421.1A - PROPERTY ASSESSMENT APPEAL BOARD. - Iowa Statutes

421.1A PROPERTY ASSESSMENT APPEAL BOARD. 1. A statewide property assessment appeal board is created for the purpose of establishing a consistent, fair, and equitable property assessment appeal process. The statewide property assessment appeal board is established within the department of revenue for administrative and budgetary purposes. The board's principal office shall be in the office of the department of revenue in the capital of the state. 2. a. The property assessment appeal board shall consist of three members appointed to staggered six-year terms, beginning and ending as provided in section 69.19, by the governor and subject to confirmation by the senate. Subject to confirmation by the senate, the governor shall appoint from the members a chairperson of the board to a two-year term. Vacancies on the board shall be filled for the unexpired portion of the term in the same manner as regular appointments are made. The term of office for the initial board shall begin January 1, 2007. b. Each member of the property assessment appeal board shall be qualified by virtue of at least two years' experience in the area of government, corporate, or private practice relating to property appraisal and property tax administration. One member of the board shall be a certified real estate appraiser or hold a professional appraisal designation, one member shall be an attorney practicing in the area of state and local taxation or property tax appraisals, and one member shall be a professional with experience in the field of accounting or finance and with experience in state and local taxation matters. No more than two members of the board may be from the same political party as that term is defined in section 43.2. c. The property assessment appeal board shall organize by appointing a secretary who shall take the same oath of office as the members of the board. The board may employ additional personnel as it finds necessary. All personnel employed by the board shall be considered state employees and are subject to the merit system provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV. 3. At the election of a property owner or aggrieved taxpayer or an appellant described in section 441.42, the property assessment appeal board shall review any final decision, finding, ruling, determination, or order of a local board of review relating to protests of an assessment, valuation, or application of an equalization order. 4. The property assessment appeal board may do all of the following: a. Affirm, reverse, or modify a final decision, finding, ruling, determination, or order of a local board of review. b. Order the payment or refund of property taxes in a matter over which the board has jurisdiction. c. Grant other relief or issue writs, orders, or directives that the board deems necessary or appropriate in the process of disposing of a matter over which the board has jurisdiction. d. Subpoena documents and witnesses and administer oaths. e. Adopt administrative rules pursuant to chapter 17A for the administration and implementation of its powers, including rules for practice and procedure for protests filed with the board, the manner in which hearings on appeals of assessments shall be conducted, filing fees to be imposed by the board, and for the determination of the correct assessment of property which is the subject of an appeal. f. Adopt administrative rules pursuant to chapter 17A necessary for the preservation of order and the regulation of proceedings before the board, including forms or notice and the service thereof, which rules shall conform as nearly as possible to those in use in the courts of this state. 5. The property assessment appeal board shall employ a competent attorney to serve as its general counsel, and assistants to the general counsel as it finds necessary for the full and efficient discharge of its duties. The general counsel is the attorney for, and legal advisor of, the board. The general counsel or an assistant to the general counsel shall provide the necessary legal advice to the board in all matters and shall represent the board in all actions instituted in a court challenging the validity of a rule or order of the board. The general counsel shall devote full time to the duties of the office. During employment as general counsel to the board, the counsel shall not be a member of a political committee, contribute to a political campaign, participate in a political campaign, or be a candidate for partisan political office. The general counsel and assistants to the general counsel shall be considered state employees and are subject to the merit system provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV. 6. The members of the property assessment appeal board shall receive compensation from the state commensurate with the salary of a district judge through December 31, 2013. The members of the board shall be considered state employees for purposes of salary and benefits. The members of the board and any employees of the board, when required to travel in the discharge of official duties, shall be paid their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of duties. 7. a. Effective January 1, 2012, a property assessment appeal board review committee is established. Staffing assistance to the committee shall be provided by the department of revenue. The committee shall consist of six members of the general assembly, two appointed by the majority leader of the senate, one appointed by the minority leader of the senate, two appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, and one appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives; the director of revenue or the director's designee; a county assessor appointed by the Iowa state association of counties; and a city assessor appointed by the Iowa league of cities. b. The property assessment appeal board review committee shall review the activities of the property assessment appeal board since its inception. The review committee may recommend the revision of any rules, regulations, directives, or forms relating to the activities of the property assessment appeal board. c. The review committee shall report to the general assembly by January 15, 2013. The report shall include any recommended changes in laws relating to the property assessment appeal board, the reasons for the committee's recommendations, and any other information the committee deems advisable.          Section History: Recent Form 2005 Acts, ch 150, §121; 2006 Acts, ch 1185, §30; 2007 Acts, ch 215, §27 Referred to in § 441.37A Confirmation, see §2.32          Footnotes For future repeal of this section effective July 1, 2013, see 2005 Acts, ch 150, § 134