§ 44-19-21 - Taxes as debt to state – Lien on real estate.
SECTION 44-19-21
§ 44-19-21 Taxes as debt to state –Lien on real estate. – (a) The amount of any taxes, interest, and penalties imposed upon any taxpayerunder the provisions of chapters 18 and 19 of this title is a debt due from thetaxpayer to the state, is recoverable at law in the same manner as other debts,and until collected constitutes a lien upon all the real property of thetaxpayer located in this state and the lien takes precedence over any otherlien or encumbrance on the property except as provided in this section. The taxadministrator may file a notice of the tax lien with the records of landevidence for the city or town where the property is located and it is the dutyof the recorder of deeds or the city or town clerk having custody of thoserecords to receive, file, and index the notice under the name of the taxpayer.Any of the preceding provisions of this section to the contrarynotwithstanding, the lien imposed by this section is not valid with respect toproperty in any city or town as against any bona fide purchaser, mortgagee, orlessee, whose interest in the real property appears of record in that city ortown prior to the time of filing of that notice of tax lien in that city ortown.
(b) The notice of the tax lien filed shall be in writing;shall contain the name and last known address of the taxpayer, and shall statethat the taxpayer is indebted to the state under chapters 18 and 19 of thistitle for which the tax administrator claims a lien; the notice does not needto describe the taxpayer's property, or specify the amount of taxes owed, orthe period of time covered by the delinquency. When the notice is filed in acity or town by the tax administrator, it, unless sooner discharged orreleased, also applies to property in the same city or town acquired by thetaxpayer during a period of six (6) years from the date of filing and thefiling does not need to be repeated for each successive delinquency of thetaxpayer. The notice shall expire six (6) years from the date of filing unlessrenewed by again filing a notice on or before the expiration date. The taxadministrator is obliged to discharge or release the notice of lien when thetaxpayer is no longer delinquent in the payment of any of the taxes, interest,or penalties, whether incurred prior or subsequent to the date of filing of thenotice, or upon request, following the expiration of the statutory lien period,as described in this subsection.
(c) For the filing of a notice of lien or discharge of lien,the recorder of deeds or the city or town clerk shall be paid out of any moneyappropriated for expenses of tax administration, a fee of one dollar and fiftycents ($1.50) for a completed entry.
(d) The authority granted in this section to the taxadministrator to file a notice of lien shall not be held to repeal or amend inany other respect the provisions of § 44-19-30.