Find Legal Information

134.551 Refund to purchaser of certificate of delinquency that is unenforceable or declared void -- Reassessment of property.

Download pdf

134.551 Refund to purchaser of certificate of delinquency that is unenforceable or declared void -- Reassessment of property. (1) If a certificate of delinquency or personal property certificate of delinquency held by an individual is declared void by a court of competent jurisdiction because of the <br>irregularity of taxing officers, the amount for which the certificate was issued shall <br>be refunded by the state, county, and taxing districts on a pro rata basis. If a school <br>district or county is unable to make the refund currently when requested, it shall be <br>given preference from the next year's revenue. The application for refund must be <br>made within one (1) year after the judgment. The property covered by the void <br>certificate shall be assessed immediately as omitted property and the tax bill shall be <br>payable as soon as prepared. (2) (a) If a certificate of delinquency held by a third-party purchaser who paid the certificate of delinquency to the county clerk: <br>1. Is unenforceable because: <br>a. It is a duplicate certificate of delinquency; b. The tax liability represented by the certificate of delinquency was <br>satisfied prior to the purchase of the certificate of delinquency; c. All or a portion of the certificate of delinquency is exonerated; or d. The property to which the certificate of delinquency applies was <br>not subject to taxes as a matter of law as certified by the property <br>valuation administrator; or 2. Should not have been sold because, on the date of the annual sale, the <br>certificate of delinquency met the requirements for inclusion on the <br>protected list pursuant to KRS 134.504(10) and it: <br>a. Was included on the protected list; b. Was mistakenly left off the protected list; or c. Became eligible for inclusion on the protected list between the date <br>the protected list was submitted and the date of sale; the third-party purchaser may apply to the county clerk for a refund. (b) The application for refund filed with the county clerk shall include written proof that one (1) of the situations described in paragraph (a) of this <br>subsection exists with regard to the certificate of delinquency for which a <br>refund is sought. (c) 1. Upon acceptance and approval of the application for refund, the county <br>clerk shall approve a refund of the amount paid to the county clerk by <br>the third-party purchaser in satisfaction of the certificate of delinquency. 2. Amounts refunded to the third-party purchaser shall be deducted from <br>amounts in the hands of the county clerk due to the state, county, taxing <br>districts, sheriff, county attorney, and the county clerk on a pro rata <br>basis, if the county clerk has sufficient funds in his or her hands to make <br>the refund. 3. If the county clerk does not have sufficient funds to make the refund at <br>the time the refund is approved, the county clerk may either: <br>a. Retain the approved refund claim in his or her office and make the <br>refund payment as soon as he or she has sufficient funds in his or <br>her hands to make the refund payment; or b. Provide a signed letter to the person to whom payment is due, <br>which includes the amount due from each taxing jurisdiction or fee <br>office, and which directs each taxing jurisdiction or fee official to <br>pay to the person the amount due and owing from that taxing <br>jurisdiction or fee official as reflected in the letter. 4. Upon the making of a refund to a third-party purchaser, the county clerk <br>shall issue and file a release of the lien on the property assessed for taxes <br>as provided in this subparagraph. The release shall be linked to the <br>encumbrance in the county clerk's indexing system. <br>a. The department shall prepare a release form to be used by the <br>county clerk when a refund is paid under this paragraph. The form <br>shall include, at a minimum, the following: i. The name and address of the taxpayer; ii. The name and address of the third-party purchaser; iii. The book and page number of the third-party purchaser's lis pendens filing; iv. The property address; v. The applicable tax year; and vi. The map identification number or tax bill number. b. The release form shall be signed by the government official <br>responsible for making the correction. c. In addition to the signed release form, information filed by the <br>county clerk shall include a copy of the documentation provided by <br>the government official and a copy of the refund check or letter of <br>refund authorization issued to the third-party purchaser. The <br>county clerk shall record and file this information without a fee. d. The county clerk shall also make any necessary corrections to the <br>tax records within the office of the county clerk. e. The county clerk shall return the release document to the taxpayer <br>and shall provide a copy of the release document to the third-party <br>purchaser. (d) If the county clerk denies the application for refund, or the property valuation administrator fails to certify that property was not subject to taxes as a matter <br>of law, the third-party purchaser may appeal the decision of the county clerk <br>or the property valuation administrator to the department. The department <br>shall promulgate administrative regulations in accordance with KRS Chapter <br>13A to establish the process for appeal in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B. Effective: April 7, 2010 <br>History: Amended 2010 Ky. Acts ch. 75, sec. 11, effective April 7, 2010. -- Amended and renumbered as KRS 134.551, 2009 Ky. Acts ch. 10, sec. 29, effective January 1, <br>2010. -- Amended 1982 Ky. Acts ch. 452, sec. 8, effective July 1, 1982. -- <br>Recodified 1942 Ky. Acts ch. 208, sec. 1, effective October 1, 1942, from Ky. Stat. <br>sec. 4149b-11. Formerly codified as KRS 134.520.