San Joaquin County Municipal Code Div. 5 Reassessment of Property

For purposes of this division, and in accordance with the provisions of Revenue and Taxation Code Section 170, "damaged or destroyed property" shall be deemed that property where the full cash value of the land, improvements, and personalty before the damage or destruction exceeds the sum of the values alter the damage or destruction by ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or more, as a result of a misfortune or calamity through no fault of the owner or other person or persons having lawful possession or control of the property. In making this determination, the assessor shall treat land and improvements as separate items.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 3895 § 7, 1996; Ord. 4218 § 1, 2004)

Every person who at 12:01 a.m. on January 1 was the owner of or had in his/her possession, or under his/her control, any taxable property, or who acquired such property after such date and is liable for the taxes thereon for the fiscal year commencing immediately following July 1, which property was substantially destroyed, without his/her fault, by a misfortune or calamity, may, within twelve (12) months of such misfortune or calamity, apply for reassessment of such property by delivering to the assessor a written application showing the condition and value, if any, of the property immediately before and after the destruction. The value of the loss due to destruction must be affirmatively shown in the amount set out in Section 3-5000. The application shall be executed under penalty of perjury, or if executed outside the State of California, verified by affidavit.

To be eligible for reassessment, the damage or destruction to the property shall have been caused by any of the following:

(a) A major misfortune or calamity, in an area or region subsequently proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of disaster, if that property was damaged or destroyed by the major misfortune or calamity that caused the Governor to proclaim the area or region to be in a state of disaster. As used in this subsection, "damage" includes a diminution in the value of property as a result of restricted access to the property where that restricted access was caused by the major misfortune or calamity;

(b) A misfortune or calamity; or

(c) A misfortune or calamity that, with respect to a possessory interest in land owned by the State or Federal Government, has caused the permit or other right to enter upon the land to be suspended or restricted. As used in this subsection, "misfortune or calamity" includes a drought condition such as existed in this State in 1976 and 1977.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 3895 § 8, 1996; Ord. 4129 § 1, 2001; Ord. 4218 § 2, 2004)

Upon receiving a property application, the assessor shall verify the amounts claimed on the application in the before and after condition. The assessor shall then compute a percentage relationship of loss and reduce the current assessed value by that percentage. The assessor shall notify the applicant in writing of the amount of the proposed reassessment. The notice shall state that the applicant may appeal the proposed reassessment to the local Board of Equalization within six (6) months of the date of mailing the notice. If an appeal is requested within the six-month period, the Board shall hear and decide the matter as if the proposed reassessment had been entered on the roll as an assessment made outside the regular assessment period. The decision of the Board regarding damaged value of the property shall be final, provided that a decision of the local Board of Equalization regarding any reassessment made pursuant to this section shall create no presumption as regards the value of the affected property subsequent to the date of the damages.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 4218 § 3, 2004)

If the amount of loss, as verified by the assessor, is not at least that amount set out in Section 3-5000, no adjustment shall be made to said roll and no taxes shall be cancelled or refunded. The reassessments resulting from those reductions, as determined above, shall be forwarded to the auditor by the assessor or the Clerk of the Equalization Board, as the case may be. The auditor shall enter the reassessed values on the roll. After being entered on the roll, said reassessments shall not be subject to review except by the court of competent jurisdiction.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 3895 § 9, 1996; Ord. 4218 § 4, 2004)

If no application is made and the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve (12) months a property has suffered damage caused by misfortune or calamity that may qualify the property owner for relief under an ordinance adopted under this section, the assessor shall provide the last known owner of the property with an application for reassessment. The property owner shall file the completed application within sixty (60) days of the date of mailing of notification by the assessor but in no case more than twelve (12) months after the occurrence of said damage. Upon receipt of a properly completed, timely filed application, the property shall be reassessed in the same manner as required above.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 4218 § 5, 2004)

The tax rate fixed for property on the roll on which the property so reassessed appeared at the time of the misfortune or calamity, shall be applied to the amount of the reassessment as determined in accordance with this section and the assessee shall be liable for:

(a) The prorated portion of the taxes that would have been due on the property for the current fiscal year had the misfortune or calamity not occurred, to be determined on the basis of the number of months in the current fiscal year prior to the misfortune or calamity; plus

(b) A proration of the tax due on the property as reassessed in its damaged or destroyed condition, to be determined on the basis of the number of months in the fiscal year after the damage or destruction, including the month in which the damage was incurred. For purposes of applying the preceding calculation in prorating supplemental taxes, the term "fiscal year" means that portion of the tax year used to determine the adjusted amount of taxes due pursuant to Subdivision (b) of Revenue and Taxation Section 75.41. If the damage or destruction occurred after January 1 and before the beginning of the next fiscal year, the reassessment shall be utilized to determine the tax liability for the next fiscal year. However, if the property is fully restored during the next fiscal year, taxes due for that year shall be prorated based on the number of months in the year before and after the completion of restoration.

