Opinion ID: 2461095
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Bakst decision

Text: In December 2006, this court issued an opinion in Bakst, affirming the district court's findings regarding the 2003-2004 property tax assessments and holding that the Assessor's unapproved appraisal methodology for assessing properties in the Incline Village and Crystal Bay areas was unconstitutionally inconsistent with his approach elsewhere in Washoe County. Bakst, 122 Nev. at 1416, 148 P.3d at 726. Thus, we held that taxpayers whose properties were valued using the disputed methodologies were entitled to a refund plus interest pursuant to NRS 360.2935. Bakst, 122 Nev. at 1417, 148 P.3d at 726. [4] Immediately after the Bakst decision, which effectively lifted this court's stay, the Assessor corrected the assessment rolls for the 2006-2007 tax year to reflect 2002-2003 valuations for Incline Village and Crystal Bay, in accordance with the County Board's March 2006 equalization decision. And in April 2007, the State Board proceeded with the Assessor's appeal of that equalization decision. At the State Board's hearing, it stayed enforcement of the County Board's decision and remanded the matter to the County Board for further factual findings. However, the taxpayers immediately sought a writ of mandamus from this court to force the State Board to hear the Assessor's appeal on the merits. Village League v. State, Bd. of Equalization, 124 Nev. 1079, 194 P.3d 1254 (2008). This court granted the writ petition and directed the State Board to hear the Assessor's appeal of the County Board's decision to reduce the 2006-2007 tax year assessments to 2002-2003 levels. Id. at 1091, 194 P.3d at 1262-63. In July 2009, the State Board proceeded with the merits of the Assessor's appeal from the County Board's equalization decision. At the hearing, the State Board orally voted to uphold the County Board's decision. Its written decision affirming the County Board's equalization decision was entered in October 2009.