Current through Register Vol. 24-06, March 15, 2024
(1)
Introduction. This rule describes what events cause removal of
land from designated forest land status under chapter 84.33 RCW, the procedures
followed for removal, and the resulting compensating tax.
(2)
Events causing the removal of
designated forest land status. The assessor must remove forest land from
its designated forest land status when:
(a)
The owner submits a written request to remove the land from designated forest
land status;
(b) The owner sells or
transfers the land to an individual or entity exempt from property tax because
of that individual's or entity's ownership;
(c) The assessor determines that the land is
no longer primarily devoted to and used for growing and harvesting
timber;
(d) The owner has failed to
comply with a final administrative or judicial order made because of the
violation of the restocking, forest management, fire protection, insect and
disease control and forest debris provisions of Title 76 RCW or the rules that
implement Title 76 RCW;
(e)
Restocking has not occurred to the extent or within the time specified in the
application for designation of the land;
(f) The owner sells or transfers forest land
to a new owner who has not signed a notice of continuance, except for a
transfer by a transfer on death deed or a transfer to a new owner who is the
heir or devisee of a deceased owner.
RCW
84.33.140(5). Land may also
be removed if a new owner signs the notice of continuance but the assessor
determines the land does not continue to qualify in its designated status;
or
(g) The assessor discovers that
the land was designated under chapter 84.33 RCW in error.
(3)
How to retain designated forest
land status when the land is sold or transferred. When designated forest
land is sold or transferred, the new owner may retain designated forest land
status by filing a signed notice of continuance with the deed. The notice of
continuance may be signed as part of the real estate excise tax (REET)
affidavit or as a separate form if the county has decided it will require
owners to submit both the REET affidavit and attach a separate notice of
continuance. If multiple owners own the land, all owners or their agent(s) must
sign the notice of continuance. A notice of continuance is not required for a
transfer to a new owner who is an heir or devisee of a deceased owner or for a
transfer by a transfer on death deed to retain designated forest land status.
(a) The owner may obtain the notice of
continuance form and a real estate excise tax (REET) affidavit from the county.
The county assessor's office has the notice of continuance form and the county
treasurer's office has the REET affidavit.
(b) After the new owner signs the notice of
continuance as part of the REET affidavit and, if required, the separate
notice, the REET affidavit and notice must be submitted to the assessor for
approval. The assessor may also require the owner to submit a timber management
plan before approving the notice of continuance.
(i) The assessor signs the REET affidavit and
indicates whether the land will or will not qualify to continue as designated
forest land.
(ii) An assessor signs
the REET affidavit and approves the land for continued designation if:
(A) The assessor is provided with a complete
and accurate notice of continuance signed by the new owner demonstrating that
the forest land will continue to qualify as designated forest land;
and
(B) At the assessor's option,
the new owner provides a timber management plan for the property.
(iii) The assessor is allowed up
to fifteen days to confirm that the information upon the notice is complete and
accurate. The assessor may use this time to confirm that the timber management
plan provides:
(A) The correct legal
description for the forest land;
(B) The new owner's statement that the forest
land is a parcel of land that consists of five or more acres or multiple
parcels that are contiguous and total five or more acres and is primarily
devoted to and used to grow and harvest timber;
(C) A statement about whether the land is
used to graze livestock;
(D) A
brief description of the timber stands located on the land;
(E) A statement about whether the land has
been used in compliance with the restocking, forest management, fire
protection, insect and disease control, and forest debris provisions of Title
76 RCW; and
(F) If the land has
been recently harvested or supports a growth of brush and noncommercial type
timber, a description of the owner's plan to restock the forest land within
three years.
A timber management plan may contain, but is not required to
contain, any other information that the harvester needs for its own business
purposes (i.e., a statement of goals for managing the land or identifying
resource protection areas on the land, like riparian buffer areas along a
stream or an unstable slope, that limit harvesting activities).
(iv) If the assessor
determines that the notice of continuance or the timber management plan is not
accurate or complete, the owner may resubmit the corrected information to the
assessor.
