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The Board is required to make and publish reasonable rules “for
guidance of persons doing business with the Board and for the
orderly dispatch of business.” (35 ILCS 200/9-5) The Board
has the authority to confirm, reduce, or increase any assessment
as appears just. The Board determines the correct
assessment of any parcel of real property which is the subject
of an appeal, according to the law, based on standards of
uniformity, market value, accuracy of facts, evidence, exhibits
and briefs submitted to or elicited by the Board from an
appellant, assessor and/or other interested parties.
A message from the Henry County Board
of Review...
It is strongly recommended that a
taxpayer discuss their assessment with the township assessor
prior to filing an appeal with the Board. Many times the reason
for the assessment can be made clear or any errors in the
property record can be corrected eliminating the need for filing
an appeal. (Township Assessor information may be found on the
Henry County website)
I. Administrative Rules
A. Convening the Board. The Board
convenes on or before the First Monday of June and recesses from
day to day, as may be necessary.
B. Severability. In the event a section,
provision, or term of this policy is determined by a court or
other authority of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, that
determination shall not affect the remaining sections or
provisions, which shall continue in full force and effect. For
this purpose, the provisions of this policy are severable.
C. Amendments. The rules may be amended
from time to time; said amendments are effective upon their
being conspicuously posted and prominently displayed by the
Clerk of the Board.
D. Failure to Follow Board Rules. Failure to
follow any rules, in and of itself, may be grounds for the
denial of any change in assessment
E. Authority of the Board. In connection
with any hearing before the Board, the Board has full authority
to:
1. Conduct & control the procedure of the
hearing.
2. Admit or exclude testimony or other evidence into the
record.
3. Administer oaths and affirmations and examine all persons
appearing at the hearing to testify or offer evidence.
4. Require the production of any book, record, paper, or
document at any stage of the appeal process or at the hearing
which is the foundation for any evidence or testimony presented
in the appeal. The Board also may request a property inspection
to clarify parcel characteristics and/or condition of a subject
property. Failure to produce a requested book, record, paper or
document or failure to allow a property inspection within the
prescribed time frame set by the Board may result in the
confirmation of the assessment.
5. Terminate a hearing and require an appellant,
appellant’s representative or witness to leave the proceeding,
when an appellant or appellant’s agent, attorney or witness
engages in threatening, disruptive, vulgar, abusive or obscene
conduct or language that delays or protracts a proceeding or
refuses to leave a hearing room after a decision has been
rendered.
F. Open Meetings Act. Hearings held by
the Board are open to the public, subject to the exceptions
cited by the Open Meetings Act (5 ILCS 120/1.02)
H. Clerk of the Board of Review. The
administrative functions of the Board are discharged by the
Henry County Chief County Assessment Officer, who shall act as
the Clerk of the Board.
II. Hearings
The purpose of a hearing is to evaluate a
property assessment based upon evidence presented by all
concerned parties: typically, appellant and assessor and, where
applicable, intervener.
A. Standing. Only a
taxpayer or owner of property (or agent/attorney thereof)
dissatisfied with a property’s assessment or a taxing body that
has a tax revenue interest in a decision of the Board on an
assessment made by any local assessment officer may file an
appeal with the Board. Appeals must be filed on the forms
provided by the Board of Review and available on the website:
http://www.henrycty.com/codepartments/assessments/borforms
or in the County Assessment Office. All applicable items on the
form must be completed. Any non-owner (attorney or agent)
filing an appeal on behalf of an owner must have authorization
by the owner of record. Authorization is indicated by signature
on the appeal form or a separate authorization form.
B. Date of Filing. All appeals must be filed
with the Board of Review on or before 30 days after the date of
publication of the current year assessments (35 ILCS
200/16-55). The Board only accepts official postmarks and
hand deliveries on or before deadline. It does not accept
appeal forms or case-related materials by fax or email. Late
filings are not scheduled for hearings. The filing date
will be published on the Henry County website.
Appeals are deemed filed on the date:
1. officially postmarked by the U.S. Postal
Service.
2. hand delivered to the Henry County Assessment
Office and stamped received.
C. Appeal Forms and Information. The Board
requests that all parties to an appeal utilize the prescribed
forms and comparison grids of the Henry County Board of Review.
These forms are available at the Henry County Assessment Office
and on the County’s website.
1. Incomplete Forms. Incomplete appeal
forms may not be set for hearing.
D. Reductions of $100,000 or more. Pursuant to
35 ILCS 200/16-55, if an appellant is requesting a reduction in
assessed valuation of $100,000 or more, the Board must notify
each respective taxing district.
1. It is therefore required that appellants
supply their requested assessment total in the appropriate space
on the appeal form. If this information is not provided, the
Board will not make a reduction of $100,000 or more.
2. Any taxing district wishing to intervene in a
matter already before the Board must file a Request to
Intervene. Such filing must be made within ten (10) days of the
postmarked date appearing on the notice which is furnished to
the taxing districts in which the subject property is located.
3. In instances where a taxing district has filed
as an intervener concerning a matter before the Board, in
accordance with statute, such district has no more than fourteen
(14) days after the aforementioned postmark, to furnish the
Board with evidence supporting their opinion of value.
