Indiana 2025 Regular Session

Indiana Senate Bill SB0508 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	Introduced Version
3	3	SENATE BILL No. 508
4	4	_____
5	5	DIGEST OF INTRODUCED BILL
6	6	Citations Affected: IC 3-8-1-23; IC 3-10-2-13; IC 3-11-2-12;
7	7	IC 3-13-10-3; IC 6-1.1; IC 36-2-15; IC 36-6-5.
8	8	Synopsis: Property tax streamline. Abolishes the offices of county
9	9	assessor and township assessor, effective July 1, 2025. Transfers the
10	10	duties of the assessor to the county auditor. Requires the department of
11	11	local government finance (DLGF) to develop an automated valuation
12	12	model system (AVM system) to be used by the DLGF to conduct the
13	13	assessment of all tangible property statewide, except for agricultural
14	14	land. Requires the DLGF to conduct all assessments for tangible
15	15	property, excluding agricultural land, using the AVM system beginning
16	16	with the first assessment date that an AVM system is operational for
17	17	use, but not later than 2036. Eliminates the payment of property taxes
18	18	in arrears beginning with the first assessment date for which the AVM
19	19	system is applied. Requires the DLGF to present a plan of
20	20	implementation for an AVM system to the interim study committee on
21	21	fiscal policy before November 1, 2025, and present an update on the
22	22	AVM system before November 1 in subsequent years until the AVM
23	23	system is operational for use. Except for agricultural land, provides that
24	24	tangible property shall not be subject to assessment beginning with
25	25	assessments in 2026 through the first assessment date for which the
26	26	AVM system is applied. Freezes the assessed value of all taxable
27	27	property, except agricultural land, during this time period at the
28	28	assessed value determined for the property for the 2025 assessment
29	29	date. Caps the property tax liability for all taxable property for taxes
30	30	first due and payable in 2027 through the first date that taxes are first
31	31	due and payable based on assessments under the AVM system to not
32	32	more than: (1) for taxes first due and payable in 2027, the property tax
33	33	liability imposed on the taxpayer's property for taxes first due and
34	34	(Continued next page)
35	35	Effective: Upon passage; July 1, 2025; January 1, 2026.
36	36	Alexander
37	37	January 16, 2025, read first time and referred to Committee on Tax and Fiscal Policy.
38	38	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 Digest Continued
39	39	payable in 2021; and (2) for taxes first due and payable in 2028 and
40	40	thereafter, the property tax liability for the calendar year not to exceed
41	41	a 3% increase from the taxpayer's property tax liability from the
42	42	previous year. Requires the legislative services agency to prepare
43	43	legislation for introduction in the 2026 regular session of the general
44	44	assembly to make appropriate required changes in statutes. Makes
45	45	corresponding changes.
46	46	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 1202025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 Introduced
47	47	First Regular Session of the 124th General Assembly (2025)
48	48	PRINTING CODE. Amendments: Whenever an existing statute (or a section of the Indiana
49	49	Constitution) is being amended, the text of the existing provision will appear in this style type,
50	50	additions will appear in this style type, and deletions will appear in this style type.
51	51	Additions: Whenever a new statutory provision is being enacted (or a new constitutional
52	52	provision adopted), the text of the new provision will appear in this style type. Also, the
53	53	word NEW will appear in that style type in the introductory clause of each SECTION that adds
54	54	a new provision to the Indiana Code or the Indiana Constitution.
55	55	Conflict reconciliation: Text in a statute in this style type or this style type reconciles conflicts
56	56	between statutes enacted by the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly.
57	57	SENATE BILL No. 508
58	58	A BILL FOR AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning
59	59	taxation.
