State Takes Control of Local Property Taxpayer Appeals

October 22nd, 2009

New State Law Involves State in Property Tax Appeals

While not a total takeover of the total taxing function, it is a further takeover of the taxpayer appeal process in the five (5) largest counties in the State and that just about completes the takeover of the entire State in that regard.

This new Act (Public Chapter 256) provides that:

The Tennessee Division of Property Assessments has the unconditional right to intervene in local assessment appeals in the five (5) largest Tennessee counties (Shelby, Davidson, Rutherford, Knox, and Hamilton).

This means that if the State becomes interested in a local assessment appeal issue in Memphis or Nashville, it has the unconditional right to become a party to the appeal with all the rights and powers of the assessor of property.

Bobby Lee, staff attorney for the Division of Assessments, lobbied for the bill’s passage and spoke before the Committees. He argued unopposed that the State needed the new law in order to maintain uniformity of decisions in tax appeals throughout the State.

Since the State Board of Equalization makes these decisions, it seems to us that the Division is accusing the State Board of being inconsistent in its decisions.

What’s wrong with this new law?

Consider:

First, the State does not collect or receive any of the property tax. The tax is strictly local.

Further, the non-elected representative from the State can approve or disapprove any appeal settlement the Assessor, an elected official, wishes to make with the taxpayer.

Also, if the non-elected State representative does not agree with a decision by any board at any level, the State may independently file an appeal of that decision to have it overturned.

Still further, the Division of Assessments is a “State” agency opposing a taxpayer in a hearing to be decided by the “State” (State Board of Equalization). Both agencies are headed by the State Comptroller’s Office. We feel this close relationship to be inherently biased against the taxpayer.

Finally, an intervention by the State in a taxpayer’s appeal will bring the entire power of the State and its powerful resources (combined with those of the Assessor) to bear against a taxpayer.

This will not be a fair fight!

The Division of Assessments already makes all the assessments for 90 out of 95 counties in our State. It is as though there are no assessors in those counties.

In some counties, the State Division even prints the local property tax bills.

Now they have control of the appeal process in the remaining five (5) counties. This makes the Division a powerful non-elected organization wielding enormous influence over local property taxation.

However, in these five (5) large counties the Division does not make the assessments and nobody there voted for them to make assessments or contest taxpayer appeals.

These counties also did not ask for the Division to have the unconditional right to intervene into local appeals affairs.

Many taxpayers may be surprised to see, instead of their elected Assessor, an unknown non-elected State representative opposing them in their appeals and protests.

This is yet another recently passed law that allows the State more control over our local taxing function and received no opposition to its passage!

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