15.2-716 - Referendum for establishment of department of real estate assessments; board of equalization; general reassessments in county where department established.
§ 15.2-716. Referendum for establishment of department of real estateassessments; board of equalization; general reassessments in county wheredepartment established.
A referendum may be initiated by a petition signed by 200 or more qualifiedvoters of the county filed with the circuit court, asking that a referendumbe held on the question of whether the county shall have a department of realestate assessments. The court shall on or before August 1 enter of record anorder requiring the county election officials to open the polls at theregular election to be held in November of such year on the question statedin such order. If the petition seeks the holding of a special election on thequestion, then the petition hereinabove referred to shall be signed by 1,000or more qualified voters of the county and the court shall within fifteendays of the date such petition is filed enter an order, in accordance with §24.2-684, requiring the election officials to open the polls on a date fixedin the order and take the sense of the qualified voters of the county. Theclerk of the county shall cause a notice of such election to be published ina newspaper having general circulation in the county once a week for threesuccessive weeks, and shall post a copy of such notice at the door of thecounty courthouse.
If a majority of the voters voting in the referendum vote for theestablishment of a department of real estate assessments, the board shall byordinance establish such department, provide for the compensation of thedepartment head and employees therein, and decide such other matters inrelation to the powers and duties of the department, the department head andthe employees, as the board deems proper. As used in this section the term"department" refers to the department of real estate assessments and whereproper the department head thereof.
Upon the establishment of the department, the county manager shall select thehead thereof and provide for such employees and assistants as required. Suchdepartment shall be vested with the powers and duties conferred or imposedupon commissioners of the revenue by general law to the extent that suchduties and powers are consistent with this section, in relation to theassessment of real estate. All real estate shall be assessed at its fairmarket value as of January 1 of each year by the department and taxes foreach year on such real estate shall be entered on the land book by thedepartment in the name of the owner thereof. Whenever any such assessment isincreased over the last assessment made prior to such year, the departmentshall give written notice to the owner of such real estate or of any interesttherein, by mailing such notice to the last known post-office address of suchowner. However, the validity of such assessment shall not be affected by anyfailure to receive such notice.
If a department of real estate assessments is appointed as above provided,the governing body of the county shall annually appoint a board ofequalization of real estate assessments, pursuant to § 15.2-716.1. Any personaggrieved by any assessment made under the provisions of this section mayapply for relief to such board as therein provided.
When a department of real estate assessments is appointed, the county shallnot be required to undertake general reassessments of real estate every sixyears, but the governing body of the county may, but shall not be requiredto, request the circuit court of such county to order a general reassessmentat such times as the governing body deems proper. Such court shall then enteran order directing a reassessment of real estate in the manner provided bylaw.
The department of real estate assessments may require that the owners ofincome-producing real estate in the county subject to local taxation, exceptproperty producing income solely from the rental of no more than fourdwelling units, furnish to the department on or before a time specified bythe director of the department statements of the income and expensesattributable over a specified period of time to each such parcel of realestate. If there is a willful failure to furnish statements of income andexpenses in a timely manner to the director, the owner of such parcel of realestate shall be deemed to have waived his right in any proceeding contestingthe assessment to utilize such income and expenses as evidence of fair marketvalue. Each such statement shall be certified as to its accuracy by an ownerof the real estate for which the statement is furnished, or a duly authorizedagent thereof. Any statement required by this section shall be keptconfidential as required by § 58.1-3.
(Code 1950, § 15-354.1; 1952, c. 611; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-686; 1973, c. 274;1975, c. 517; 1978, c. 460; 1979, c. 158; 1983, c. 364; 1997, c. 587; 2010,cc. 154, 199.)