Property Tax Proceedings for Nonresidential Property

Plain English: This amendment changes who pays for witnesses in property tax cases by making the person filing the case pay their own witness costs and requiring the county to pay for the assessor's witness costs.

• The person starting a legal challenge (the petitioner) must now pay all costs related to bringing their own witnesses to testify.
• The county government is required to pay all costs related to bringing the property tax assessor's witnesses to testify.

• This amendment only changes specific sentences about witness payment and does not explain how much these costs might be or what happens if someone cannot afford them.
• The text includes small grammar fixes (changing 'shall be IS' to 'shall WILL be') that do not change the meaning of the law.

Plain English: This amendment changes the law to make it a petty offense for anyone who knowingly provides false information or helps others do so regarding nonresidential property taxes starting in January 2026.

• It makes it illegal and punishable as a petty offense if someone willfully signs a document saying their tax info is true when they know it contains important lies about nonresidential property.
• It also creates the same penalty for anyone who helps, advises, or encourages others to prepare or submit false information required by this section.
• The law sets these penalties to take effect for property tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2026.

• The amendment text does not explain the specific fine amounts or jail time limits because it refers readers to a separate section of the state code (Section 18-1.3-503) for sentencing details.
• Some parts of the original bill were removed by this amendment, but the full context of what was deleted is unclear without seeing the complete text of the previous version.

Plain English: This amendment changes the rules for nonresidential property tax appeals by letting counties ask to move cases to district court and clarifies that only a judge can decide if a taxpayer loses penalty interest after committing an offense.

• Starting in January 2026, county officials can file a motion asking that certain property tax appeal cases be heard in District Court instead of the Board of Assessment Appeals.
• Filing this request does not automatically move the case; the taxpayer must choose to withdraw their current appeal and start over in District Court for the change to happen.
• If a court finds that a taxpayer committed a petty offense related to false information, they will lose the right to receive penalty interest on unpaid taxes.
• The Board of Assessment Appeals is not allowed to decide if a taxpayer has lost their right to penalty interest; only a judge can make this decision during a prosecution.

• The amendment text does not explain the specific steps or deadlines for how a taxpayer must withdraw an appeal and file in District Court.
• The exact definition of 'willful misinformation' is referenced but not described in detail within this amendment text.

Plain English: This amendment changes the start date for new property tax rules from January 1, 2026, to January 1, 2027.

• Updates three specific lines in the bill text that mention the year 2026.

Plain English: This amendment clarifies who can be punished for filing false property tax information and sets specific time limits for counties to respond in court.

• Only the person who files or helps file false nonresidential property tax info can be charged with a petty offense, not others involved.
• Counties must ask the court to move their case within 42 days after someone starts an appeal about property taxes.
• The person starting the appeal has 21 days to choose how they want to handle the case after the county makes its request.

• Some parts of this amendment change other sections of the bill that are not fully explained in this text, so those specific changes cannot be described here.
• The exact details about what information counts as 'fraudulent' or 'false' depend on rules written elsewhere in the full law.

Plain English: This amendment requires the Board of Assessment Appeals to tell property owners that they do not have to move their case to District Court if a county asks for it, and explains that refusing will not hurt their case.

• If a county wants a nonresidential property tax case heard in District Court instead of by the Board of Assessment Appeals, the board must inform the owner about this request.
• The board must tell the owner they are not required to agree to move the case to District Court.
• The board must explain that refusing to move the case will not negatively affect the outcome for the property owner.
• The board must confirm it will fully hear and decide the matter if the owner chooses to keep the case before them.

• This amendment was lost during the legislative process, so these changes were not made into law.
• The text only describes what happens when a county files a motion; it does not explain how often this occurs or other details about District Court procedures.

Plain English: This amendment sets a specific start date for the law and adds rules about what happens if voters try to stop it with a petition.

• The new rule will not begin until August 12, 2026, which is ninety days after the legislature finishes its session in May.

• This amendment only changes when the law starts; it does not explain what the actual rules about property taxes are.
• The text assumes a specific date for when the legislature ends, which might change if they finish their work on a different day.