HB 521

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to just valuation of property; amending s.
3193.011, F.S.; revising the just valuation factors
4relating to the condition of property; including cost of
5removal of tangible personal property as a consideration
6in the net sale proceeds factor; requiring property
7appraisers to use only market rent in arriving at just
8value of certain income-producing properties; providing a
9definition; providing applicability; amending s. 193.016,
10F.S.; providing for consideration of value adjustment
11board decisions for all properties; creating s. 193.018,
12F.S.; authorizing owners of certain properties to enter
13into deed-restriction agreements with counties for certain
14purposes; requiring property appraisers to consider deed-
15restriction agreements in determining just value;
16providing for payment of back taxes plus interest if the
17deed-restriction agreement is terminated early; amending
18s. 194.011, F.S.; revising provisions relating to
19provision of evidence by petitioners and property
20appraisers; amending s. 194.032, F.S.; providing for
21criteria for rescheduling certain hearings under certain
22circumstances; amending s. 194.034, F.S.; requiring value
23adjustment boards to order refund of certain filing fees
24if a determination of a property appraiser is overturned;
25amending s. 194.192, F.S.; providing for judgments against
26property appraisers under certain circumstances; providing
27for assessment and award of attorney fees to taxpayers
28under certain circumstances; amending s. 194.301, F.S.;
29revising criteria for a presumption of correctness of ad
30valorem taxation assessments and the burden of proof in
31actions challenging such assessments; amending s. 420.507,
32F.S.; correcting a cross-reference; providing an effective
33date.
34
35Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
36
37     Section 1.  Effective upon this act becoming a law and
38applicable to assessments beginning January 1, 2009, section
39193.011, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
40     193.011  Factors to consider in deriving just valuation.--
41     (1)  In arriving at just valuation as required under s. 4,
42Art. VII of the State Constitution, the property appraiser shall
43take into consideration the following factors:
44     (a)(1)  The present cash value of the property, which is
45the amount a willing purchaser would pay a willing seller,
46exclusive of reasonable fees and costs of purchase, in cash or
47the immediate equivalent thereof in a transaction at arm's
48length;
49     (b)(2)  The highest and best use to which the property can
50be expected to be put in the immediate future and the present
51use of the property, taking into consideration the legally
52permissible use of the property, including any applicable
53judicial limitation, local or state land use regulation, or
54historic preservation ordinance, and any zoning changes,
55concurrency requirements, and permits necessary to achieve the
56highest and best use, and considering any moratorium imposed by
57executive order, law, ordinance, regulation, resolution, or
58proclamation adopted by any governmental body or agency or the
59Governor when the moratorium or judicial limitation prohibits or
60restricts the development or improvement of property as
61otherwise authorized by applicable law. The applicable
62governmental body or agency or the Governor shall notify the
63property appraiser in writing of any executive order, ordinance,
64regulation, resolution, or proclamation it adopts imposing any
65such limitation, regulation, or moratorium;
66     (c)(3)  The location of said property;
67     (d)(4)  The quantity or size of said property;
68     (e)(5)  The cost of said property and the present
69replacement value of any improvements thereon;
70     (f)(6)  The condition of said property. When determining
71the condition of the property, the property appraiser shall
72consider physical deterioration, functional obsolescence, and
73external obsolescence;
74     (g)(7)  The income from said property; and
75     (h)(8)  The net proceeds of the sale of the property, as
76received by the seller, after deduction of all of the usual and
77reasonable fees and costs of the sale, including the costs and
78expenses of financing, and allowance for unconventional or
79atypical terms of financing arrangements, and including the
80costs of removal of tangible personal property. When the net
81proceeds of the sale of any property are utilized, directly or
82indirectly, in the determination of just valuation of realty of
83the sold parcel or any other parcel under the provisions of this
84section, the property appraiser, for the purposes of such
85determination, shall exclude any portion of such net proceeds
86attributable to payments for household furnishings or other
87items of personal property.
88     (2)  Notwithstanding the requirement that property
89appraisers consider all of the factors enumerated in subsection
90(1) in arriving at just valuation, property appraisers shall
91consider only the market rent from income-producing property in
92the case of all residential rental property and all commercial
93property that is leased to more than one legal entity, each of
94which conducts a separate business activity on the property. For
95purposes of this subsection, the term "market rent" means the
96most likely rent that an income-producing property would command
97if offered for lease in the open market.