4. Attorney’s representing a taxing body must
provide a letter of authorization from the taxing body.
E. Submission of Evidence. The Board requires that
the original appeal form and evidence, plus three (3) copies of
the form and evidence, be submitted at the time of application,
except for a documented appraisal report, which must be received
in the Board office (irrespective of postmark) no more than ten
(10) calendar days after the filing deadline. Evidence
submitted at the hearing by any party may be accepted by the
Board; however, it may be given less weight than evidence
submitted in accordance with the Board rules.
F. Hearing Notification. An appellant will be
notified by U.S. Mail of the hearing date, time, and place. If
circumstances prevent the appellant from attending the hearing,
call 309-937-3570.
G. Scheduled Hearings. Scheduled hearings are not
rescheduled due to time constraints of the Real Estate Tax
Cycle. Failure to submit evidence or attend the scheduled
hearing will result in dismissal of the appeal.
H. Location of Hearings. Hearings are held at
the Henry County Courthouse, 307 W Center St, Cambridge,
Illinois in the County Assessment Office. Meetings may be held
at other locations in the County at the discretion of the Board.
I. Hearing Format. The appellant or
his/her representative presents testimony regarding the
assessment and are required to answer any questions from the
Board.
J. Hearing Length. Most hearings are
scheduled at fifteen-minute intervals.
K. Decisions. In most instances, a
decision will be rendered the day of the hearing. There are
some instances where the Board needs to deliberate further,
causing a decision to be rendered at a later date. Official
decisions are mailed to all appellants or their
representatives.
L. Evidence Submitted by Interveners. A
taxing body wishing to intervene in a matter before the Board
must file a Request to Intervene with the Board of Review at
least five (5) days in advance of the scheduled hearing.
III. Bases for Assessment Appeals
A. Appeals Based upon Incorrect Assessor Data.
1. Definition. Incorrect
data includes, but not limited to, size of the site, size of the
improvements, physical features, and locational attributes.
2. Evidence. Appeals based
on the application of incorrect subject-property data by a
township assessor must include a copy of the property record
card for the subject, a statement highlighting the incorrect
data and evidence of the correct data, such as a plat of survey,
photograph, or construction documents.
3. Assessor Access to Property.
Appellants are urged to schedule a property inspection with
their Assessor for appeals related to the description, physical
characteristics, and/or condition of the subject property.
B. Appeals Based on the Recent Sale of a Property.
The Board will consider the sale of a subject property,
which occurred within the last twelve months
of the assessment date, as possible evidence of market
value. The Board requires the following
information in such an appeal:
1. Documents that disclose the purchase price of
the property and date of purchase including the Settlement
Statement and the State of Illinois PTAX form.
2. Testimony and/or documentation revealing the
identity of seller and buyer and any relationship between or
among them (other than seller and buyer) including, but not
limited to, those existing by blood, marriage, corporate
parent-subsidiary companies or by virtue of ownership of
non-publicly held stock, and whether or not the transaction was
arms-length.
3. An itemized Bill of Sale, signed by seller and
buyer, and supporting documentation of the fair cash value of
any personal property included in the sale of the subject
property.
C. Appeals Based on Fair Cash Value.
1. Definition. Fair
cash value is defined as “the amount for which a property can be
sold in the due course of business and trade, not under duress,
between a willing buyer and a willing seller.” (35 ILCS
200/1-50) Fair cash value is often used interchangeably with
market value.
2. Burden of Proof.
When fair cash value is the basis of an appeal, the value of the
subject property must be proved by a preponderance of the
evidence (Definition -
the standard of proof in most
civil cases in which the party bearing the burden of proof must
present evidence which is more credible and convincing than that
presented by the other party or which shows that the fact to be
proven is more probable than not)
3.
Appraisal Evidence. The best evidence of fair cash
value (in lieu of a recent useable sale price of the subject
itself) is a professional appraisal done for ad valorem
purposes, valuing a subject property as January 1, 2011.
a. To be
considered, an appraisal must be:
i. Prepared in
conformance to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal
Practice as currently adopted by the Appraisal Standards Board.
ii. Signed by the
appraiser.
iii. Presented in entirety,
including all exhibits, with no missing pages.
4. Recent usable Sales of Comparable
Properties. In lieu of a professional appraisal, recent
usable sales of comparable properties may be submitted as
evidence for a fair cash value appeal. A usable sale is an
arms-length transaction of a property between or among unrelated
parties, who are not under any duress to buy or sell the
property, which has been offered on the open market and
advertised for sale.
If recent
usable sales of comparable properties are submitted as evidence
for a fair cash value appeal, it is preferable to select the
best three (3) comparables, which have closed as close to
January 1, 2011, as possible. Comparables should be located
near the subject and/or in the same neighborhood. They should
be similar in style (e.g., ranch, 2-story, split-level, etc.),
construction (e.g., brick, frame, with or without a basement,
etc.), age, size (e.g., square footage of lot and building),
quality and condition to subject. If comparables are not
located in the subject’s neighborhood, additional explanation
may be needed to confirm their similarity.