(v) If the assessor
determines that the land does not qualify to continue as designated forest
land, the assessor removes the land upon the date of the conveyance and
provides the owner with a notice of removal containing reason(s) for the
removal and the amount of compensating taxes owed.
(c) Once the assessor signs the notice of
continuance as part of the REET affidavit and the separate notice of
continuance, if required, the notice(s) are then submitted to the treasurer.
Before the treasurer can stamp the REET affidavit as approved for recording,
the treasurer collects any REET due because of the sale or transfer, and
collects all compensating tax if the land does not qualify for continuance as
designated forest land because it was denied continuance by the assessor. The
county recording clerk must not accept any deeds or other transfer documents
unless the treasurer has stamped the REET affidavit.
(d) A notice of continuance is not required
when the transfer of the forest land is to a new owner who is an heir or
devisee of a deceased owner or is a transfer by a transfer on death deed,
however, the land must continue to meet the requirements of designated forest
land to avoid removal from designation. The treasurer determines that a
transfer is by inheritance because the claim for the inheritance exemption is
filled out on the REET affidavit with supporting documentation. The treasurer
should notify the assessor when forest land has been transferred by inheritance
without a notice of continuance.
(4)
Assessor decisions and
procedures. Before removing the land from its designated forest land
status, the assessor follows certain procedures and takes into account
circumstances that may delay or prevent removal.
(a) The assessor must determine:
(i) The actual area of land to be removed
from forest land status;
(ii)
Whether the land has been exempted from a special benefit assessment;
(iii) The true and fair value of the area
being removed as of January 1st of the year of removal from
designation;
(iv) Forest land value
of the area to be removed as of January 1st of the year of removal from
designation;
(v) The last levy rate
that applied for that area; and
(vi) The amount of time the land has been
designated as forest land, including the number of days up to the date of
removal for the current year of removal.
(b) The assessor may require the owner to
provide a legal description of the land area intended for removal when the
landowner requests removal of owner's land from designated forest land
status.
(c) The remaining land
outside of the affected removal area continues to be designated as forest land
if the owner retains a parcel of land that consists of five or more acres or
multiple parcels that are contiguous and total five or more acres, primarily
devoted to and used for growing and harvesting timber. If the remaining land
fails to meet this requirement, it will be subject to removal.
(d) The assessor must provide the owner with
a written notice and an opportunity to be heard by the assessor, or the
assessor's deputy, when the assessor intends to remove the land because it is
no longer primarily devoted to and used for growing and harvesting timber.
RCW
84.33.140(5)(e). Each county
assessor may set his or her own procedure for giving a landowner this notice
and opportunity to be heard so long as it is done in a reasonable and
consistent manner that ensures due process for each owner.
(e) An assessor may not remove forest land
merely because an owner subdivides the land into separate parcels, if the
contiguous parcels of the subdivided land still consist of at least five acres
and continues to be primarily devoted to and used for growing and harvesting
timber. An assessor may ask an owner of designated forest land if the use of
the land has changed when the owner subdivides a tract of designated forest
land into separate parcels.
(f) If
the assessor determines the land is no longer primarily devoted to and used for
growing and harvesting timber, but there is a pending acquisition by an entity
that would qualify for exemption from compensating tax under subsection (6)(e)
of this rule, the assessor must not remove the land from its designated forest
land status.
RCW
84.33.140(5)(e)(i). To
prevent removal, the government entity or other qualified recipient must
provide written proof to the assessor of its intent to acquire the land or
documentation that demonstrates the transaction will qualify for an exemption
from compensating tax under subsection (6)(e) of this rule. The entity
acquiring the land must provide this written proof within sixty days of a
request by the assessor. Thereafter, once a year, the governmental entity or
other recipient must provide the assessor of the county in which the land is
located written evidence of its intent to acquire the land. This written
evidence must be provided on or before December 31st of each year or at an
earlier date if the assessor makes a written request for such information. Upon
the assessor's written request, the information must be provided within sixty
days from the postmark date the assessor mails the request to the
owner.
