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S1028...............................................................by WERK
PROPERTY TAX - HOMEOWNER EXEMPTION - Amends existing law to provide a short
title; and to provide that the first $125,000 of the market value for
assessment purposes of the homestead or 50% of the market value for
assessment purposes of the homestead, whichever is the lesser, shall be
exempt from property taxation.
01/18 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/19 Rpt prt - to Loc Gov
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-ninth Legislature First Regular Session - 2007
IN THE SENATE
SENATE BILL NO. 1028
BY WERK
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO PROPERTY EXEMPT FROM TAXATION; TO PROVIDE A SHORT TITLE; AMENDING
3 SECTION 63-602G, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE THAT THE FIRST ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-
4 FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS OF THE MARKET VALUE FOR ASSESSMENT PURPOSES OF THE
5 HOMESTEAD OR FIFTY PERCENT OF THE MARKET VALUE FOR ASSESSMENT PURPOSES OF
6 THE HOMESTEAD, WHICHEVER IS THE LESSER, SHALL BE EXEMPT FROM PROPERTY TAX-
7 ATION AND TO PROVIDE DATE CHANGES; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY AND PROVIDING
8 RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.
9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
10 SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Idaho
11 Homeowner's Protection Act."
12 SECTION 2. That Section 63-602G, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
13 amended to read as follows:
14 63-602G. PROPERTY EXEMPT FROM TAXATION -- HOMESTEAD. (1) During the tax
15 year 20067 and each year thereafter, subject to annual adjustment as provided
16 herein, the first seventyone hundred twenty-five thousand dollars ($7125,000)
17 of the market value for assessment purposes of the homestead as that term is
18 defined in section 63-701, Idaho Code, or fifty percent (50%) of the market
19 value for assessment purposes of the homestead as that term is defined in sec-
20 tion 63-701, Idaho Code, whichever is the lesser, shall be exempt from prop-
21 erty taxation. Beginning for tax year 20078, the state tax commission shall
22 publish adjustments to the maximum amount subject to property tax exemption to
23 reflect cost-of-living fluctuations. The adjustments shall effect changes in
24 the amount subject to tax exemption by a percentage equal as near as practica-
25 ble to the annual increase in the Idaho housing price index as determined by
26 the United States office of federal housing enterprise oversight. The state
27 tax commission shall publish the adjustments required by this subsection each
28 and every year the office of federal housing enterprise oversight announces a
29 change in the Idaho housing price index. The adjustments shall be published no
30 later than October 1 of each year and shall be effective for claims filed in
31 and for the following property tax year. The publication of adjustments under
32 this subsection shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter 52, title 67,
33 Idaho Code, but shall be provided to each county and to members of the public
34 upon request and without charge.
35 (2) The exemption allowed by this section may be granted only if:
36 (a) The homestead is owner-occupied and used as the primary dwelling
37 place of the owner as of January 1, provided that in the event the home-
38 stead is owner-occupied after January 1 but before April 15, the owner of
39 the property is entitled to the exemption. The homestead may consist of
40 part of a multidwelling or multipurpose building and shall include all of
41 such dwelling or building except any portion used exclusively for anything
42 other than the primary dwelling of the owner. The presence of an office in
2
1 a homestead, which office is used for multiple purposes, including busi-
2 ness and personal use, shall not prevent the owner from claiming the
3 exemption provided in this section; and
4 (b) The tax commission has certified to the board of county commissioners
5 that all properties in the county which are subject to appraisal by the
6 county assessor have, in fact, been appraised uniformly so as to secure a
7 just valuation for all property within the county; and
8 (c) The owner has certified to the county assessor by April 15 that:
9 (i) He is making application for the exemption allowed by this sec-
10 tion;
11 (ii) That the homestead is his primary dwelling place; and
12 (iii) That he has not made application in any other county for the
13 exemption, and has not made application for the exemption on any
14 other homestead in the county.
15 (d) For the purpose of this section, the definition of "owner" shall be
16 the same definition set forth in section 63-701(7), Idaho Code.
17 When an "owner," pursuant to the provisions of section 63-701(7),
18 Idaho Code, is any person who is the beneficiary of a revocable or irrevo-
19 cable trust, or who is a partner of a limited partnership, a member of a
20 limited liability company, or shareholder of a corporation, he or she may
21 provide proof of the trust, limited partnership, limited liability com-
22 pany, or corporation in the manner set forth in section 63-703(4), Idaho
23 Code.
24 (e) Any owner may request in writing the return of all copies of any doc-
25 uments submitted with the affidavit set forth in section 63-703(4), Idaho
26 Code, that are held by a county assessor, and the copies shall be returned
27 by the county assessor upon submission of the affidavit in proper form.
28 (f) For the purpose of this section, the definition of "primary dwelling
29 place" shall be the same definition set forth in section 63-701(8), Idaho
30 Code.
31 (g) For the purpose of this section, the definition of "occupied" shall
32 be the same definition set forth in section 63-701(6), Idaho Code.
33 (3) An owner need only make application for the exemption described in
34 subsection (1) of this section once, as long as all of the following condi-
35 tions are met:
36 (a) The owner has received the exemption during the previous year as a
37 result of his making a valid application as defined in subsection (2)(c)
38 of this section.
