Fairness and Accuracy in Real Property Tax Assessments Amendment Act of 2025

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
OFFICE OF COUNCILMEMBER BROOKE PINTO
THE JOHN A. WILSON BUILDING
1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W., SUITE 106
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004

November 17, 2025

Nyasha Howard, Secretary
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20004

Dear Secretary Howard,

Today, I am introducing the Fairness and Accuracy in Real Property Tax Assessments Amendment Act of 2025.
Please find enclosed a signed copy of the legislation.

The District’s current property tax assessment system creates barriers to economic development and prosperity by
burdening taxpayers with unnecessary compliance burdens, imposing needless bureaucratic tasks on administrators,
and arbitrarily preventing modest but meaningful adjustments in erroneous property tax assessments.

This bill would implement several common-sense solutions designed to help ensure that the property tax assessment
and appeals systems are accurate, efficient, and timely . First, it would e liminate the rule that prohibits the Real
Property Tax Appeals Commission (“RPTAC”) from adjusting a property’s estimated market value if the Office of
Tax and Revenue’s (“ OTR’s”) assessment was within 5%. This brings us in line with other jurisdictions , that do
not have this kind of arbitrary, bright -line rule. This rule creates a burden for taxpayers, where an erroneous
assessment could mean paying hundreds of extra dollars for residential property owners, which can create a housing
burden particularly for lower income residents and fixed -income seniors , or millions of extra dollars for large
commercial property owners, which can dampen development opportunities.

The bill would also require all RPTAC appeals decisions from the previous year to be decided within 30 day s and
extend the deadline by which such decisions need to be decided to March 1 instead of Fe bruary 1. Additionally, it
would allow a letter of authorization to remain in effect for up to 3 years and throughout multiple levels of appeals,
standardize appeals filing deadlines to business days instead of standard days, and allow property owners to opt in
to electronic delivery of OTR appeals decisions.

Should you have any questions about this legislation, please contact my Committee and Legislative Director, Linn
Groft, at lgroft@dccouncil.gov.

Thank you,

Brooke Pinto
Councilmember, Ward 2
Chairwoman, Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety
Council of the District of Columbia

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Councilmember Brooke Pinto 2
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A BILL 5
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 8
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To amend section 21-2610.10 to improve the real property tax appeals process by extending the 12
applicability of letters of authorization for purposes of tax appeals, and to amend Title 47 13
of the District of Columbia Official Code to improve the real property tax appeals process 14
by eliminating the five-percent rule limiting assessment relief and allowing taxpayers to 15
opt into electronic correspondence for certain property tax communications. 16
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 18
Act may be cited as the “Fairness and Accuracy in Real Property Tax Assessments Amendment 19
Act of 2025”. 20
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Sec. 2. Section 21-2601.10 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended by 22
adding a new subsection (h) to read as follows: 23
“(h) Notwithstanding any of other provision of law, a single power of attorney by a Letter 24
of Authorization may be granted for the purpose of representing a property owner before the 25
Office of Taxation and Revenue and the Real Property Tax Appeals Commission, and such 26
Letter of Authorization shall remain in effect until such time as ownership of the property subject 27
to the appeal changes, the Letter of Authorization is revoked, or a new Letter of Authorization is 28
filed, but no longer than three calendar years from the date of filing, whichever occurs first. A 29
Letter of Authorization is not required to be witnessed by a notary to be a valid authorization.”. 30
Sec. 3. Title 47 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended as follows: 31
(a) Amend section 825.01a(e) as follows: 32
(1) Amend paragraph (4)(C)(ii) to read as follows: 33
“(ii) The Commission shall raise or lower the estimated market 34

value of any real property that it finds to be above or below the estimated market value for any 35
assessment appealed by an owner.”. 36
(2) Amend paragraph (7) as follows: 37
(A) Amend sub-paragraph (A) by striking the phrase “February” and 38
inserting the phrase “March” in its place. 39
(B) Amend sub-paragraph (B) by striking the phrase “a residential real 40
property case involving a single family residential property or a residential real property 41
consisting of 4 or fewer dwelling units and 80 days to decide a residential real property case 42
involving a residential real property with 5 or more dwelling units or a commercial real property 43
case” and inserting the phrase “the appeal” in its place. 44
(b) Amend section 4312 by adding a new subsection (g) to read as follows: 45
“(g) The Office of Tax and Revenue shall deliver to the owner and any authorized 46
representative all communications described in this section and communications related to the 47
judgment of the protest outlined in subsection (a) via electronic means, including email or an 48
online portal, if requested by the owner or such representative. Notwithstanding any other 49
provision of law, if electronic delivery is requested by the owner or such representative, 50
electronic delivery in the manner requested shall constitute sufficient delivery of notice.”. 51
Sec. 4. Title 9 of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations is amended as follows: 52
(a) Section 2009.2 is amended as follows: 53
(1) Strike the phrase “seven (7) days” and insert the phrase “seven (7) business 54
days” in its place. 55
(2) Strike the phrase “ten (10) days” and insert the phrase “ten (10) business days” 56
in its place. 57
(b) Section 2009.3 is amended as follows: 58
(1) Strike the phrase “ten (10) days” and insert the phrase “ten (10) business days” 59
in its place. 60
(2) Strike the phrase “seven (7) days” and insert the phrase “seven (7) business 61
days” in its place. 62
Sec. 5. Fiscal impact statement. 63
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 64
impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 65
approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). 66
Sec. 6. Effective date. 67
This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 68
Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as 69
provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 70
24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of 71
Columbia Register. 72