Virginia Administrative Code › Title 1 - ADMINISTRATION › Agency 80 - DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS SERVICES › Chapter 10 - 100% DISABLED VETERAN REAL PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION › Section 1VAC80-10-100 - Informal requests for information; formal appeals process

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
A. The commissioner
				will provide written guidance to and respond to requests for information from
				Commissioners of the Revenue, other assessing officials, or veterans regarding
				the exemption, including interpretation of the provisions of subdivision (a) of
				Section 6-A of Article X of the Constitution of Virginia and the implementing
				statutes. Such requests may be by telephone or in writing. Request for an
				appeal must be in writing.
B. The
				commissioner does not have the authority to answer questions regarding the
				assessed value of any property. Such questions should be answered solely by the
				veteran's respective Commissioner of Revenue or other assessing
				official.
C. A veteran desiring to
				appeal a denial of an application for exemption by a Commissioner of the
				Revenue or other assessing official shall contact the Commissioner of the
				Virginia Department of Veterans Services by U.S. mail or delivery to
				Commissioner, Virginia Department of Veterans Services, "ATTN: Tax Exemption -
				APPEAL," 101 N. 14th Street, 17th Floor, Richmond VA 23219.
D. The commissioner may conduct hearings
				telephonically, by video conferencing means, or if the commissioner determines
				it necessary, in person at the department's headquarters in Richmond. The
				appeal shall be limited to issues involving the tax exemption eligibility
				criteria. The commissioner is not authorized to hear or decide appeals
				regarding a dispute over a property's assessed value.
E. In advance of any hearing, both the
				veteran and the Commissioner of the Revenue, or other assessing official, shall
				be provided (i) reasonable notice of the time, date, and location of the
				hearing; (ii) the right to appear in person or by counsel, or other qualified
				representative, before the agency or its subordinates for the presentation of
				factual data, argument, or proof in connection with any case; and (iii) notice
				of all facts or information in the possession of the department that could be
				relied upon in making a decision.
F. The commissioner shall render a decision
				within 90 days from the date of the hearing, or from a later date agreed to by
				the veteran and the commissioner. If the commissioner does not render a
				decision within 90 days, the veteran may provide written notice to the
				commissioner that a decision is due. If no decision is made within 30 days from
				the commissioner's receipt of the notice, the decision shall be deemed to be in
				favor of the veteran.
G. The final
				decision by the commissioner shall be mailed to all named parties.
H. A decision of the commissioner may be
				appealed by either party to the circuit court in the locality in which the
				veteran resides.
I. The burden
				shall be upon the party complaining of the commissioner's decision to designate
				and demonstrate an error of law subject to review by the circuit court. Such
				issues of law include (i) accordance with constitutional right, power,
				privilege, or immunity; (ii) compliance with statutory authority, jurisdiction
				limitations, or right as provided in the basic laws as to subject matter and
				the factual showing respecting entitlement in connection with case decisions;
				(iii) observance of required procedure where any failure therein is not mere
				harmless error; and (iv) the substantiality of the evidentiary support for
				findings of fact. Any necessary facts in controversy shall be determined by the
				court upon the basis of the agency file, minutes, and records of its
				proceedings, augmented, if need be, by the agency pursuant to order of the
				court or supplemented by any allowable and necessary proofs adduced in court,
				except that the function of the court shall be to determine only whether the
				result reached by the agency could reasonably be said, on all such proofs, to
				be within the scope of the legal authority of the agency. The court shall take
				due account of the presumption of official regularity, the experience and
				specialized competence of the agency, and the purposes of the basic law under
				which the agency has acted.
Statutory Authority: § 58.1-3219.7 of the Code of
					 Virginia.