60	60	Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana:
61	61	1 SECTION 1. IC 3-8-1-23, AS AMENDED BY P.L.167-2015,
62	62	2 SECTION 1, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
63	63	3 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 23. This section does not apply to elections in
64	64	4 2026 and thereafter. A candidate for the office of county assessor
65	65	5 must satisfy the following:
66	66	6 (1) The candidate must have resided in the county for at least one
67	67	7 (1) year before the election, as provided in Article 6, Section 4 of
68	68	8 the Constitution of the State of Indiana.
69	69	9 (2) The candidate must own real property located in the county
70	70	10 upon taking office.
71	71	11 SECTION 2. IC 3-10-2-13, AS AMENDED BY P.L.278-2019,
72	72	12 SECTION 41, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
73	73	13 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 13. The following public officials shall be elected
74	74	14 at the general election before their terms of office expire and every four
75	75	15 (4) years thereafter:
76	76	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 2
77	77	1 (1) Clerk of the circuit court.
78	78	2 (2) County auditor.
79	79	3 (3) County recorder.
80	80	4 (4) County treasurer.
81	81	5 (5) County sheriff.
82	82	6 (6) County coroner.
83	83	7 (7) County surveyor.
84	84	8 (8) County assessor. This subdivision does not apply to
85	85	9 elections in 2026 and thereafter.
86	86	10 (9) County commissioner.
87	87	11 (10) County council member.
88	88	12 (11) Township trustee.
89	89	13 (12) Township board member.
90	90	14 (13) Township assessor (only in a township referred to in
91	91	15 IC 36-6-5-1(d)). This subdivision does not apply to elections in
92	92	16 2026 and thereafter.
93	93	17 (14) Judge of a small claims court.
94	94	18 (15) Constable of a small claims court.
95	95	19 SECTION 3. IC 3-11-2-12, AS AMENDED BY P.L.227-2023,
96	96	20 SECTION 67, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
97	97	21 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 12. (a) The following offices shall be placed on
98	98	22 the general election ballot in the following order after the public
99	99	23 questions described in section 10(a) of this chapter:
100	100	24 (1) Federal and state offices:
101	101	25 (A) President and Vice President of the United States.
102	102	26 (B) United States Senator.
103	103	27 (C) Governor and lieutenant governor.
104	104	28 (D) Secretary of state.
105	105	29 (E) Auditor of state.
106	106	30 (F) Treasurer of state.
107	107	31 (G) Attorney general.
108	108	32 (H) United States Representative. If an election to fill a
109	109	33 vacancy in an office of United States Representative under
110	110	34 IC 3-10-8 is held on the same day as the election for the next
111	111	35 term of the same office, the ballot shall list the election to fill
112	112	36 the vacancy in the office immediately after the election for the
113	113	37 next term of the office.
114	114	38 (2) Legislative offices:
115	115	39 (A) State senator.
116	116	40 (B) State representative.
117	117	41 (3) Circuit offices and county judicial offices:
118	118	42 (A) Judge of the circuit court, and unless otherwise specified
119	119	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 3
120	120	1 under IC 33, with each division separate if there is more than
121	121	2 one (1) judge of the circuit court.
122	122	3 (B) Judge of the superior court, and unless otherwise specified
123	123	4 under IC 33, with each division separate if there is more than
124	124	5 one (1) judge of the superior court.
125	125	6 (C) Judge of the probate court.
126	126	7 (D) Prosecuting attorney.
127	127	8 (E) Clerk of the circuit court.
128	128	9 (4) County offices:
129	129	10 (A) County auditor.
130	130	11 (B) County recorder.
131	131	12 (C) County treasurer.
132	132	13 (D) County sheriff.
133	133	14 (E) County coroner.
134	134	15 (F) County surveyor.
135	135	16 (G) County assessor. This clause does not apply to elections
136	136	17 in 2026 and thereafter.
137	137	18 (H) County commissioner.
138	138	19 (I) County council member.
139	139	20 (5) Township offices:
140	140	21 (A) Township assessor (only in a township referred to in
141	141	22 IC 36-6-5-1(d)). This clause does not apply to elections in
142	142	23 2026 and thereafter.