(g) The assessor must not
remove forest land from its designation if a governmental restriction is
imposed on the land that prohibits, in whole or in part, the harvesting of
timber.
(i) If only a portion of the forest
land is impacted by the governmental restriction, the assessor cannot use the
restriction as a basis to remove the remainder of the land from its designated
forest land status.
(ii) A
governmental restriction includes:
(A) Any
law, regulation, rule, ordinance, program, or other action adopted or taken by
a federal, state, county, city, or other governmental entity; or
(B) The land's zoning or its presence within
an urban growth area designated under
RCW
36.70A.110.
(h) If the assessor has reason to believe
that forest land less than twenty acres is no longer primarily used for the
growing and harvesting of timber, the assessor may require a timber management
plan to assist with determining continuing eligibility.
(5)
Removal proceedings. If the
forest land no longer qualifies for designation, the assessor must provide
timely written notice(s) to the owner.
RCW
84.33.140(5)(e) (written
notice and opportunity to be heard), and RCW 84.33.-140(9) (notice of removal).
Upon receiving the notice that the land has been removed (notice of removal),
the owner may appeal the removal and/or apply for reclassification of the land
under chapter 84.34 RCW. If the owner chooses to appeal the removal, the appeal
must be filed within thirty days (or up to sixty days if such a time limit has
been adopted by the county legislative authority) of the postmark date the
notice was mailed by the assessor, electronically transmitted by the assessor,
the assessor electronically notified the owner or person responsible for
payment of taxes that the notice was available to be accessed by the owner or
other person, or on or before July 1st of the year of removal, whichever is
later. RCW 84.40.038. If the owner
chooses to apply for reclassification, they must do so within thirty days of
the postmark date of the notice.
(a)
When does the land get removed from designated forest land status?
If the removal is a result of a sale or transfer, the assessor removes the land
on the date of sale or transfer provided in the legal conveyance. If the
removal is based upon a determination or discovery made about the land by the
assessor or at the request of the owner, the assessor removes the land on the
date shown on the notice of removal mailed to the owner.
(b)
Notice of removal. The
assessor uses the notice of removal to notify the owner that the land has been
removed from designated forest land status. Within thirty days of removing land
from designated forest land status, the assessor must mail the notice of
removal to the owner with the reasons for the removal. The owner, seller, or
transferor may appeal the removal to the county board of equalization.
(i) If the property is being removed because
the assessor has determined the land is no longer primarily devoted to and used
for growing and harvesting timber, the assessor provides two notices. First,
the assessor must notify the taxpayer of his or her intent to remove the
property and give the owner an opportunity to be heard. The assessor may
require the owner to provide pertinent information about the land and its use
in the response to the assessor's first notice. When the assessor determines
that the property still does not qualify as designated forest land after the
first notice is sent, the assessor mails the owner the second notice, the
notice of removal, but only after:
(A) The
owner declines the opportunity to be heard;
(B) The owner fails to timely respond to the
first notice; or
(C) The assessor
has received and considered the owner's timely response to the notice of intent
to remove and nevertheless concludes that the property is no longer primarily
devoted to growing and harvesting timber.
(ii) If the removal is based upon an owner's
request for removal, upon receipt of a request for removal from an owner, the
assessor sends the notice of removal to the owner showing the compensating tax
and recording fee due.
(iii) The
notice of removal provides the reason(s) for removing the land from designation
and the date of the removal. The notice includes the compensating tax
calculated in subsection (6) of this rule and the necessary recording fees to
be paid. It also includes the due date for payment, along with the owner's
rights to appeal the removal or appeal the true and fair value at the time of
removal, and the owner's right to apply for the land to be reclassified under
chapter 84.34 RCW. The county must use the notice of removal form provided by
the department.
(iv) The assessor
must also provide written notice of the removal to any local government filing
a notice regarding a special benefit assessment under
RCW
84.33.210 within a reasonable time after the
assessor's decision to remove the land. The assessor may provide a simple
statement with the legal description of the land, the name of the landowner,
and the date of removal, if he or she includes a copy of the notice sent to the
landowner.
