Opinion ID: 1996511
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: TERC as Party.

Text: TERC asserts that it should not have been made a party to the present appeal and that it should therefore be dismissed from this appeal. In this regard, TERC notes that § 77-5019(2)(a) provides that TERC shall only be made a party of record if the action complained of is an order issued by the commission [TERC] pursuant to section 77-1504.01 or 77-5023. TERC asserts that the order appealed from was issued pursuant to Neb.Rev.Stat. § 77-5018 (Cum.Supp.2002), not § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023, and therefore it should not have been made a party to this appeal. Section 77-1504.01 provides that a county board of equalization may petition TERC to consider an adjustment to a class or subclass of real property within the county and that TERC shall enter an order specifying a percentage increase or decrease and the class or subclass of real property affected by the order. Section 77-5023 provides that TERC has the power to increase or decrease the value of a class or subclass of real property of any county or tax district so that all classes or subclasses in all counties fall within an acceptable range. Finally, § 77-5018 provides that TERC may issue decisions and orders in cases involving appeals of decisions by a county board of equalization or the Property Tax Administrator. The taxpayers argue that the present appeal is the continuation of the dispute that was previously before this court in Bartlett I in which TERC was named as a party. The taxpayers argue that TERC should continue to be a party until the issues raised in Bartlett I are resolved in the present appeal. At the time the appeal in Bartlett I was filed, § 77-5019(2)(a) (Supp.1999) provided: If the Commission's only role in a case is to act as a neutral fact finding body, the Commission shall not be a party of record. In all other cases, the Commission shall be a party of record. Pursuant to a legislative amendment which became effective April 7, 2000, this language was deleted and replaced by the language quoted above, making TERC a party only in cases involving orders pursuant to § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023. The taxpayers argue that TERC was a proper party to the appeal in Bartlett I under either version of the statute because they claim that the action complained of in Bartlett I was an order issued pursuant to § 77-5023. The taxpayers do not appear to take issue with TERC's assertion that the order appealed from in the current appeal was an order issued pursuant to § 77-5018. Instead, the taxpayers argue that because the current appeal is the continuation of issues related to the May 14, 1998, order issued pursuant to § 77-5023 involved in Bartlett I, TERC should remain a party to these proceedings. Despite TERC's having been named a party to the appeal in Bartlett I, the appellate record in Bartlett I contains a letter filed by TERC stating that the orders appealed from in Bartlett I were entered pursuant to § 77-5018 and that because TERC did not view itself as a proper party to Bartlett I, it did not intend to file any responsive pleadings. The determining factor of whether TERC should be a party to this appeal is whether under § 77-5019(2)(a) the action complained of is an order issued by [TERC] pursuant to § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023. We conclude that the action complained of in this appeal is the December 21, 2001, order of TERC and that such order was an order issued pursuant to § 77-5018 relating to appeals from decisions of a county board of equalization and not an order pursuant to § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023. We conclude that the plain language in § 77-5019(2)(a) referring to the action complained of refers to the particular TERC order being appealed and does not refer to a previous order of TERC which might be relevant to issues in the current appeal. In the present appeal, although the taxpayers refer to issues related to an earlier order which they claim TERC issued pursuant to § 77-5023, the action complained of in the instant appeal is the December 21, 2001, order involving the appeal of decisions by a board which is an order issued pursuant to § 77-5018. In sum, under § 77-5019(2)(a), TERC is to be made a party to an appeal only when the action complained of is an order issued pursuant to § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023, and the December 21, 2001, order complained of in the instant appeal was not issued pursuant to either § 77-1504.01 or § 77-5023. TERC should not have been made a party to this appeal. We therefore dismiss TERC as a party to this appeal.