143	143	24 (B) Township trustee.
144	144	25 (C) Township board member.
145	145	26 (D) Judge of the small claims court.
146	146	27 (E) Constable of the small claims court.
147	147	28 (6) City offices:
148	148	29 (A) Mayor.
149	149	30 (B) Clerk or clerk-treasurer.
150	150	31 (C) Judge of the city court.
151	151	32 (D) City-county council member or common council member.
152	152	33 (7) Town offices:
153	153	34 (A) Clerk-treasurer.
154	154	35 (B) Judge of the town court.
155	155	36 (C) Town council member.
156	156	37 (b) If a major political party does not nominate a candidate for an
157	157	38 office on a general, municipal, or special election ballot then the county
158	158	39 election board may print "NO CANDIDATE FILED" in the place on
159	159	40 the ballot where the name of the major political party's nominee would
160	160	41 be printed.
161	161	42 SECTION 4. IC 3-13-10-3 IS REPEALED [EFFECTIVE JULY 1,
162	162	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 4
163	163	1 2025]. Sec. 3. (a) This section applies to a vacancy in the office of
164	164	2 township assessor not covered by section 1 of this chapter.
165	165	3 (b) A vacancy shall be filled by the county assessor, subject to the
166	166	4 approval of the department of local government finance. Except as
167	167	5 provided in subsection (c), the county assessor shall make the
168	168	6 appointment not later than thirty (30) days after the vacancy occurs. If
169	169	7 the vacancy occurred because the elected township assessor failed to
170	170	8 qualify or was removed, the person who is appointed must be of the
171	171	9 same political party as the elected township assessor.
172	172	10 (c) If a vacancy exists because of the death of the township assessor,
173	173	11 the county assessor shall make the appointment required by subsection
174	174	12 (b) not later than thirty (30) days after the county assessor receives
175	175	13 notice of the death under IC 5-8-6. The county assessor may not fill the
176	176	14 vacancy as required by subsection (b) until the county assessor receives
177	177	15 notice of the death under IC 5-8-6.
178	178	16 SECTION 5. IC 6-1.1-1-3.2 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
179	179	17 AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE JULY
180	180	18 1, 2025]: Sec. 1.2. "Automated valuation model system" means a
181	181	19 centralized system of automated valuation models that may be
182	182	20 applied to property valuation.
183	183	21 SECTION 6. IC 6-1.1-1-24 IS REPEALED [EFFECTIVE JULY 1,
184	184	22 2025]. Sec. 24. If a transfer from a township assessor to the county
185	185	23 assessor of the assessment duties prescribed by this article occurs as
186	186	24 described in IC 36-2-15-5(c), a reference to the township assessor in
187	187	25 this article is considered to be a reference to the county assessor.
188	188	26 SECTION 7. IC 6-1.1-2-1 IS AMENDED TO READ AS
189	189	27 FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 1. (a) Except as
190	190	28 otherwise provided by law, Subject to subsections (b) and (c), all
191	191	29 tangible property which is within the jurisdiction of this state on the
192	192	30 assessment date of a year is subject to assessment and taxation for that
193	193	31 year.
194	194	32 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and except for
195	195	33 agricultural land, tangible property that is within the jurisdiction
196	196	34 of this state shall not be subject to cyclical reassessment under
197	197	35 IC 6-1.1-4-4.2, annual adjustments under IC 6-1.1-4-4.5, or other
198	198	36 assessment after December 31, 2025, and before the assessment
199	199	37 date on which the department first begins conducting assessments
200	200	38 using the automated valuation model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1.
201	201	39 Instead, except for agricultural land, the assessed value of all
202	202	40 tangible property for an assessment date after December 31, 2025,
203	203	41 and before the department begins conducting assessments using the
204	204	42 automated valuation model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1, shall be
205	205	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 5
206	206	1 equal to the assessed value of the property for the 2025 assessment
207	207	2 date.