RCW
84.33.230.
(c)
What happens when an owner chooses
to appeal the removal? Unless the removal is reversed on appeal, the
assessor continues the process to remove the property from designated forest
land status. The assessor may choose to delay collection of the compensating
tax and recording fee until the appeal is decided. However, if the assessor
postpones the collection of the compensating tax and recording fee, the
assessor must notify the treasurer to temporarily delay collection. The
assessor must also notify the owner that if the determination to remove is
upheld, then interest will be due from the date the compensating tax and
recording fee were due.
(i) If the removal is
reversed on appeal, the assessor must reinstate the land as designated forest
land, discharge any lien placed against the land, revise any assessments made
against the property during the interim, refund the recording fee paid, and
refund or cancel any compensating taxes and interest paid or owing.
(ii) If the removal is upheld on an appeal
and the compensating tax and recording fee have not been paid, the compensating
tax and recording fee are due immediately with interest accrued from the date
they were originally due. Upon receiving notice of the decision upholding the
removal, the assessor must immediately notify the treasurer to collect any
unpaid compensating taxes, fees, and interest on the land.
(d)
What happens when an owner applies
to have the land reclassified under chapter 84.34 RCW? If an application
for reclassification is submitted by the owner no later than thirty days after
the postmark date the notice of removal was mailed, the forest land is not
removed from designation until the application for reclassification under
chapter 84.34 RCW is denied or later removed from classification under
RCW
84.34.108.
RCW
84.33.145(1).
(i) An application for reclassification is
processed in the same manner as an initial application for classification under
chapter 84.34 RCW.
(ii) If an owner
is reclassifying forest land under chapter 84.33 RCW into the timber land
classification under chapter 84.34 RCW, a timber management plan must be filed
with the county legislative authority within sixty days of the date the
application for reclassification is received. The application for
reclassification will be accepted, but may not be processed until this plan is
received.
(A) If this plan is not received
within sixty days of the date the application for reclassification is received,
the application will be denied.
(B)
If circumstances require it, the assessor may allow an extension of time for
submitting a timber management plan when an application for reclassification is
received. The applicant will be notified of this extension in writing. When the
assessor extends the filing deadline for this plan, the granting authority may
delay processing the application until the plan is received. If the timber
management plan is not received by the date set by the assessor, the
application for reclassification will be automatically denied.
(iii) When the owner
sells or transfers forest land (or a portion of the forest land) while an
application for reclassification under chapter 84.34 RCW is pending, the
assessor may accept a notice of continuation, and allow the owner to revise the
application for reclassification to reflect the name of the new owner of the
forest land.
(iv) If the
application for reclassification under chapter 84.34 RCW is approved, the
assessor will transfer the property to its new classification. The assessed
value of reclassified land will be based on the new classification as of
January 1st of the assessment year following the year the reclassification
application was submitted.
(v) If
the application for reclassification under chapter 84.34 RCW is denied, the
assessor must submit the notice of removal to the county recording authority
and inform the treasurer's office to immediately begin collection of the
compensating tax and the recording fee. When an application for
reclassification is denied, the owner may appeal the denial in accordance with
RCW
84.34.035,
84.34.037, or
84.34.041, depending on the
classification applied for.
(6)
Compensating tax.
Compensating tax is imposed when land is removed from its designated forest
land status. This tax recaptures taxes that would have been paid on the land if
it had been assessed and taxed at its true and fair value instead of the forest
land value.
(a)
Calculating the
compensating tax. The assessor uses the last levy rate extended against
the land, the forest land value as of January 1st of the removal year, and the
true and fair value as of January 1st of the removal year for the area to be
removed from forest land status to calculate the compensating tax. The
compensating tax consists of two parts: The recapture of taxes for previous
years that the land was designated as forest land, up to a maximum of nine
years; and the recapture of taxes from January 1st of the removal year up to
the date of removal from designation.
RCW
84.33.140(10) and (11).