Characteristics
of the subject and three (3) comparables must be displayed on
the Residential Comparison Grid, located on the County website,
and submitted with the original appeal, together with pictures
of the subject and comparables.
5. Other Evidence. Other evidence of fair cash
value may consist of, but is not limited to, the following:
a. Listing contract and
Multiple Listing Service history of the subject property for
2010 and 2011.
b. A complete (final) sworn
contractor’s affidavit of costs, if the improvement is new
construction, together with a
Settlement Statement.
6. Income Producing Property. When an
assessment appeal for an income-producing property is based
on fair cash value, the income and expense data of the property
must be submitted as evidence.
a. Where the entire property is
covered under a single lease, the entire lease must be submitted
as
evidence.
b.
Where multiple leases are in place, the Board will consider
lease summaries, audited financial statements, rent rolls with
totals and representative samples of leases submitted by the
taxpayer and any such documents requested by the Board.
c.
Vacancy. If an appeal for reduced assessment if based upon
vacancy, the appellant must provide an affidavit of occupancy.
D. Appeals Based on
Equity.
1.
Definition. Real property assessments shall be
valued uniformly as the General Assembly provides by
law (Art.9, Sec
2, Illinois Constitution of 1970). An inequitable assessment is
one that values one
property at a
higher level of assessment (relative to fair cash value) than
assessments of comparable
properties.
(Note: Courts in Illinois have found that mathematical
exactitude is not an absolute
requirement in
estimating property assessments.)
2. Burden of
Proof. When unequal treatment in the assessment process
is the basis of an appeal inequity
must be proved by clear
and convincing evidence. (Definition:
evidence showing a high probability of
truth of the
factual matter at issue)
3. Evidence
Considered. Comparable properties usually are submitted
as evidence for equity appeals,
arguing that the
assessed value per square foot of a subject is higher than that
of comparables.
It is
preferable to select the best three (3) comparables.
Comparables should be located near the subject
and/or in the
same neighborhood. They
should be similar in style (e.g., ranch, 2-story, split-level,
etc.), construction (e.g., brick, frame, with or without a
basement, etc.), age, size (e.g., square footage of above ground
living area), quality and condition to subject. If comparables
are not located in the subject’s neighborhood, additional
explanation may be needed to confirm their similarity.
Characteristics
of the subject and three (3) comparables must be displayed on
the Residential Comparison Grid, located on the County website,
and submitted with the original appeal, together with pictures
of the subject and comparables.
4. Income Producing Property. When an
assessment appeal for an income-producing property is based
on equity, the income and expense data of the property must be
submitted as evidence.
E.
Appeals Based Upon Matters of Law.
1.
Definition.
Matters of law include such factors as carrying forward a prior
year residential appeal
results, preferential assessment, and farmland
valuation.
2. Evidence. Appeals alleging an incorrect
application of law must include a brief, citing the law in
question as well as copies of any legal opinions and/or judicial
rulings regarding the law in question.
3. Prior Board of Review Decisions. Owner
occupied residential property assessment appeals based
upon prior year Board decisions should contain the Notice of
Finding from the Board. Prior year
decisions on owner-occupied residential
properties should be carried forward until the next general
assessment year, subject to the Chief County
Assessment Officer’s equalization. Cases based solely on
this reason will be set for review only after
a review by the Board or its staff.
IV. Assessor's Corrections
A. Deadline.
The final filing date for Assessors’ 2011 correction requests
and/or instant assessments is December 31, 2011.
B.
Notice. A notice
is sent to the taxpayer. If taxpayer does not agree with the
assessment, an appeal must be filed within ten (10) calendar
days of the date posted on the notice by contacting the County
Assessment Office at the phone number listed on the notice.
C.
Evidence. For
hearings regarding corrections, the Rules regarding hearings set
forth above apply.
V. Certificates of Error
A.
Error in Fact. A
Certificate of Error, when presented to the Board, must be
accompanied by evidence of “error in fact.” Failure to present
proper evidence upon request may cause non-concurrence by the
Board.
B.
Deadline.
Requests for Certificates of Error for the 2010 tax year must be
filed with the Henry County Chief County Assessment Officer on
or before the date the Treasurer takes judgment (around October
15).
VI. Omitted
Property
A.
Authority. The
Board has the authority to place an assessment on omitted
property (35 ILCS 200/9-160, et seq.).
B.
Notice. If the
Board initiates proceedings designed to place omitted property
on the tax rolls, the Board gives at least ten (10) working days
written notice to the concerned parties, advising them of the
Boards proposed action.
VII.
Non-Homestead Exemptions
A.
Applications.
Must be filed on forms of the Illinois Department of Revenue:
PTAX-300, PTAX-300-FS (for federal and state agencies) and
PTAX-300-R (for religious entities). These forms are available
in the County Assessment Office.
B.
Decisions. The
Board makes recommendations to the Illinois Department of
Revenue as to whether or not a
non-homestead exemption should be allowed. The Illinois Department of
Revenue reviews the evidence and
renders the final decision.
VIII.
Adoption
Adoption. These
rules are adopted for the 2011 session of the Henry County Board
of Review as of May 24, 2011.
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