208	208	3 (c) Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting or
209	209	4 otherwise affecting:
210	210	5 (1) the collection of any property taxes or penalties imposed;
211	211	6 or
212	212	7 (2) any property tax exemptions or property tax deductions
213	213	8 allowed;
214	214	9 under this article or any other law before January 1, 2026.
215	215	10 SECTION 8. IC 6-1.1-2.5 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
216	216	11 AS A NEW CHAPTER TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
217	217	12 JULY 1, 2025]:
218	218	13 Chapter 2.5. Automated Valuation Model System
219	219	14 Sec. 1. Except for agricultural land, beginning with the first
220	220	15 assessment date that an automated valuation model system is
221	221	16 operational for use, the department shall conduct the cyclical
222	222	17 reassessment under IC 6-1.1-4-4.2, annual adjustments under
223	223	18 IC 6-1.1-4-4.5, and all other assessments required under this title,
224	224	19 for tangible property that is within the jurisdiction of this state by
225	225	20 determining the true tax value of tangible property using the
226	226	21 automated valuation model system developed under IC 6-1.1-30-20.
227	227	22 Sec. 2. The department shall begin conducting assessments
228	228	23 under this chapter using an automated valuation model system not
229	229	24 later than the earlier of:
230	230	25 (1) the first assessment date for which the automated
231	231	26 valuation model system is operational for use; or
232	232	27 (2) the 2036 assessment date.
233	233	28 SECTION 9. IC 6-1.1-3-1, AS AMENDED BY P.L.249-2015,
234	234	29 SECTION 1, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
235	235	30 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 1. (a) Subject to IC 6-1.1-2-1, and except as
236	236	31 provided in subsection (c), personal property which is owned by a
237	237	32 person who is a resident of this state shall be assessed at the place
238	238	33 where the owner resides on the assessment date of the year for which
239	239	34 the assessment is made.
240	240	35 (b) Subject to IC 6-1.1-2-1, and except as provided in subsection
241	241	36 (c), personal property which is owned by a person who is not a resident
242	242	37 of this state shall be assessed at the place where the owner's principal
243	243	38 office within this state is located on the assessment date of the year for
244	244	39 which the assessment is made.
245	245	40 (c) Subject to IC 6-1.1-2-1, personal property shall be assessed at
246	246	41 the place where it is situated on the assessment date of the year for
247	247	42 which the assessment is made if the property is:
248	248	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 6
249	249	1 (1) regularly used or permanently located where it is situated; or
250	250	2 (2) owned by a nonresident who does not have a principal office
251	251	3 within this state.
252	252	4 (d) If a personal property return is filed pursuant to subsection (c),
253	253	5 the owner of the property shall provide, within forty-five (45) days after
254	254	6 the filing deadline, a copy or other written evidence of the filing of the
255	255	7 return to the assessor of the county in which the owner resides. If such
256	256	8 evidence is not filed within forty-five (45) days after the filing
257	257	9 deadline, the county assessor for the area where the owner resides shall
258	258	10 determine if the owner filed a personal property return in the township
259	259	11 or county where the property is situated. If such a return was filed, the
260	260	12 property shall be assessed where it is situated. If such a return was not
261	261	13 filed, the county assessor for the area where the owner resides shall
262	262	14 notify the assessor of the township or county where the property is
263	263	15 situated, and the property shall be assessed where it is situated. This
264	264	16 subsection does not apply to a taxpayer who is required by the
265	265	17 department of local government finance to file a summary of the
266	266	18 taxpayer's business tangible personal property returns.