(i) The compensating tax for the previous
years is calculated by determining the difference between the amount of taxes
assessed at the forest land value for the removal area and the amount of taxes
that would have been paid if the land had been valued at its true and fair
value as of January 1st in the year of removal. That difference is multiplied
by the number of years the land was designated as forest land up to a maximum
of nine years.
For the purpose of counting the number of years land was
assessed as forest land under this chapter, if the forest land being removed
was once classified as timber land under chapter 84.34 RCW but is designated
under this chapter because of a merger pursuant to
RCW
84.34.400, the date the land was classified
as timber land is considered to be the date the property was designated as
forest land.
(ii) The
compensating tax for the portion of the year of removal from January 1st to the
date of removal is calculated by determining the difference between the amount
of taxes assessed at the forest land value as of January 1st of the year of
removal and the taxes that would have been paid if the land had been valued at
its true and fair value as of January 1st of the year of removal.
(b)
Formulas for calculating
taxes after removal:(i) Calculation of
prior year's compensating tax:
True and Fair Value of Land (Jan 1st of year
removed) |
Less |
Forest Land Value (Jan 1st of year removed)
|
Multiplied by |
Last levy Rate Extended Against Land |
Multiplied by |
Years (not to exceed 9) |
Equals |
Compensating Tax |
$ |
- |
$ |
x |
$ |
x |
|
= |
$ |
(ii)
Calculation of current year's taxes to date of removal:
|
|
/ |
365 |
|
= |
|
|
|
No. of days designated as forest land in the
year of removal |
|
No. of days in year |
|
|
|
Proration factor (To items (A) and (B)) |
(A) |
$______________ |
x |
_____________ |
x |
_______________ |
= |
$______________ |
|
True and Fair Value of Land (Jan 1st of year
removed) |
|
Last Levy Rate Extended Against Land |
|
Proration factor |
|
|
(B) |
$______________ |
x |
_____________ |
x |
_______________ |
= |
$______________ |
|
Forest Land Value (Jan 1st of year removed)
|
|
Last Levy Rate Extended Against Land |
|
Proration factor |
|
|
(C) |
Amount of compensating tax for current
year ((A) minus (B))
|
= |
$______________ |
(c)
The assessor notifies the treasurer
of the amount of compensating tax and the due date for the tax by providing the
treasurer a copy of the removal notice. Compensating tax is due and
payable to the county treasurer thirty days after the owner is notified of the
amount due. The treasurer will mail a notice to the owner of the amount of
compensating tax owed and the due date on which this amount must be paid.
RCW
84.33.140(11). However, when
property is sold or transferred, any compensating tax owed must be paid to the
county treasurer before recording the conveyance. The county recording
authority will not accept any instrument transferring the land, unless the
compensating tax was paid or was not owed.
(d)
What happens if the compensating
tax is not paid on the due date? If the compensating tax is not paid by
the due date, the tax is considered delinquent. Interest, set at the statutory
rate for delinquent property taxes specified in
RCW
84.56.020, will accrue against the amount of
the unpaid compensating tax from the due date until the entire amount owing is
paid. Unpaid compensating tax and interest becomes a lien on the land.
RCW
84.60.020.
(i) This lien attaches at the time the forest
land is removed from designation.
(ii) The lien has priority over any
recognizance, mortgage, judgment, debt, obligation, or responsibility against
the land.
(iii) This lien must be
fully paid before any other recognizance, mortgage, judgment, debt, obligation,
or responsibility may be charged against the land.
(iv) The lien can be foreclosed upon
expiration of the same period after delinquency and in the same manner as liens
for delinquent real property taxes are foreclosed under
RCW
84.64.050.
RCW
84.33.140(12).
