the equalization order or to notify property owners or taxpayers of the equalization order has no effect upon the validity of the orders.
   4.  The local board of review shall reconvene in special session from October 15 10 to November 15 for the purpose of hearing the protests of affected property owners or taxpayers within the jurisdiction of the board whose valuation of property if adjusted pursuant to the equalization order issued by the director of revenue will result in a greater value than permitted under section 441.21. The board of review shall accept protests only during the first ten days following the date the local board of review reconvenes period of time from October 9, to and including October 31. The board of review shall limit its review to only the timely filed protests. The board of review may adjust all or a part of the percentage increase ordered by the director of revenue by adjusting the actual value of the property under protest to one hundred percent of actual value. Any adjustment so determined by the board of review shall not exceed the percentage increase provided for in the director’s equalization order. The determination of the board of review on filed protests is final, subject to appeal to the property assessment appeal board. A final decision by the local board of review, or the property assessment appeal board, if the local board’s decision is appealed, is subject to review by the director of revenue for the purpose of determining whether the board’s actions substantially altered the equalization order. In making the review, the director has all the powers provided in chapter 421, and in exercising the powers the director is not subject to chapter 17A. Not later than fifteen days following the adjournment of the board, the board of review shall submit to the director of revenue, on forms prescribed by the director, a report of all actions taken by the board of review during this session.
    Sec. 10.  IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT.  Section 25B.2, subsection 3, shall not apply to this Act.
    Sec. 11.  EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT.  The following provision of this Act, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment:
   1.  The section of this Act amending section 426C.3.
    Sec. 12.  APPLICABILITY.  Except for the section of this Act amending section 426C.3, this Act applies to assessment years beginning on or after January 1, 2016.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with

the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to property tax credits and assessment by modifying filing deadline provisions, modifying provisions relating to property assessment notices and equalization order notices, and by modifying provisions relating to property assessment protests and assessor informal reviews.
   Current Code section 426C.3 requires claims for the business property tax credit to be filed not later than March 15 preceding the fiscal year during which the taxes for which the credits is claimed are due and payable. The bill provides that claims for the business property tax credit against taxes due and payable in fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2016, shall be filed not later than July 1 preceding the fiscal year during which the taxes for which the credit is claimed are due and payable.
   Current Code section 441.30 allows a property owner or taxpayer to contact the assessor to inquire about the specifics and accuracy of the assessment and to request an informal review of the assessment on or after April 1 to and including May 4 of the assessment year. The bill modifies that period of time to be on or after April 2 to and including April 25. The bill also authorizes a change to the assessment on or before April 25 if the owner or taxpayer enters into a written agreement with the assessor. This authority is in addition to the assessor’s current authority to recommend that the taxpayer file a protest with the local board of review and file a recommendation in regards to such a protest.
   The bill also modifies the period of time for filing an assessment protest with the local board of review from the current April 7 to May 5, to a period of time beginning April 2 to and including April 30. 
   Current Code section 441.26 requires notices of equalization orders to be published in the newspaper on or before October 15. The bill modifies the publication deadline for equalization order notices to October 8 and requires that individual notices be mailed by October 8 to each owner or taxpayer whose valuation has been increased by the equalization order. The bill provides that the notice shall contain the statement currently required in published notices and amends Code section 441.49 to also require that the notice contain a statement of the owner’s or taxpayer’s ability to file with the local board of review a protest against an assessment adjusted by the equalization order.
   The bill also amends Code section 441.49 to modify the period of time for taxpayer protests of an equalization order and the dates of the local board of review’s session to hear such protests. Current law allows such protests to be filed on or after October 15, to and including October 25. The bill makes the period of time for filing a protest from October 9 to October 31. The bill changes the dates during which the local board is in session to hear assessment protests resulting from equalization orders to be October 10 to November 15 (previously October 15 to November 15). 
   Code section 441.35, subsection 2, also authorizes the local board of review to provide notice to taxpayers by publication in one of the official newspapers located in the taxing district if the local board of review raises the assessment of all property in a taxing district during the local board of review’s session in an even-numbered assessment year. The bill modifies this provision to require, in addition to individual owner or taxpayer notices, notice by publication if all property in the taxing district is revalued and reassessed. 
   The bill amends Code section 441.37 to require individual assessment notices and published notices resulting from an equalization order to include information on the availability of electronic filing of protests if electronic filing is authorized by the local board of review. 
   The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code section 25B.3. The bill makes inapplicable Code section 25B.2, subsection 3, which would relieve a political subdivision from complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of the state mandate is not provided or specified. Therefore, political subdivisions are required to comply with any state mandate included in the bill.
   The section of the bill amending Code section 426C.3 takes effect upon enactment.
   Except for the section of the bill amending Code section 426C.3, the bill applies to assessment years beginning on or after January 1, 2016.