Property Tax Time!

January brings new hope for the new year, and the tax collector:

City property taxes. How its done.

§ 21-33-1. Property subject to assessment.

All lands and other taxable property subject to assessment, held by any person within the municipality, or in added territory, on the first day of January, shall be assessed, and ad valorem taxes thereon levied and collected for the ensuing year, excepting motor vehicles as defined by the "Motor Vehicle Ad Valorem Tax Law of 1958."

When is the assement done?

§ 21-33-23. Filing assessment rolls.

The assessor shall complete the assessment of both real and personal property and file the rolls with the municipal clerk on or before the first Monday in September. The governing authorities may, by an order entered upon their minutes, allow the assessor additional time within which to complete and file the assessment rolls. The assessor shall attach his affidavit to each roll in the form required of the county tax assessor.Municipalities operating under a private charter, and having a different time for the assessment of property than fixed for municipalities operating under a code charter, shall provide the time when the assessor shall make and file the assessment rolls.

What if I disagree with the assessment?

§ 21-33-10. Amending roll; objections; appeals

The governing authority of any municipality which adopts the part of the county assessment roll containing the property located within the municipality as provided in sections 21-33-9 and 27-35-167 shall not correct or revise such assessment roll except for the purpose of conforming the municipal assessment roll to corrections or revisions made to the county assessment roll. The governing authority of such municipality shall not meet to hear objections to the assessment roll.

All objections to the municipal assessment roll shall be heard by the board of supervisors at the time and in the manner that objections to the county assessment roll are heard. The board of supervisors shall notify, in writing, the municipal governing authority and the municipal tax assessor of any corrections or revisions made by them to the part of the county assessment roll adopted as the municipal assessment roll. Any taxpayer feeling aggrieved at the action of the board of supervisors in equalizing his assessments shall have the right to appeal to the circuit court as provided in section 27-35-119.

That objection didn't work now what?

§ 27-35-119. Notice of adjournment of meeting at which final approval of roll entered; right of appeal(1)

The clerk of the board of supervisors shall mail notice of the adjournment of the meeting at which final approval of the roll by the State Tax Commission is entered to any taxpayer who objects to an assessment. Such notice shall be accompanied by an affidavit from the clerk stating the date upon which such notice was mailed.(2) Any taxpayer who feels aggrieved at the action of the board of supervisors in equalizing his assessments shall have the right of appeal to the circuit court in the manner provided by law, within twenty (20) days after the date the notice is mailed as provided for in subsection (1) of this section.