98     Section 2.  Section 193.016, Florida Statutes, is amended
99to read:
100     193.016  Property appraiser's assessment; effect of
101determinations by value adjustment board.--If the property
102appraiser's assessment of the same items of tangible personal
103property in the previous year was adjusted by the value
104adjustment board and the decision of the board to reduce the
105assessment was not successfully appealed by the property
106appraiser, the property appraiser shall consider the reduced
107value values determined by the value adjustment board in
108assessing the those items of tangible personal property. If the
109property appraiser adjusts upward the reduced value values
110previously determined by the value adjustment board, the
111property appraiser shall assert additional basic and underlying
112facts not properly considered by the value adjustment board as
113the basis for the increased valuation notwithstanding the prior
114adjustment by the board.
115     Section 3.  Section 193.018, Florida Statutes, is created
116to read:
117     193.018  Assessment of deed-restricted property.--
118     (1)  The owner of residential rental property, multiunit
119commercial rental property, property used as a marina,
120waterfront property used exclusively for commercial fishing
121purposes, or property rented for use by mobile homes may enter
122into a deed-restriction agreement with the county to maintain
123the property at its current use for a period of at least 5
124years.
125     (2)  The property appraiser shall consider the deed-
126restriction agreement in determining the just value of the
127property.
128     (3)  If, prior to the expiration of the deed-restriction
129agreement, the property is not used for the purposes set forth
130in the deed-restriction agreement, the deed-restriction
131agreement shall be terminated and the property owner shall pay
132to the county an amount equal to the additional taxes that would
133have been paid in prior years had the deed-restriction agreement
134not been in effect, plus 12 percent interest.
135     Section 4.  Subsection (4) of section 194.011, Florida
136Statutes, is amended to read:
137     194.011  Assessment notice; objections to assessments.--
138     (4)(a)  At least 15 days before the hearing, the petitioner
139shall provide to the property appraiser a list of evidence to be
140presented at the hearing, together with copies of all
141documentation to be considered by the value adjustment board and
142a summary of evidence to be presented by witnesses.
143     (b)  At least 15 No later than 7 days before the hearing,
144if the petitioner has provided the information required under
145paragraph (a), and if requested in writing by the petitioner,
146the property appraiser shall provide to the petitioner a list of
147evidence to be presented at the hearing, together with copies of
148all documentation to be considered by the value adjustment board
149and a summary of evidence to be presented by witnesses. The
150evidence list must contain the property record card if provided
151by the clerk. Failure of the property appraiser to timely comply
152with the requirements of this paragraph shall result in a
153rescheduling of the hearing.
154     Section 5.  Subsection (2) of section 194.032, Florida
155Statutes, is amended to read:
156     194.032  Hearing purposes; timetable.--
157     (2)  The clerk of the governing body of the county shall
158prepare a schedule of appearances before the board based on
159petitions timely filed with him or her. The clerk shall notify
160each petitioner of the scheduled time of his or her appearance
161no less than 25 calendar days prior to the day of such scheduled
162appearance. Upon receipt of this notification, the petitioner
163shall have the right to reschedule the hearing for the failure
164of the property appraiser to comply with the requirements of s.
165194.011(4)(b). The hearing shall be rescheduled no sooner than
16615 days after the property appraiser complies with the
167requirements of s. 194.011(4)(b). The petitioner shall also have
168the right to reschedule the hearing a single time by submitting
169to the clerk of the governing body of the county a written
170request to reschedule, no less than 5 calendar days before the
171day of the originally scheduled hearing. Additional rescheduling
172of the hearing may be granted to the taxpayer upon receipt of an
173affidavit from a physician that states a medical reason as to
174why the petitioner needs to reschedule the hearing. A copy of
175the property record card containing relevant information used in
176computing the taxpayer's current assessment shall be included
177with such notice, if said card was requested by the taxpayer.
178Such request shall be made by checking an appropriate box on the
179petition form. No petitioner shall be required to wait for more
180than 2 4 hours from the scheduled time; and, if his or her
181petition is not heard in that time, the petitioner may, at his
182or her option, report to the chairperson of the meeting that he
183or she intends to leave; and, if he or she is not heard
184immediately, the petitioner's hearing shall be rescheduled for a
185time reserved exclusively for the petitioner administrative
186remedies will be deemed to be exhausted, and he or she may seek
187further relief as he or she deems appropriate. Failure on three
188occasions with respect to any single tax year to convene at the
189scheduled time of meetings of the board shall constitute grounds
190for removal from office by the Governor for neglect of duties.
