Florida Senate - 2015 CS for CS for SB 972
By the Committees on Appropriations; and Finance and Tax; and
Senators Flores and Margolis
576-04268-15 2015972c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to ad valorem taxation; amending s.
3 192.0105, F.S.; conforming a provision to changes made
4 by the act; amending s. 193.0235, F.S.; revising the
5 definition of the term “common element” for purposes
6 of prorating ad valorem taxes for certain properties
7 under certain circumstances; amending s. 193.122,
8 F.S.; establishing deadlines for value adjustment
9 boards to hear petitions and issue the second tax roll
10 certification; providing applicability; amending s.
11 194.011, F.S.; specifying procedures for filing
12 petitions to the value adjustment board; amending s.
13 194.014, F.S.; revising the entities authorized to
14 determine under certain circumstances that a
15 petitioner owes ad valorem taxes or is owed a refund
16 of overpaid taxes; revising the interest rate upon
17 which unpaid and overpaid ad valorem taxes accrue;
18 defining the term “bank prime loan rate”; amending s.
19 194.015, F.S.; authorizing the district school board
20 and county commission to audit certain expenses of the
21 value adjustment board; amending s. 194.032, F.S.;
22 requiring a property appraiser to notify a petitioner
23 when property record cards are available online;
24 authorizing a property appraiser to reschedule a
25 hearing relating to an assessment; requiring a
26 petitioner and a property appraiser to show good cause
27 to reschedule such hearing; defining the term “good
28 cause”; requiring the clerk to provide certain notice
29 to a petitioner of a rescheduled hearing requested by
30 the petitioner; amending s. 194.034, F.S.; revising
31 the entities that may represent a taxpayer before the
32 value adjustment board; providing effective dates.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. Paragraph (f) of subsection (2) of section
37 192.0105, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
38 192.0105 Taxpayer rights.—There is created a Florida
39 Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights for property taxes and assessments to
40 guarantee that the rights, privacy, and property of the
41 taxpayers of this state are adequately safeguarded and protected
42 during tax levy, assessment, collection, and enforcement
43 processes administered under the revenue laws of this state. The
44 Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights compiles, in one document, brief but
45 comprehensive statements that summarize the rights and
46 obligations of the property appraisers, tax collectors, clerks
47 of the court, local governing boards, the Department of Revenue,
48 and taxpayers. Additional rights afforded to payors of taxes and
49 assessments imposed under the revenue laws of this state are
50 provided in s. 213.015. The rights afforded taxpayers to assure
51 that their privacy and property are safeguarded and protected
52 during tax levy, assessment, and collection are available only
53 insofar as they are implemented in other parts of the Florida
54 Statutes or rules of the Department of Revenue. The rights so
55 guaranteed to state taxpayers in the Florida Statutes and the
56 departmental rules include:
57 (2) THE RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS.—
58 (f) The right, in value adjustment board proceedings, to
59 have all evidence presented and considered at a public hearing
60 at the scheduled time, to be represented by a person specified
61 in s. 194.034(1)(a) an attorney or agent, to have witnesses
62 sworn and cross-examined, and to examine property appraisers or
63 evaluators employed by the board who present testimony (see ss.
64 194.034(1)(a) and (c) and (4), and 194.035(2)).
65 Section 2. Paragraph (d) is added to subsection (2) of
66 section 193.0235, Florida Statutes, to read:
67 193.0235 Ad valorem taxes and non-ad valorem assessments
68 against subdivision property.—
69 (2) As used in this section, the term “common element”
70 includes:
71 (d) Property located within the same county as the
72 subdivision and used for at least 10 years exclusively for the
73 benefit of lot owners within the subdivision.
74 Section 3. Effective July 1, 2017, subsection (3) of
75 section 193.122, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
76 193.122 Certificates of value adjustment board and property
77 appraiser; extensions on the assessment rolls.—
78 (3) When the tax rolls have been extended pursuant to s.
79 197.323, the second certification of the value adjustment board
80 shall reflect all changes made by the board together with any
81 adjustments or changes made by the property appraiser. The value
82 adjustment board must hear all petitions and issue its second
83 certification by June 1 following the year in which the taxes
84 were assessed. If the number of petitions filed increases by
85 more than 10 percent over the prior year, the June 1 deadline is
86 extended until December 1. Upon the value adjustment board’s
87 second such certification, the property appraiser shall
88 recertify the tax rolls with all changes to the collector and
89 shall provide public notice of the date and fact of
90 recertification pursuant to subsection (2).
91 Section 4. The amendment to s. 193.122, Florida Statutes,
92 made by this act first applies to the 2017 tax roll.
