Petition of Maple Meadow Min. Co. for Relief from Real Property Assessment for Tax Year 1992

• Decision Date: 08 July 1994
• Docket Number: No. 21900,21900
• Citation: 446 S.E.2d 912,191 W.Va. 519
• Court: West Virginia Supreme Court
• Parties: In re the Petition of MAPLE MEADOW MINING COMPANY FOR RELIEF FROM REAL PROPERTY ASSESSMENT FOR the TAX YEAR 1992.

Page 912

446 S.E.2d 912

191 W.Va. 519

In re the Petition of MAPLE MEADOW MINING COMPANY FOR RELIEF FROM REAL PROPERTY ASSESSMENT FOR the TAX YEAR 1992.

No. 21900.

Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia.

Submitted May 11, 1994.

Decided July 8, 1994.

Syllabus by the Court

1. " 'It is a general rule that valuations for taxation purposes fixed by an assessing officer are presumed to be correct. The burden of showing an assessment to be erroneous is, of course, upon the taxpayer, and proof of such fact must be clear.' Syl. pt. 7, In re Tax Assessments Against Pocahontas Land Co., 172 W.Va. 53, 303 S.E.2d 691 (1983)." Syl. pt. 1, Western Pocahontas Properties, Ltd. v. County Commission of Wetzel County, 189 W.Va. 322, 431 S.E.2d 661 (1993).

2. W.Va.Code, 11-1C-7(d) [1990] authorizes the tax commissioner to approve and a county assessor to adopt a valuation plan which "would permit the placement of proportionately uniform percentage changes in values on the books that estimate the percentage difference between the current assessed value and sixty percent of the fair market value for classes or identified sub-classes of property and distribute the change between the two tax years preceding the tax year beginning on [July 1, 1993]." This method of valuation may be used in addition to or in lieu of placing individual values on the books at sixty percent of value. The goal of this provision is to ensure that all properties, whether it be properties revaluated by the county assessor, the board of public works or the state tax commissioner, reach the standard assessment rate of sixty percent of the fair market value by July 1, 1993, pursuant to W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1(d) [1990].

3. A taxpayer's right to equal and uniform taxation under article X, section 1 of the West Virginia Constitution and equal protection of the laws under amendment XIV, section 1 of the United States Constitution is not violated when a certain class of property of that taxpayer is assessed at a higher percentage than certain other classes of property of other taxpayers within the three-year period of achieving equality of assessed property valuation pursuant to W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1, et seq. Accordingly, article X, section 1 of the West Virginia Constitution and amendment XIV, section 1 of the United States Constitution is satisfied when general adjustments are utilized over a short period of time to equalize the differences existing among taxpayers regarding property valuation and assessments.

4. " 'An assessment made by a board of review and equalization and approved by the circuit court will not be reversed when supported by substantial evidence unless plainly wrong.' Syl. pt. 1, West Penn Power Co. v. Board of Review and Equalization, 112 W.Va. 442, 164 S.E. 862 (1932)." Syl. pt. 3, Western Pocahontas Properties, Ltd. v. County Commission of Wetzel County, 189 W.Va. 322, 431 S.E.2d 661 (1993).

John A. Mairs, Jackson & Kelly, Charleston, for Maple Meadow Min.

Carl W. Roop, Canterbury, Poling & Roop, Beckley, for Raleigh County Com'n.

Darrell V. McGraw, Jr., Atty. Gen., Barry L. Koerber, Asst. Atty. Gen., Charleston, for W. Va. Tax & Revenue.

McHUGH, Justice:

This case is before this Court upon appeal of the January 20, 1993, order of the Circuit Court of Raleigh County. In that order, the circuit court affirmed the appellee's, the Raleigh County Assessor's (hereinafter "county assessor") tax assessment of the appellant's, Maple Meadow Mining Company (hereinafter "Maple Meadow"), real property which consists of coal reserves in Raleigh County. On appeal, Maple Meadow asks that this Court reverse the order of the circuit court and order that this case be remanded to the circuit court with instructions to reduce the assessment on Maple Meadow's natural resources property. ¹ For the reasons stated below, the decision of the circuit court is affirmed.