(e)
Compensating tax is not
imposed on land removed from forest land designation if the removal resulted
solely from any of the following:
(i)
A transfer to a government entity in exchange for other forest land within
Washington state;
(ii) A transfer
under either the power of eminent domain or upon the threat of eminent domain
by an entity with the power of eminent domain that intends to exercise this
power. The entity must threaten to exercise eminent domain in writing or
demonstrate this threat by some other official action;
(iii) A donation of fee title, development
rights, or the right to harvest timber in order to protect, preserve, maintain,
improve, restore, limit the future use, or conserve the property for public use
or enjoyment (RCW 84.34.210 and
64.04.130 ), provided, this
donation is made to a:
(A) State
agency;
(B) Federal
agency;
(C) County;
(D) City;
(E) Town;
(F) Metropolitan park district (see
RCW
35.61.010 );
(G) Metropolitan municipal corporation (see
RCW
35.58.020 );
(H) Nonprofit historic preservation
corporation as defined in
RCW
64.04.130;
(I) Nonprofit nature conservancy corporation
or association as defined in
RCW
84.34.250; or
(J) Federally recognized Indian tribe.
However, when the land is no longer being used for one of the
purposes listed in
RCW
84.34.210 or
64.04.130, compensating tax will
be imposed on the owner of the land at that time;
(iv) The sale or transfer of fee title to a
government entity (see the governmental entities listed in subsection
(6)(e)(iii) of this rule) or a nonprofit nature conservancy corporation as
defined in
RCW
64.04.130 exclusively for the protection and
conservation of lands recommended for state natural area preserve purposes by
the natural heritage advisory council under its established natural heritage
plan as defined in chapter 79.70 RCW (natural area preserves) or approved for
state natural resources conservation area purposes as defined in chapter 79.71
RCW, or for acquisition and management as a community forest trust as defined
in chapter 79.155 RCW. However, if the land is no longer used for these
purposes, compensating tax will be imposed on the owner of the land at that
time;
(v) A sale or transfer of fee
title to the state's parks and recreations commission for park and recreation
purposes;
(vi) An official action
of an agency of the state of Washington or the county or city in which the land
is located disallowing the present use of the land. "Official action" includes
city ordinances, zoning restrictions, the Growth Management Act, the Shoreline
Management Act, and the Environmental Policy Act;
(vii) The creation, sale, or transfer of
forestry riparian easements under
RCW
76.13.120;
(viii) The creation, sale, or transfer of a
conservation easement of private forest lands within unconfined channel
migration zones or containing critical habitat for threatened or endangered
species under
RCW
76.09.040;
(ix) The sale or transfer of forest land
within two years after the death of an owner who held at least a fifty percent
interest in the land if:
(A) The
individual(s) or entity(s) who received the land from the deceased owner is
selling or transferring the land; and
(B) The land has been continuously assessed
and valued as classified forest land, designated as forest land under chapter
84.33 RCW or classified under chapter 84.34 RCW since 1993. The date of death
shown on the death certificate begins the two-year period for sale or transfer.
For example, an owner who holds at least a fifty percent interest in designated
forest land dies on March 1, 2012. The land was designated on January 1, 1989,
and is still designated on the date of death of the owner. The heir (new owner)
does not want to continue growing and harvesting timber and sells the land on
January 20, 2014. At the time of sale, the buyer does not sign the notice of
continuance because they will not be using the land for growing and harvesting
timber. The assessor will remove the land at the time of sale and the removal
would not be subject to compensating tax;
(x) The occurrence of a natural disaster such
as a flood, windstorm, earthquake, wildfire, or other such calamity that
changes the use of the property, rather than by virtue of an act by the
landowner changing the use of the property;
(xi) The assessor discovers that the land was
designated under chapter 84.33 RCW in error through no fault of the owner;
(A) For purposes of this subsection, "fault"
means a knowingly false or misleading statement, or other act or omission not
in good faith, that contributed to the approval of the application for
designation or the failure of the assessor to remove the land from
designation;
(B) This exception
does not apply if an independent basis for removal exists. An example of an
independent basis for removal includes the land is no longer devoted primarily
to and used for the growing and harvesting of timber; or
(xii) In a county with a population of more
than six hundred thousand inhabitants or in a county with a population of at
least two hundred forty-five thousand inhabitants that borders Puget Sound as
defined in
RCW
90.71.010, the compensating tax will not be
imposed if there is a transfer of a property interest to a government entity,
or to a nonprofit historic preservation corporation or nonprofit nature
conservancy corporation (as these corporations are defined in
RCW
64.04.130 ) and the property interest being
transferred is to:
(A) Protect or enhance
public resources; or
(B) Preserve,
maintain, improve, restore, limit the future use of, or otherwise to conserve
the land for public use or enjoyment. When the land is no longer being used for
any of these purposes, the owner of the land at the time will be required to
pay compensating tax.