Any tax paid in excess of the total tax due shall be refunded to the taxpayer pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 5096) of Part 9 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, as an erroneously collected tax or by order of the Board of Supervisors without the necessity of a claim being filed.

The assessed value of the property in its damaged condition, as determined by this section, shall be compounded annually by the inflation factor specified in Subdivision (a) of Revenue and Taxation Section 51, and shall be the taxable value of the property until it is restored, repaired, reconstructed or other provisions of the law require the establishment of a new base year value. If partial reconstruction, restoration or repair has occurred on any subsequent lien date, the taxable value shall be increased by an amount determined by multiplying the difference between its factored base year value immediately before the calamity and its assessed value in its damaged condition by the percentage of the repair, reconstruction or restoration completed on that lien date.

When the property is fully repaired, restored or reconstructed, the assessor shall make an additional assessment or assessments in accordance with this section upon completion of the repair, restoration, or reconstruction:

(a) If the completion of the repair, restoration, or reconstruction occurs on or after January 1, but on or before May 31, then there shall be two (2) additional assessments. The first additional assessment shall be the difference between the new taxable value as of the date of completion and the taxable value on the current roll. The second additional assessment shall be the difference between the new taxable value as of the date of completion and the taxable value as of the date of completion and the taxable value to be enrolled on the roll being prepared.

(b) If the completion of the repair, restoration, and reconstruction occurs on or after June 1, but before the succeeding January 1, then the additional assessment shall be the difference between the new taxable value as of the date of completion and the taxable value on the current roll.

On the lien date following completion of the repair, restoration or reconstruction, the assessor shall enroll the new taxable value of the property as of that lien date.

For purposes of this subdivision, "new taxable value" shall mean the lesser of the property's (1) full cash value, or (2) factored base year value or its factored base year value as adjusted pursuant to Subdivision (c) of Revenue and Taxation Section 70.

When the assessor does not have the general authority pursuant to this section to initiate reassessments, if no application is made and the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve (12) months a property has suffered damage caused by misfortune or calamity that may qualify the property owner for relief under an ordinance adopted under this section, the assessor may, with the approval of the Board of Supervisors, reassess the particular property for which approval was granted as provided in this section and notify the last known owner of the property of the reassessment.

(Ord. 2711; Ord. 4218 § 6, 2004)

(a) Before April 10, 1986, a claim for reassessment pursuant to the provisions of Revenue and Taxation Code Section 170 (Title 3 of the Ordinance Code of San Joaquin County, Sections 3-5000 et seq.) based upon flood or storm damage occurring in February 1986 and amounting to ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or more may apply to the County Assessor to defer payment of unpaid nondelinquent 1985-86 fiscal year supplemental roll taxes. If a timely claim is filed, the payment shall be deferred without penalty or interest until the assessor has reassessed the property and a corrected bill prepared pursuant to the provisions of this title has been sent to the property owner. The corrected supplemental bill shall be due on the last day of the month following the month in which the corrected bill is mailed or the delinquent date of the second installment of the original bill, whichever is later. If the corrected supplemental bill becomes delinquent as provided in Revenue and Taxation Code Section 2610.5 it shall be subject to the penalties provided by law.

(b) If, following reassessment pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, the assessor determines that an owner who applied and was granted a deferral of property taxes was not entitled to that deferral, the owner shall be assessed a delinquency penalty for the nonpayment of the deferred taxes.

(Ord. 3235)

(a) Before April 10, 1997, a claim for reassessment pursuant to the provisions of Revenue and Taxation Code Section 170 (Title 3 of the Ordinance Code of San Joaquin County, Sections 3-5000 et seq.) based upon flooding or storm damage occurring in January 1997 amounting to at least ten percent (10%) of fair market value or five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), whichever is less, if the property is the owner's principal residence; and with respect to other property, damage to the parcel of at least twenty percent (20%) of its fair market value immediately preceding the disaster causing the damage, may apply to the County assessor to defer payment of unpaid nondelinquent 1996-97 fiscal year nondelinquent supplemental roll taxes. If a timely claim is filed, the payment shall be deferred without penalty or interest until the assessor has reassessed the property and a corrected bill prepared pursuant to the provisions of this title has been sent to the property owner. The corrected supplemental bill shall be due on the last day of the month following the month in which the corrected bill is mailed or the delinquent date of the second installment of the original bill, whichever is later. If the corrected supplemental bill becomes delinquent as provided in Revenue and Taxation Code Section 2610.5 it shall be subject to the penalties provided by law.

(b) If, following reassessment pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, the assessor determines that an owner who applied and was granted a deferral of property taxes was not entitled to that deferral, the owner shall be assessed a delinquency penalty for the nonpayment of the deferred taxes.

(Ord. 3917 § 1, 1997)