39 (b) The owner or beneficiary, partner, member or shareholder, as appro-
40 priate, still occupies the same homestead for which the owner made appli-
41 cation.
42 (c) The homestead described in subsection (3)(b) of this section is
43 owner-occupied or occupied by a beneficiary, partner, member or share-
44 holder, as appropriate, and used as the primary dwelling place of the
45 owner or beneficiary, partner, member or shareholder, as appropriate, as
46 of January 1; provided however, that in the event the homestead is owner-
47 occupied after January 1, but before April 15, the owner of the property
48 is entitled to the exemption.
49 (4) The exemption allowed by this section must be taken before the reduc-
50 tion in taxes provided by sections 63-701 through 63-710, Idaho Code, is
51 applied.
52 (5) Recovery of property tax exemptions allowed by this section but
53 improperly claimed or approved:
54 (a) Upon discovery of evidence, facts or circumstances indicating any
55 exemption allowed by this section was improperly claimed or approved, the
3
1 county assessor shall decide whether the exemption claimed should be
2 allowed and if not, notify the taxpayer in writing, assess a recovery of
3 property tax and notify the county treasurer of this assessment.
4 (b) When information indicating that an improper claim for the exemption
5 allowed by this section is discovered by the state tax commission, the
6 state tax commission may disclose this information to the appropriate
7 county assessor, board of county commissioners and county treasurer.
8 Information disclosed to county officials by the state tax commission
9 under this subsection may be used to decide the validity of any entitle-
10 ment to the exemption provided in this section and is not otherwise sub-
11 ject to public disclosure pursuant to chapter 3, title 9, Idaho Code.
12 (c) The assessment and collection of the recovery of property tax must
13 begin within the seven (7) year period beginning the date the assessment
14 notice reflecting the improperly claimed or approved exemption was
15 required to be mailed to the taxpayer.
16 (d) The taxpayer may appeal to the board of county commissioners the
17 decision by the county assessor to assess the recovery of property tax
18 within thirty (30) days of the date the county assessor sent the notice to
19 the taxpayer pursuant to this section.
20 (e) A recovery of property tax shall be for each year the exemption
21 allowed by this section was improperly claimed or approved up to the
22 lesser of a maximum of seven (7) years or until the property was trans-
23 ferred to a bona fide purchaser for value. The amount of the recovery of
24 property tax shall be calculated using the product of the amount of
25 exempted value for each year multiplied by the levy for that year plus
26 costs, late charges and interest for each year at the rates equal to those
27 provided for delinquent property taxes during that year.
28 (f) Any recovery of property tax shall be due and payable no later than
29 the date provided for property taxes in section 63-903, Idaho Code, and if
30 not timely paid, late charges and interest, beginning the first day of
31 January in the year following the year the county assessor sent the notice
32 to the taxpayer pursuant to this section, shall be calculated at the cur-
33 rent rate provided for property taxes.
34 (g) Recovered property taxes shall be billed, collected and distributed
35 in the same manner as property taxes, except each taxing district or unit
36 shall be notified of the amount of any recovered property taxes included
37 in any distribution.
38 (h) Any unpaid recovered property taxes shall become a lien upon the real
39 property in the same manner as provided for property taxes in section
40 63-206, Idaho Code, except such lien shall attach as of the first day of
41 January in the year following the year the county assessor sent the notice
42 to the taxpayer pursuant to this section.
43 (i) For purposes of the limitation provided by section 63-802, Idaho
44 Code, moneys received pursuant to this subsection as recovery of property
45 tax shall be treated as property tax revenue.
46 (6) The legislature declares that this exemption is necessary and just.
47 (7) A homestead having previously qualified for exemption under this sec-
48 tion in the preceding year, shall not lose such qualification due to: the
49 owner's, beneficiary's, partner's, member's or shareholder's absence in the
50 current year by reason of active military service in a designated combat zone,
51 as defined in section 112 of the Internal Revenue Code, or because the home-
52 stead has been leased because the owner, beneficiary, partner, member or
53 shareholder is absent in the current year by reason of active military service
54 in a designated combat zone, as defined in section 112 of the Internal Revenue
55 Code. If an owner fails to timely apply for exemption as required in this sec-
4
1 tion solely by reason of active duty in a designated combat zone by the owner,
2 beneficiary, partner, member or shareholder, as appropriate, as defined in
3 section 112 of the Internal Revenue Code, and such homestead would have other-
4 wise qualified under this section, then the board of county commissioners of
5 the county in which the homestead is located shall refund property taxes, if
6 previously paid, in an amount equal to the exemption which would otherwise
7 have applied.
8 SECTION 3. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby
9 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its
10 passage and approval, and retroactively to January 1, 2007.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 16683C1
This legislation protects Idaho s homeowners from excessive
residential property value inflation by increasing the limit of the
homeowner property tax exemption to $125,000.
FISCAL NOTE
This legislation will result in a small positive impact on state
revenues by decreasing payments for the Circuit Breaker program.
Contact
Name: Senator Elliot Werk
Senator David Langhorst
Senator Clint Stennett
Senator Mike Burkett
Senator Edgar Malepeai
Senator Kate Kelly
Phone: 332 1000
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE S 1028