(7)
When will the land be assessed at
its true and fair value and the taxes become payable? The land will be
assessed at its true and fair value on the date it is removed from forest land
status. The assessor revalues the land removed from designated forest land
status with reference to its true and fair value on January 1st in the year of
removal. RCW
84.33.140(10). The property
tax for the remainder of the year following the date of removal is based on
land's true and fair value as of January 1st of the removal year.
(a) To calculate the increase the assessor
must determine the number of days remaining in the year from the date of
removal. The increase in property tax is due on the same due dates as all other
property taxes are due for the year (April 30th and October 31st of the current
year). RCW 84.56.020.
(b) Formula for calculating the increase in
property taxes for the remainder of the year in which the land is being
removed:
(i) |
|
/ |
365 |
|
= |
|
|
|
No. of days from date of removal to the end
of the year |
|
No. of days in year |
|
|
|
Proration factor for true and fair land value
|
(ii) |
$______________ |
x |
_____________ |
x |
_______________ |
|
=$______________ |
|
True and Fair Value of Land (Jan 1st of year
removed) |
|
Last Levy Rate Extended Against Land |
|
Proration factor |
|
|
(iii) |
$______________ |
x |
_____________ |
x |
_______________ |
|
=$______________ |
|
Forest Land Value (Jan 1st of year removed)
|
|
Last Levy Rate Extended Against Land |
|
Proration factor |
|
|
(iv) |
Total amount of increased taxes for
current year ((ii) minus (iii))
|
|
=$______________ |
(c) If
the taxes for the year of removal have not yet been billed, the tax should be
recalculated based on the true and fair value of the land removed as of January
1st of the removal year.
(d) An
owner may appeal the true and fair value of the land which is used to calculate
the compensating tax and the increase in the remaining current year's taxes in
accordance with
RCW
84.40.038.
(8)
What happens when forest land
reclassified under chapter 84.34 RCW is later removed from that classification
before ten years have passed? If reclassified forest land is later
removed under chapter 84.34 RCW, a combination of compensating tax and
additional tax will be imposed unless the basis for removal is one of the
circumstances listed as exempt from additional tax under
RCW
84.34.108(6).
(a) The amount of compensating tax is equal
to the difference, if any, between the amount of property tax last levied on
the land as designated forest land and an amount equal to the true and fair
value as of January 1st of the year the land is removed from classification
under RCW
84.34.108, multiplied by the last property
tax levy rate extended against the land, multiplied by
(b) A number equal to:
(i) The number of years the land was
designated as forest land under chapter 84.33 RCW, if the total number of years
the land was designated under chapter 84.33 RCW and classified under chapter
84.34 RCW is less than ten; or
(ii)
Ten minus the number of years the land was classified under chapter 84.34 RCW,
if the total number of years the land was designated under chapter 84.33 RCW
and classified under chapter 84.34 RCW is at least ten.
Statutory Authority:
RCW
84.08.070,
84.34.141,
84.36.865,
84.52.0502. 09-19-010, §
458-30-700, filed 9/3/09, effective 10/4/09. Statutory Authority:
RCW
84.33.140,
84.34.055,
84.34.108,
84.34.141, and
84.08.070. 07-21-097, §
458-30-700, filed 10/18/07, effective 11/18/07. Statutory Authority:
RCW
84.34.141,
84.34.020, and
84.34.030. 02-20-041, §
458-30-700, filed 9/24/02, effective 10/25/02. Statutory Authority:
RCW
82.32.300,
84.33.096, and
84.33.140. 02-05-043, §
458-30-700, filed 2/13/02, effective
3/16/02.