FLORIDA’S VALUE ADJUSTMENT BOARD PROCESS October 30, 2008

1. FLORIDA’S VALUE ADJUSTMENT BOARD PROCESSOctober 30, 2008 Howard Moyes Deputy Director Property Tax Oversight Florida Department of Revenue

2. PRESENTATION OVERVIEW • Intent and Purpose of House Bill 909 • House Bill 909 Requirements • DOR Activities – Current & Anticipated • Q & A

3. HB909 INTENT AND PURPOSE • VAB process in all 67 counties shall be • Uniform • Fair • Impartial • Independent • Professional • Training and assistance to VABs by DOR • Clarify PA’s presumption of correctness • Clarify highest and best use

4. COMPOSITION OF VAB • Revises composition of the VAB • Two Citizen members, two County Commissioners, one School Board Member • One Citizen appointed by the County Commission that must own homestead property • One Citizen appointed by School Board that must own a business occupying commercial space • One Citizen member must be present to have a quorum

5. VAB ATTORNEY • Qualifications • Private attorney • Practiced law for at least 5 years • Does not represent any of the following parties in any administrative or judicial review of property taxes: • Property Appraiser • Tax Collector • Any Taxing Authority • Any Property Owner

6. TRAINING REQUIREMENTS • Requires DOR to provide training for VAB members, attorneys and special magistrates • Special magistrate training substitutes for two of the required five years of experience • For counties with populations less than 75,000, either all five VAB members must complete the training or the private counsel must complete the training • Training is open to the public

7. TRAINING (CONTINUED) • Limited interim training for VAB members and/or attorneys currently available on DOR’s web site • Required for counties with population less than 75,000 that do not use special magistrates • Others recommended to take training but not required to do so • http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/vabwb/vabtraining.html • Special magistrate training will be delivered in at least 5 locations before June 30, 2009 • Current qualified special magistrates are not required to take training but are encouraged to do so

8. PETITIONS & HIGHESTAND BEST USE • Revises “Tax Impact of VAB” notice • Includes the number of parcels for which petitions were filed that were settled or withdrawn • Revises s.193.011(2) “Highest and Best use” to take into consideration the legally permissible use of the property • As well as any zoning changes, concurrency requirements, or permits necessary to achieve highest and best use

9. PROPERTY APPRAISER’S PRESUMPTION OF CORRECTNESS • Statement of Legislative Intent – Burden of Proof • Taxpayer shall never have the burden of proving the PA’s assessment is not supported by any reasonable hypothesis • Any cases applying the every reasonable hypothesis since 1997 are expressly rejected

10. DATA REPORTING REQUIREMENTS • Required data reporting by DOR • Increase in Ad Valorem taxes for each city and county • Distribution of Ad Valorem taxes among classifications of property • Current and prior year millage rates • Requires data to be published on DOR website and the website of all PA’s, if available.

11. DOR ACTIVITIES • VAB Forms (On DOR’s Web Site) • DR-486A Alternative Petition to Value Adjustment Board • Removes optional information fields • Clarifies that no letter of authorization is required to file a petition • Counties may not use non-DOR forms • DR-485A and DR-485MAG Decision of VAB & Recommended Decision of Special Magistrate • DR-488 Certificate of VAB • DR-529 Tax Impact of Value Adjustment Board notice • http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/vabwb/vabws.html

12. FORMS (CONTINUED) • Property Appraiser Forms (on Web Site) • DR-485R Value Adjustment Board Remand to Property Appraiser • DR-490 Notice of Disapproval of Application for Property Tax Exemption by the County Property Appraiser • http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/vabwb/vabws.html

13. DOR RULESCURRENT DRAFTS ON DOR WEB SITE • Draft Rule Chapter 12D-9, F.A.C. • Uniform Rules of Procedure • Duties of the Board, Special Magistrates & Clerks • VAB Petitions & Hearing Notices • Standards of Conduct • Written Authorizations for Confidential Info • Disqualification/Recusal of Special Magistrates • Ex Parte Communication Prohibition • Procedures for Remand Assessments • Other Rules of Procedure • http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/vabwb/vabws.html

14. DOR RULES (CONTINUED) • Draft Rule Chapter 12D-10, F.A.C. • Composition of VAB & Requirements for Decisions by VABs • Taxpayer Rights and Responsibilities • Composition of VAB • Scope and Process of Admin Review of Exemptions, Classification, Assessments & Portability • Appointment & Employment of Special Magistrates • Requirements for Decisions by SMs and VABs • Uniform Procedures for Hearings & Evidence Exchange • Other • http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/property/vabwb/vabws.html

15. DOR’S CURRENT & ANTICIPATED NEXT STEPS • Rule Development Workshops • May to November 2008 • November 19 in Orlando and November 20 in Miami • Limited Interim Training for VAB members and/or attorneys in counties with less than 75k population that do not use special magistrates • August 2008 - Current • Rule Hearings • December 2008 to January 2009 (tentative) • Uniform Policies and Procedures Manual • April 2009 (tentative) • Special Magistrate Training • May to June 2009 (tentative)

16. SUMMARY • Intent & Purpose of HB 909 • HB 909 Requirements • DOR Activities – Current & Anticipated • Questions?