98-008
Response January 30, 1998
January
12, 1998
Dear
Commissioner Pacheco,
During
the past eighteen months, I have become aware of a practice which has been
taking place
for
at least twelve years in XXXXX County. At this time I need to request an
advisory opinion from the Tax Commission regarding this practice.
The
County Recorder's Office routinely creates a remaining parcel description for
subdivided
parcels.
These legal descriptions are then recorded and forwarded to my office for
valuation. At
no
time are these parcels surveyed for accuracy.
In fact, it has come to our attention that many of
these
created parcels do not even exist. The
result of this practice is that value is being placed and taxes charged on
properties that have not been verified.
It is my belief that this practice is in violation of UCA
17-27-804(2)(b) and UCA 58-22-102(11).
The
question I have is this, what is the legal responsibility of the County
Assessor to develop a
market
value for a parcel if this parcel was created in a manner not outlined by state
law? I
currently
have 587 such parcels created during the 1997 tax year for inclusion on the
1998
assessment
roll. I do not plan to include these parcels
until I know I can do so legally.
Attached
you will find a legal opinion prepared by of the XXXXX County Attorney's
Office. It is my understanding that these have been provided to NAME, the XXXXX
County Recorder, in the past.
I
would appreciate your assistance in resolving this matter. If you need
additional information,
please
contact me at #####.
Respectfully,
NAME
January
30, 1998
NAME
ADDRESS
CITY,
STATE ZIP
RE:
Assessing parcels which may not have been legally created
Dear
NAME,
We received your request concerning
your assessment duties in relation to subdivided parcels that are recorded in
your county. You have expressed a
concern that some of the recorded parcels have not been created in accordance
with state law and submit two 1986 county memoranda that address the issue of
subdivided parcels.
We have reviewed the statutory
provisions that govern subdivisions of property and recognize a county’s need
to follow and enforce them. However,
the Tax Commission’s duty is to administer the tax process. It does not extend to determining whether a
deed has been properly drafted to ensure an effective recordation, or as in
this instance, to decide whether subdivided parcels have been legally
created. These functions are judicial
ones, and the Tax Commission recommends that you seek legal counsel who may
advise you concerning the legal determinations you seek.
As to your assessment duties, a
county assessor should place on the assessment roll and assess any property
that is recorded by the county recorder.
Until a court orders otherwise, any property that has been properly
recorded should be deemed legally created.
Please let us know if you have any
other questions.
For
the Commission,
Joe
B. Pacheco,
Commissioner
^^