ORDERS:
ORDER OF REMAND
This
matter is before the Administrative Law Court (“Court”) pursuant to a request
for a contested case hearing filed by Petitioners Thomas P. Polidor and Lynn
Polidor (“Petitioners”) on May 7, 2008. In their request, Petitioners
challenge the decision of Oconee County Assessor (“Assessor”) regarding the tax
valuation of property owned by Petitioners at 8003 Longshore Avenue, Seneca,
South Carolina. On May 15, 2008, the Court issued a Procedural Order and Order
to County Board to Transmit Documents and requested the parties to file certain
information and documents with the Court. The County Board and Petitioners
complied with these Orders; however, the Assessor did not file any
documentation with the Court, and it did not request an extension of time to file
these documents. As a result, the Court limited the testimony and evidence the
Assessor could present at the hearing scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on September 11,
2008. See Notice of Hearing, filed July 28, 2008.
On
September 11, 2008, the Court conducted a hearing on the merits of this case;
however, the Assessor did not appear at the hearing. The Court continued with
the hearing, and Petitioners testified and presented evidence in support of
their position. However, in reviewing Petitioners’ testimony and evidence, and
the evidence submitted by the County Board, the Court is unable to reach a
decision in this case. The Assessor’s Office provided no information to the
Court or the County Board regarding its analysis in this case. In fact, the
only information submitted by the Assessor’s office to the Board concerning
Petitioners’ property was an appraisal amount of $152,670.
While
the Assessor’s Office did include a listing of comparable properties and their
respective tax valuations to the Board, this information provides little, if
any, guidance to the Court: there are no pictures of the individuals
properties; no determination of improvements was made by the Assessor’s office; there is no indication of the lot size, as some of the lots in this area are
considered “double lots”; and, there is no indication if any of the lots have a
view of Lake Hartwell. In order for this Court to consider the merits of this
case, it is imperative that the Assessor’s office present evidence evidencing
how it reached its decision regarding the tax valuation of Petitioners’
property.
Accordingly,
IT
IS HEREBY ORDERED that this matter be REMANDED to the County Board
to determine the tax valuation of Petitioners’ property. The Assessor’s office
must provide sufficient evidence to the County Board to enable it to make a
decision in this matter, in accordance with the directives contained in this
Order. The County Board office must render a decision to Petitioners within
sixty (60) days from the date of this Order. If the Petitioners are
unsatisfied with the County Board’s determination, they must timely appeal to
the ALC. Petitioners will not be responsible for remitting an additional
filing fee to the ALC, should they appeal the County Board’s decision.
AND
IT IS SO ORDERED.
__________________________________
Marvin F. Kittrell
Chief Judge
September 17, 2008
Columbia, South Carolina
|