93 Section 5. Subsection (3) of section 194.011, Florida
94 Statutes, is amended to read:
95 194.011 Assessment notice; objections to assessments.—
96 (3) A petition to the value adjustment board must be in
97 substantially the form prescribed by the department.
98 Notwithstanding s. 195.022, a county officer may not refuse to
99 accept a form provided by the department for this purpose if the
100 taxpayer chooses to use it. A petition to the value adjustment
101 board must be signed by the taxpayer or accompanied by the
102 taxpayer’s written authorization for representation by a person
103 specified in s. 194.034(1)(a). A written authorization is valid
104 for 1 tax year, and a new written authorization by the taxpayer
105 shall be required for each subsequent tax year. A petition shall
106 also describe the property by parcel number and shall be filed
107 as follows:
108 (a) The property appraiser shall have available and shall
109 distribute forms prescribed by the Department of Revenue on
110 which the petition shall be made. Such petition shall be sworn
111 to by the petitioner.
112 (b) The completed petition shall be filed with the clerk of
113 the value adjustment board of the county, who shall acknowledge
114 receipt thereof and promptly furnish a copy thereof to the
115 property appraiser.
116 (c) The petition shall state the approximate time
117 anticipated by the taxpayer to present and argue his or her
118 petition before the board.
119 (d) The petition may be filed, as to valuation issues, at
120 any time during the taxable year on or before the 25th day
121 following the mailing of notice by the property appraiser as
122 provided in subsection (1). With respect to an issue involving
123 the denial of an exemption, an agricultural or high-water
124 recharge classification application, an application for
125 classification as historic property used for commercial or
126 certain nonprofit purposes, or a deferral, the petition must be
127 filed at any time during the taxable year on or before the 30th
128 day following the mailing of the notice by the property
129 appraiser under s. 193.461, s. 193.503, s. 193.625, s. 196.173,
130 or s. 196.193 or notice by the tax collector under s. 197.2425.
131 (e) A condominium association, cooperative association, or
132 any homeowners’ association as defined in s. 723.075, with
133 approval of its board of administration or directors, may file
134 with the value adjustment board a single joint petition on
135 behalf of any association members who own parcels of property
136 which the property appraiser determines are substantially
137 similar with respect to location, proximity to amenities, number
138 of rooms, living area, and condition. The condominium
139 association, cooperative association, or homeowners’ association
140 as defined in s. 723.075 shall provide the unit owners with
141 notice of its intent to petition the value adjustment board and
142 shall provide at least 20 days for a unit owner to elect, in
143 writing, that his or her unit not be included in the petition.
144 (f) An owner of contiguous, undeveloped parcels may file
145 with the value adjustment board a single joint petition if the
146 property appraiser determines such parcels are substantially
147 similar in nature.
148 (g) The individual, agent, or legal entity that signs the
149 petition becomes an agent of the taxpayer for the purpose of
150 serving process to obtain personal jurisdiction over the
151 taxpayer for the entire value adjustment board proceedings,
152 including any appeals of a board decision by the property
153 appraiser pursuant to s. 194.036.
154 Section 6. Subsection (2) of section 194.014, Florida
155 Statutes, is amended to read:
156 194.014 Partial payment of ad valorem taxes; proceedings
157 before value adjustment board.—
158 (2) If the value adjustment board or the property appraiser
159 determines that the petitioner owes ad valorem taxes in excess
160 of the amount paid, the unpaid amount accrues interest at an
161 annual percentage rate equal to the bank prime loan rate on July
162 1, or the first business day thereafter if July 1 is a Saturday,
163 Sunday, or legal holiday, of the tax the rate of 12 percent per
164 year, beginning on from the date the taxes became delinquent
165 pursuant to s. 197.333 until the unpaid amount is paid. If the
166 value adjustment board or the property appraiser determines that
167 a refund is due, the overpaid amount accrues interest at an
168 annual percentage rate equal to the bank prime loan rate on July
169 1, or the first business day thereafter if July 1 is a Saturday,
170 Sunday, or legal holiday, of the tax the rate of 12 percent per
171 year, beginning on from the date the taxes became delinquent
172 pursuant to s. 197.333 until a refund is paid. Interest does not
173 accrue on amounts paid in excess of 100 percent of the current
174 taxes due as provided on the tax notice issued pursuant to s.
