New Burden Shifting Language
On
March 25, 2014, Governor Pence signed Senate Enrolled Act 266 into law.
This new burden shifting language became effective upon passage and applies to
all appeals pending on the effective date.
Ind.
Code § 6-1.1-15-17.2 provides the following:
(a) Except as provided in subsection (d), this section applies to any
review or appeal of an assessment under this chapter if the assessment that is
the subject of the review or appeal is an increase of more than five percent
(5%) over the assessment for the same property for the prior tax year. In
calculating the change in the assessment for purposes of this section, the
assessment to be used for the prior tax year is the original assessment for
that prior tax year or, if applicable, the assessment for that prior tax year:
(1) as last corrected by an assessing official;
(2) as stipulated or settled by the taxpayer and the
assessing official; or
(3) as determined by the reviewing authority.
(b) Under this section, the county assessor or township assessor making
the assessment has the burden of proving that the assessment is correct in any
review or appeal under this chapter and in any appeals taken to the Indiana
board of tax review or to the Indiana tax court. If a county assessor or
township assessor fails to meet the burden of proof under this section, the
taxpayer may introduce evidence to prove the correct assessment. If neither the
assessing official nor the taxpayer meets the burden of proof under this
section, the assessment reverts to the assessment for the prior tax year, which
is the original assessment for that prior tax year or, if applicable, the
assessment for that prior tax year:
(1) as last corrected by an assessing official;
(2) as stipulated or settled by the taxpayer and the
assessing official; or
(3) as determined by the reviewing authority.
(c) This section does not apply to an assessment if the assessment that
is the subject of the review or appeal is based on:
(1) structural improvements;
(2) zoning; or
(3) uses;
that were not considered in the assessment for the prior tax year.
(d) This subsection applies to real property for which the gross
assessed value of the real property was reduced by the assessing official or
reviewing authority in an appeal conducted under IC 6-1.1-15. However, this
subsection does not apply for an assessment date if the real property was
valued using the income capitalization approach in the appeal. If the gross
assessed value of real property for an assessment date that follows the latest
assessment date that was the subject of an appeal described in this subsection
is increased above the gross assessed value of the real property for the latest
assessment date covered by the appeal, regardless of the amount of the
increase, the county assessor or township assessor (if any) making the
assessment has the burden of proving that the assessment is correct.
(e) This section, as amended in the 2014 regular session of the Indiana
general assembly, applies:
(1) to all appeals or reviews pending on the effective
date of the amendments made to
this section in the 2014 regular session of the
Indiana general assembly; and
(2) to all appeals or reviews filed thereafter.