I

Prior to 1990, property in the State of West Virginia was sometimes valued at less than the current market value or assessed at a percentage lower than sixty percent of the market value. The legislature saw the need to ensure equality among property valuation and assessments. Thus, in 1990, the Fair and Equitable Property Valuation Act (hereinafter "the Act") was enacted by the legislature to require reappraisal of property in West Virginia for tax purposes. See W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1, et seq. The findings of the legislature setting forth the purpose of the Act are found in W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1(a) [1990], which states, in part: "The Legislature hereby finds and declares that all property in this state should be fairly and equitably valued wherever it is situated so that all citizens will be treated fairly and no individual species or class of property will be overvalued or undervalued[.]" Under the Act, such equality in property valuation is to be achieved by the end of a three-year cycle. W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1(d) and 11-1C-7(d) [1990]. Specifically, at the end of the three-year cycle, July 1, 1993, all property is to be annually assessed at sixty percent of its then current fair market value. W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1(d) [1990].

The succeeding sections of this article set forth policies and procedures to be followed by county and state personnel in order to establish and maintain fair and equitable property values. Pursuant to W.Va.Code, 11-1C-7 [1990], county assessors are to employ the methodologies set forth in this Act and the valuation system established by the tax commissioner in order to adopt a county valuation plan and appraise all real and personal property in their jurisdiction at fair market value. However, property that is to be valued by either the tax commissioner under W.Va.Code, 11-1C-10 [1990] or the board of public works under W.Va.Code, 11-6-1, et seq. is excluded from this section. More specifically, W.Va.Code, 11-1C-10 [1990], requires the tax commissioner to value all natural resource property and industrial property throughout the state, while W.Va.Code, 11-6-1 [1986] requires the board of public works to value properties such as railroads, toll bridges, car line companies, pipeline companies, express companies and telegraph and telephone companies.

Raleigh County's valuation plan provided that the county assessor would reappraise a portion of the property located within the county on a district by district basis. Furthermore, the plan provided for all real property assessments within the county to be phased in, starting at approximately thirty percent for the 1990-91 tax year, forty percent for the 1991-92 tax year and fifty percent for the 1992-93 tax year in order to achieve a sixty percent assessment rate by July 1, 1993.

In January, 1992, the county assessor, through publication in the local newspaper, notified the citizens of Raleigh County of the ensuing increase in the assessed valuation of all real property in the county. Ultimately, the assessed valuation of all real property was increased 24.61% for the 1992 tax year in order to achieve the forty percent assessment value for the 1992 tax year; but, assessments for property falling within the natural resources sub-class automatically received a sixty percent assessment rate, because the assessor had the county's oil, gas and other mineral properties placed at sixty percent from the outset of the implementation of the Act.

Maple Meadow's natural resources property, as attested to by Maple Meadow, was assessed at $763,350 for the 1991 tax year. The assessment increased for the 1992 tax year to $7,112,647.20, sixty percent of $11,854,412, the reappraised value of the property as determined by the tax commissioner. Maple Meadow challenged the 1992 assessment on the grounds that the county assessor violated W.Va.Code, 11-1C-7(d) [1990]. Maple Meadow asserted that the assessment was discriminatory, nonuniform and unconstitutional. On February 24, 1992, a hearing was held before the Raleigh County Commission, sitting as the Board of Review and Equalization (hereinafter "the Board"). On February 27, 1992, the 1992 assessment of Maple Meadow's natural resources property was affirmed by the Board. Maple Meadow appealed this decision to the Circuit Court of Raleigh County on March 30, 1992; and, by order dated January 30, 1993, the circuit court affirmed the 1992 assessment. It is from this order of the circuit court that Maple Meadow appeals to this Court.

II

The primary focus of this case is on the assessment rate used for Maple Meadow's natural resources property. Our state's Constitution proclaims that all property is to be assessed at sixty percent. W.Va. Const. art. X, § 1b. The legislature, in an attempt to equally value and assess all property, implemented the Fair and Equitable Property Valuation Act. The legislature recognized, within W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1 [1990], that the three-year phase-in cycle is essential to achieve equality of assessed valuation among the state's counties and the process to achieve this equality is not violative of W.Va. Const. art. X, § 1, which calls for equal and uniform taxation throughout the state. ²

Because Maple Meadow is arguing that a statute within the Act has been violated by the county assessor, an examination of the relevant statutory provisions is warranted. We note that tax statutes are often not models of clarity, and the tax statutes within this Act appear to be no different.

The legislature's objectives and goals are set forth in W.Va.Code, 11-1C-1(c) and (d) [1990]:

(c) The Legislature finds that requiring the valuation of property to occur in three-year cycles with an annual adjustment of assessments as to those properties for which a change in value is discovered shall not violate the equal and uniform provision of section one, article ten of the West Virginia Constitution, the Legislature further finding that such three-year cycle and annual adjustment are an integral and indispensable part of a systematic review of all properties in order to achieve equality of...