175 197.322. As used in this subsection, the term “bank prime loan
176 rate” means the average predominant prime rate quoted by
177 commercial banks to large businesses as published by the Board
178 of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
179 Section 7. Section 194.015, Florida Statutes, is amended to
180 read:
181 194.015 Value adjustment board.—There is hereby created A
182 value adjustment board is created for each county, which shall
183 consist of two members of the governing body of the county as
184 elected from the membership of the board of said governing body,
185 one of whom shall be elected chairperson, and one member of the
186 school board as elected from the membership of the school board,
187 and two citizen members, one of whom shall be appointed by the
188 governing body of the county and must own homestead property
189 within the county and one of whom must be appointed by the
190 school board and must own a business occupying commercial space
191 located within the school district. A citizen member may not be
192 a member or an employee of any taxing authority, and may not be
193 a person who represents property owners in any administrative or
194 judicial review of property taxes. The members of the board may
195 be temporarily replaced by other members of the respective
196 boards on appointment by their respective chairpersons. Any
197 three members shall constitute a quorum of the board, except
198 that each quorum must include at least one member of said
199 governing board, at least one member of the school board, and at
200 least one citizen member and no meeting of the board shall take
201 place unless a quorum is present. Members of the board may
202 receive such per diem compensation as is allowed by law for
203 state employees if both bodies elect to allow such compensation.
204 The clerk of the governing body of the county shall be the clerk
205 of the value adjustment board. The board shall appoint private
206 counsel who has practiced law for over 5 years and who shall
207 receive such compensation as may be established by the board.
208 The private counsel may not represent the property appraiser,
209 the tax collector, any taxing authority, or any property owner
210 in any administrative or judicial review of property taxes. A No
211 meeting of the board may not shall take place unless counsel to
212 the board is present. Two-fifths of the expenses of the board
213 shall be borne by the district school board and three-fifths by
214 the district county commission. The district school board and
215 the county commission may audit the expenses related to the
216 value adjustment board process.
217 Section 8. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
218 194.032, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
219 194.032 Hearing purposes; timetable.—
220 (2)(a) The clerk of the governing body of the county shall
221 prepare a schedule of appearances before the board based on
222 petitions timely filed with him or her. The clerk shall notify
223 each petitioner of the scheduled time of his or her appearance
224 at least 25 calendar days before the day of the scheduled
225 appearance. The notice must indicate whether the petition has
226 been scheduled to be heard at a particular time or during a
227 block of time. If the petition has been scheduled to be heard
228 within a block of time, the beginning and ending of that block
229 of time must be indicated on the notice; however, as provided in
230 paragraph (b), a petitioner may not be required to wait for more
231 than a reasonable time, not to exceed 2 hours, after the
232 beginning of the block of time. If the petitioner checked the
233 appropriate box on the petition form to request a copy of the
234 property record card containing relevant information used in
235 computing the current assessment, the property appraiser must
236 provide the copy to the petitioner upon receipt of the petition
237 from the clerk regardless of whether the petitioner initiates
238 evidence exchange, unless the property record card is available
239 online from the property appraiser, in which case the property
240 appraiser must notify the petitioner that the property record
241 card is available online. Upon receipt of the notice, The
242 petitioner or the property appraiser may reschedule the hearing
243 a single time for good cause by submitting to the clerk a
244 written request to reschedule, at least 5 calendar days before
245 the day of the originally scheduled hearing. As used in this
246 paragraph, the term “good cause” means circumstances beyond the
247 control of the person seeking to reschedule the hearing which
248 reasonably prevent the party from having adequate representation
249 at the hearing. If the hearing is rescheduled by the petitioner,
250 the clerk shall notify the petitioner of the rescheduled date
251 and time for his or her appearance at least 15 calendar days
252 before the date of the rescheduled appearance.
253 Section 9. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
254 194.034, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
255 194.034 Hearing procedures; rules.—
256 (1)(a) Petitioners before the board may be represented by a
257 corporate representative of the taxpayer, an attorney who is a
258 member of The Florida Bar, a real estate appraiser licensed
259 under chapter 475, a real estate broker licensed under chapter
260 475, or a certified public accountant licensed under chapter
261 473, retained by the taxpayer, or an individual with power of
262 attorney to act on behalf of the taxpayer who receives no
263 compensation, an attorney or agent and such person may present
264 testimony and other evidence. The property appraiser or his or
265 her authorized representatives may be represented by an attorney
266 in defending the property appraiser’s assessment or opposing an
267 exemption and may present testimony and other evidence. The
268 property appraiser, each petitioner, and all witnesses shall be
269 required, upon the request of either party, to testify under
270 oath as administered by the chairperson of the board. Hearings
271 shall be conducted in the manner prescribed by rules of the
272 department, which rules shall include the right of cross
273 examination of any witness.
274 Section 10. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
275 act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2015.