Title: Administrative Review of Property Taxes

Summary: Providing that under certain circumstances, petitions to the value adjustment board may be late filed within a specified timeframe, subject to certain limitations, etc.

Full Text:
An act relating to the administrative review of property taxes; amending s. 194.011, F.S.; providing that under certain circumstances, petitions to the value adjustment board may be late filed within a specified timeframe, subject to certain limitations; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section 194.011, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 194.011 Assessment notice; objections to assessments.  (3) A petition to the value adjustment board must be in substantially the form prescribed by the department. Notwithstanding s. 195.022, a county officer may not refuse to accept a form provided by the department for this purpose if the taxpayer chooses to use it. A petition to the value adjustment board must be signed by the taxpayer or be accompanied at the time of filing by the taxpayer s written authorization or power of attorney, unless the person filing the petition is listed in s. 194.034(1)(a). A person listed in s. 194.034(1)(a) may file a petition with a value adjustment board without the taxpayer s signature or written authorization by certifying under penalty of perjury that he or she has authorization to file the petition on behalf of the taxpayer. If a taxpayer notifies the value adjustment board that a petition has been filed for the taxpayer s property without his or her consent, the value adjustment board may require the person filing the petition to provide written authorization from the taxpayer authorizing the person to proceed with the appeal before a hearing is held. If the value adjustment board finds that a person listed in s. 194.034(1)(a) willfully and knowingly filed a petition that was not authorized by the taxpayer, the value adjustment board shall require such person to provide the taxpayer s written authorization for representation to the value adjustment board clerk before any petition filed by that person is heard, for year after imposition of such requirement by the value adjustment board. A power of attorney or written authorization is valid for assessment year, and a new power of attorney or written authorization by the taxpayer is required for each subsequent assessment year. A petition shall also describe the property by parcel number and shall be filed as follows: (d) The petition may be filed, as to valuation issues, at any time during the taxable year on or before the 25th day following the mailing of notice by the property appraiser as provided in subsection (1). With respect to an issue involving the denial of an exemption, an agricultural or high-water recharge classification application, an application for classification as historic property used for commercial or certain nonprofit purposes, or a deferral, the petition must be filed at any time during the taxable year on or before the 30th day following the mailing of the notice by the property appraiser under s. 193.461, s. 193.503, s. 193.625, s. 196.173, or s. 196.193 or notice by the tax collector under s. 197.2425. If the petitioner identifies extenuating circumstances demonstrating to the value adjustment board that the petitioner was unable to file a petition in a timely manner, the petitioner may file a petition within days after the deadline. However, the value adjustment board is not required to delay proceedings for the 60-day timeframe and no late petition is authorized after the value adjustment board has concluded its review of petitions. Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.