Rules & Regulations of the State of Tennessee
Title 0600 - Board of Equalization
Chapter 0600-13 - Certified and Equalized Tax Rates
Section 0600-13-.03 - DEFINITIONS

(1) "Appeals allowance" means either the projected loss of reappraisal assessment base due to appeals, or the portion of the certified rate attributed to this projected loss.

(2) "Appraisal ratio" means a ratio based on a comparison of appraised values recorded for real property and actual values based on recent sales and/or expert appraisals. The appraisal ratio indicates generally what percent of fair market value is represented by the appraised value of a property.

(3) "Centrally assessed property" means property that is assessed by the Comptroller of the Treasury under the provisions of T.C.A. §§ 67-5-1301, et seq.

(4) "Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA)" means a system of appraising property that incorporates statistical analyses such as multiple regression analysis and adaptive estimation procedure to assist skilled and trained appraisers in estimating real property values.

(5) "Certified tax rate" means a tax rate calculated pursuant to the provisions of T.C.A. § 67-5-1701 that will generate the same revenue for a jurisdiction as was levied during the preceding tax year.

(6) "Construction in process (CIP)" means personal property that is treated as construction in process for federal income tax purposes as of January 1 of a given year.

(7) "Current value update (CVU)" means an updating of all real property values if the overall level of appraisal for the jurisdiction is less than ninety percent (90%) of fair market value in the third year of a six year reappraisal cycle as set forth in T.C.A. § 67-5-1601(a)(2).

(8) "Equalized tax rate" means the rate determined for cities that lie in more than one county pending a general reappraisal or current value update to adjust the city tax rate to accommodate differing levels of assessment within the city. The purpose of this approach is to adjust the city tax rate so that all properties are taxed uniformly when both the rate and assessed value are considered together.

(9) "Integrated Multi-Processing of Administrative and CAMA Technology system (IMPACT)" refers to the State's computer-assisted mass-appraisal system that maintains property tax assessments made by county assessors for the majority of Tennessee counties.

(10) "Jurisdiction" means the city or county for which the rate is being calculated.

(11) "Locally assessed property" means property that has its assessment determined by an official of the local jurisdiction where the property is located.

(12) "Multi-county jurisdiction" means a city or special school district that lies in more than one county.

(13) "New land" means real properties qualifying for greenbelt classification for the first time in the reappraisal year or real properties that no longer qualify for greenbelt classification in the reappraisal year. This may necessitate an adjustment in the tax rate (to adjust the levy for new greenbelt properties or to adjust the base for properties that no longer qualify for greenbelt classification).

(14) "New personal property" means tangible personal property taxable for the first time in the current tax year. The assessed value of new personal property is listed on line one of each group on the annual personal property schedule, with the exception of groups 7, 8 and 10.

(15) "New real property" means locally assessed real property taxable for the first time in a reappraisal or current value update tax year. Real property is defined by state law to include land, structures and improvements on land, certain mobile homes, and machinery and equipment affixed to the land.

(16) "Non-IMPACT county" means a county that maintains a Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal system other than IMPACT.

(17) "Outbuildings and yard items (OBY's)" are extra features of buildings or improvements to land not included elsewhere.

(18) "Parcel" means land, including the resources in and on it, and the buildings and permanent fixtures attached to it. It may be a contiguous tract of land or one of several lots on a plat, separately owned, either publicly or privately, and capable of being separately conveyed.

(19) "Parcel identification number" is the numeric or alphanumeric description of a parcel that identifies it uniquely.

(20) "Payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT)" are payments made by private taxpayers, often businesses, to a local government to help offset losses in property taxes with respect to property that is tax exempt.

(21) "Preceding year" means the tax year immediately preceding the current tax year.

(22) "Prorate" means to value an improvement to land completed during the tax year by reducing its full value by the proportion of the tax year before it was completed.

(23) "Raw material" means items of tangible personal property, crude or processed, which are held or maintained by a taxpayer for use through refining, combining, or any other process in the production or fabrication of another item or product.

(24) "Real property" is as defined by T.C.A. § 67-5-501(10).

(25) "Reappraisal" means a revaluation of all property within a jurisdiction completed on a continuous cycle as set forth in T.C.A. § 67-5-1601.

(26) "Recapture rate" means the actual tax rate from the reappraisal year minus the amount by which the reappraisal year certified tax rate was overstated due to an excessive appeals allowance.

(27) "Scrap property" refers to personal property no longer capable of use and for which there is no reasonable expectation of repair.

(28) "Special school district (SSD)" is a school district created by the General Assembly that collects property taxes, the rates of which are set by the General Assembly. These districts must use the legislated rate until reappraisal, after which they must use the tax-neutral rate until the General Assembly acts to set a new rate.

(29) "Tangible personal property" is as defined by T.C.A. § 67-5-501(13).

(30) "Tax increment financing (TIF)" is a tool used by local governments to encourage development in targeted areas by allocating to particular facilities the additional tax revenues produced by these facilities for a certain period.

(31) "Tax year" means the period of January 1 through December 31 of the year in which property taxes become due.