ORDERS:
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO DISMISS
This matter is before me pursuant to the motion of the Respondents, Oconee County Assessor
and Oconee County Auditor, to dismiss this action on the grounds that they are not proper
Respondents in this case, but instead the proper Respondent is the South Carolina Department of
Revenue. For the following reasons, the motion is granted, and this matter is dismissed without
prejudice.
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
The Petitioner, Donna S. Liles, is disabled and confined to a wheelchair. Prior to 1983, she
was not employed and did not pay property taxes. She began working in 1983, and began paying
property taxes at that time. Subsequently, she learned of the law concerning exemptions and sought
an exemption from the payment of ad valorem taxes on her residence pursuant to S.C. Code Ann.
§ 12-37-220(B)(2), and from the payment of property taxes upon her vehicle pursuant to S.C. Code
Ann. § 12-37-220(B)(27) (Supp. 1998). The South Carolina Department of Revenue ("Department")
granted an exemption for the tax years 1995, 1996, and 1997, and the taxes Petitioner paid for those
years were refunded. Petitioner now seeks an exemption from and a refund of taxes paid for tax
years prior to 1995. She filed a request for a refund with the Oconee County Board of Assessment
Appeals, which denied the request on September 28, 1998. Petitioner then filed a request for a
contested case hearing with the Administrative Law Judge Division ("Division") on October 5, 1998.
Subsequently, the Respondents filed a Motion to Dismiss, alleging that the Department is the proper
party Respondent in this matter.
DISCUSSION
The procedure for claiming refunds of taxes paid on exempt property is set forth in the
Revenue Procedures Act, S.C. Code Ann. § 12-60-2150 (Supp. 1998). Pursuant to this section, a
taxpayer who believes that his property is exempt from taxation may seek a refund of taxes paid by
filing a claim with the Department. The claim for refund must be mailed or delivered to the
Department, and must state the basis on which exemption is claimed. In this case, Petitioner did
initially seek an exemption from the Department, and was granted the exemption for the tax years
1995 through 1997. However, Petitioner claims that the exemption should also have been granted
for tax years prior to 1995. Therefore, the proper procedure to follow would have been the filing of
a written protest with the Department pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. § 12-60-2150(E), within thirty
days after the date the Department's determination on the exemption was mailed to the Petitioner.
Instead, Petitioner proceeded before the Oconee County Board of Assessment Appeals. Since the
Petitioner has not exhausted her prehearing remedies before the Department, the proper course of
action is to dismiss this case without prejudice pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. § 12-60-2150(H), in
order that the Petitioner may file a protest with the Department.
ORDER
For the foregoing reasons, it is hereby ORDERED that this matter be dismissed without
prejudice, so that the Petitioner may exhaust her prehearing remedies pursuant to S.C. Code Ann.
§ 12-60-2150.
AND IT IS SO ORDERED.
_______________________________________
Marvin F. Kittrell
Chief Judge
Columbia, South Carolina
February 4, 1999
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