191     Section 6.  Subsection (2) of section 194.034, Florida
192Statutes, is amended to read:
193     194.034  Hearing procedures; rules.--
194     (2)  In each case, except when a complaint is withdrawn by
195the petitioner or is acknowledged as correct by the property
196appraiser, the value adjustment board shall render a written
197decision. All such decisions shall be issued within 20 calendar
198days of the last day the board is in session under s. 194.032.
199The decision of the board shall contain findings of fact and
200conclusions of law and shall include reasons for upholding or
201overturning the determination of the property appraiser. If the
202determination of the property appraiser is overturned, the board
203shall order the refunding of the filing fee required by s.
204194.013. When a special magistrate has been appointed, the
205recommendations of the special magistrate shall be considered by
206the board. The clerk, upon issuance of the decisions, shall, on
207a form provided by the Department of Revenue, notify by first-
208class mail each taxpayer, the property appraiser, and the
209department of the decision of the board.
210     Section 7.  Subsection (3) is added to section 194.192,
211Florida Statutes, to read:
212     194.192  Costs; interest on unpaid taxes; penalty; attorney
213fees.--
214     (3)  If the court finds that the amount owed by the
215taxpayer is less than the amount of tax paid, the court shall
216enter judgment against the appraiser for the difference and for
217interest on the difference at the rate of 12 percent per year
218from the date of payment. If the final assessment established by
219the court is lower than the value assessed by the property
220appraiser by more than 10 percent, the court shall assess and
221award reasonable attorney fees to the taxpayer.
222     Section 8.  Section 194.301, Florida Statutes, is amended
223to read:
224     194.301  Presumption of correctness and burden of proof in
225ad valorem tax assessment challenges.--In any administrative or
226judicial proceeding action in which a taxpayer challenges an ad
227valorem tax assessment of value is challenged, the burden of
228proof shall be upon the party initiating the proceeding and such
229party shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the
230evidence that the assessment, as established by the property
231appraiser or the value adjustment board, is incorrect. The
232property appraiser's assessment shall be presumed correct,
233except that if the value adjustment board has established a
234different assessment, the assessment of the value adjustment
235board shall be presumed correct. This presumption of correctness
236is lost if the taxpayer shows by a preponderance of the evidence
237that either the property appraiser has failed to comply with
238uniform standards of professional appraisal practice in his or
239her consideration of consider properly the criteria in s.
240193.011 or if the property appraiser's assessment is arbitrarily
241based on appraisal practices which are different from the
242appraisal practices generally applied by the property appraiser
243to comparable property within the same class and within the same
244county. If the presumption of correctness is lost, the taxpayer
245shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the
246evidence that the appraiser's assessment is in excess of just
247value. If the presumption of correctness is retained, the
248taxpayer shall have the burden of proving by clear and
249convincing evidence that the appraiser's assessment is in excess
250of just value. In no case shall the taxpayer have the burden of
251proving that the property appraiser's assessment is not
252supported by any reasonable hypothesis of a legal assessment. If
253the property appraiser's assessment is determined to be
254erroneous, the value adjustment board Value Adjustment Board or
255the court can establish the assessment if there exists
256competent, substantial evidence in the record, which
257cumulatively meets the requirements of s. 193.011. If the record
258lacks competent, substantial evidence meeting the just value
259criteria of s. 193.011, the matter shall be remanded to the
260property appraiser with appropriate directions from the value
261adjustment board Value Adjustment Board or the court.
262     Section 9.  Subsection (46) of section 420.507, Florida
263Statutes, is amended to read:
264     420.507  Powers of the corporation.--The corporation shall
265have all the powers necessary or convenient to carry out and
266effectuate the purposes and provisions of this part, including
267the following powers which are in addition to all other powers
268granted by other provisions of this part:
269     (46)  To require, as a condition of financing a multifamily
270rental project, that an agreement be recorded in the official
271records of the county where the real property is located, which
272requires that the project be used for housing defined as
273affordable in s. 420.0004(3) by persons defined in s.
274420.0004(8), (10), (11), and (15). Such an agreement is a state
275land use regulation that limits the highest and best use of the
276property within the meaning of s. 193.011(1)(b)(2).
277     Section 10.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a
278law.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.