Chapter 6A
DISASTER REASSESSMENT RELIEF
Sections:
6A-5. Written application required.
6A-7. Notice of appeal rights.
6A-9. Computation of taxes upon reassessment.
6A-10. Refund of excess taxes.
6A-1 Title.
This chapter shall be known as the “Colusa County Disaster Reassessment Relief Code.” (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-2 Authorization.
This chapter is adopted pursuant to Revenue and Taxation Code Section 170. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-3 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to allow assessees of any taxable property in Colusa County or any person liable for the taxes thereon whose property was damaged or destroyed without his/her fault to apply for a reassessment of such property as provided in this chapter. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-4 Eligibility.
To be eligible for reassessment, the damage or destruction to the property shall have been caused by any of the following:
(a) A major misfortune or calamity in an area or region subsequently proclaimed by the governor of the state of California to be in a state of disaster, if that property was damaged or destroyed by the major misfortune or calamity that caused the governor to proclaim the area or region to be in a state of disaster. As used in this section, “damage” includes a diminution in the value of property as a result of restricted access to the property where that restricted access was caused by the major misfortune or calamity;
(b) A misfortune or calamity;
(c) A misfortune or calamity that, with respect to a possessory interest in land owned by the state or federal government, has caused the permit or other right to enter upon the land to be suspended or restricted. As used in this section, “misfortune or calamity” includes a drought condition such as existed in this state in 1976 and 1977. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-5 Written application required.
Every assessee or person who suffers a misfortune or calamity which qualifies by virtue of this chapter, in order to be eligible for reassessment, may deliver a written application for reassessment, to be filed within ninety days of the event or twelve months of the misfortune or calamity, whichever is later, by delivering to the assessor a written application requesting reassessment showing the condition and value, if any, of the property immediately after the damage or destruction, and the dollar amount of the damage. The application shall be executed under penalty of perjury, or if executed outside the state of California, verified by affidavit.
The assessor may initiate the reassessment where the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve months, taxable property located in the county was damaged or destroyed. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-6 Duties of the assessor.
(a) Upon receiving a proper application, the assessor shall appraise the property and determine separately the full cash value of land, improvements and personalty immediately before and after the damage or destruction. If the sum of the full cash values of the land, improvements and personalty before the damage or destruction exceeds the sum of the values after the damage by ten thousand dollars or more, the assessor shall also separately determine the percentage reductions in value of land, improvements and personalty due to the damage or destruction. The assessor shall reduce the values appearing on the assessment roll by the percentages of damage or destruction computed pursuant to this chapter, and the taxes due on the property shall be adjusted as provided in Section 6A-9, provided however, that the amount of the reduction shall not exceed the actual loss.
(b) In those cases where written application is not made by the assessee as provided by Section 6A-5, and where the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve months a property has suffered damage caused by misfortune or calamity that may qualify the property owner for relief under this chapter, the assessor shall provide the last known owner of the property with an application for reassessment. The property owner shall file the completed application within sixty days of the date of mailing of notification by the assessor or within twelve months after the occurrence of said damage. Upon receipt of a properly completed and timely filed application, the property shall be reassessed in the same manner as required in this section.
When the assessor does not have the general authority pursuant to subsection (a) of this section to initiate reassessments, if no application is made and the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve months a property has suffered damage caused by misfortune or calamity that may qualify the property owner for relief under this chapter, the assessor may, with the approval of the board of supervisors, reassess the particular property and notify the last known owner of the property of the reassessment. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-7 Notice of appeal rights.
The assessor shall notify the applicant in writing of the amount of the proposed reassessment. The notice shall state that the applicant may appeal the proposed reassessment to the local board of equalization within six months of the date of mailing the notice. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-8 Appeal by applicant.
(a) Any appeal requested by an applicant within six months of the mailing of the notice by the assessor as provided for in Section 6A-7 shall be heard by the local board of equalization who shall decide the matter as if the proposed reassessment had been entered on the roll as an assessment made outside the regular assessment period.
(b) The decision of the board regarding the damaged value of the property shall be final, provided that a decision of the local board of equalization regarding any reassessment made pursuant to this section shall create no presumption as regards the value of the affected property subsequent to the date of the damage.
(c) Those reassessed values resulting from reductions in full cash value of amounts, as determined above, shall be forwarded to the auditor by the assessor or the clerk of the local equalization board, as the case may be. After being entered on the roll, those reassessed values shall not be subject to review, except by a court of competent jurisdiction. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-9 Computation of taxes upon reassessment.
(a) The tax rate fixed for property on the roll on which the property so reassessed appeared at the time of the misfortune or calamity shall be applied to the amount of the reassessment as determined in accordance with this section and the assessee shall be liable for:
(1) A prorated portion of the taxes that would have been due on the property for the current fiscal year had the misfortune or calamity not occurred, to be determined on the basis of the number of months in the current fiscal year prior to the misfortune or calamity; plus
(2) A proration of the tax due on the property as reassessed in its damaged or destroyed condition, such proration to be determined on the basis of the number of months in the fiscal year after the damage or destruction, including the month in which the damage was incurred.
(b) If the damage or destruction occurred after January 1 and before the beginning of the next fiscal year, the reassessment shall be utilized to determine the tax liability for the next fiscal year. However, if the property is fully restored during the next fiscal year, taxes due for that year shall be prorated based on the number of months in the year before and after the completion of restoration. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-10 Refund of excess taxes.
Any tax paid in excess of the total tax due shall be refunded to the taxpayer pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 5096) of part 9 of the California Revenue and Taxation Code, as an erroneously collected tax or by order of the board of supervisors without the necessity of a claim being filed pursuant to Chapter 5. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-11 Review of assessment.
The assessed value of the property in its damaged condition, as determined pursuant to subsection (b) of Section 170 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, compounded annually by the inflation factor specified in subsection (a) of Section 51, shall be the taxable value of the property until it is restored, repaired or reconstructed, or other provisions of the law require the establishment of a new base year value. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)
6A-12 Severability.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this chapter is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions thereof. (Ord. No. 687 (part).)