267	267	19 SECTION 10. IC 6-1.1-4-4.2, AS AMENDED BY P.L.236-2023,
268	268	20 SECTION 14, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
269	269	21 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 4.2. (a) Beginning after December 31, 2025, and
270	270	22 ending with the assessment date on which the department first
271	271	23 begins conducting assessments using the automated valuation
272	272	24 model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1, a reassessment plan shall only
273	273	25 be submitted for and applied to the reassessment of agricultural
274	274	26 land. All other tangible real property, other than agricultural land,
275	275	27 shall not be subject to reassessment under this section, beginning
276	276	28 after December 31, 2025, and ending with the assessment date on
277	277	29 which the department first begins conducting assessments using the
278	278	30 automated valuation model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1.
279	279	31 (b) The county assessor of each county shall, before July 1, 2013,
280	280	32 and before May 1 of every fourth year thereafter, prepare and submit
281	281	33 to the department of local government finance a reassessment plan for
282	282	34 the county. The following apply to a reassessment plan prepared and
283	283	35 submitted under this section:
284	284	36 (1) The reassessment plan is subject to approval by the
285	285	37 department of local government finance. The department of local
286	286	38 government finance shall complete its review and approval of the
287	287	39 reassessment plan before:
288	288	40 (A) March 1, 2015; and
289	289	41 (B) January 1 of each subsequent year that follows a year in
290	290	42 which the reassessment plan is submitted by the county.
291	291	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 7
292	292	1 (2) The department of local government finance shall determine
293	293	2 the classes of real property to be used for purposes of this section.
294	294	3 (3) Except as provided in subsection (b), (c), the reassessment
295	295	4 plan must divide all parcels of real property in the county into
296	296	5 four (4) different groups of parcels. Each group of parcels must
297	297	6 contain approximately twenty-five percent (25%) of the parcels
298	298	7 within each class of real property in the county.
299	299	8 (4) Except as provided in subsection (b), (c), all real property in
300	300	9 each group of parcels shall be reassessed under the county's
301	301	10 reassessment plan once during each four (4) year cycle.
302	302	11 (5) The reassessment of a group of parcels in a particular class of
303	303	12 real property shall begin on May 1 of a year.
304	304	13 (6) The reassessment of parcels:
305	305	14 (A) must include a physical inspection of each parcel of real
306	306	15 property in the group of parcels that is being reassessed; and
307	307	16 (B) shall be completed on or before January 1 of the year after
308	308	17 the year in which the reassessment of the group of parcels
309	309	18 begins.
310	310	19 (7) For real property included in a group of parcels that is
311	311	20 reassessed, the reassessment is the basis for taxes payable in the
312	312	21 year following the year in which the reassessment is to be
313	313	22 completed.
314	314	23 (8) The reassessment plan must specify the dates by which the
315	315	24 assessor must submit land values under section 13.6 of this
316	316	25 chapter to the county property tax assessment board of appeals.
317	317	26 (9) The department may not approve the reassessment plan until
318	318	27 the assessor provides verification that the land values
319	319	28 determination under section 13.6 of this chapter has been
320	320	29 completed.
321	321	30 (10) Subject to review and approval by the department of local
322	322	31 government finance, the county assessor may modify the
323	323	32 reassessment plan.
324	324	33 (b) (c) A county may submit a reassessment plan that provides for
325	325	34 reassessing more than twenty-five percent (25%) of all parcels of real
326	326	35 property in the county in a particular year. A plan may provide that all
327	327	36 parcels are to be reassessed in one (1) year. However, a plan must
328	328	37 cover a four (4) year period. All real property in each group of parcels
329	329	38 shall be reassessed under the county's reassessment plan once during
330	330	39 each reassessment cycle.
331	331	40 (c) (d) The reassessment of the first group of parcels under a
332	332	41 county's reassessment plan shall begin on July 1, 2014, and shall be
333	333	42 completed on or before January 1, 2015.
334	334	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 8
335	335	1 (d) (e) The department of local government finance may adopt rules
336	336	2 to govern the reassessment of property under county reassessment
337	337	3 plans.
338	338	4 SECTION 11. IC 6-1.1-4-4.5, AS AMENDED BY P.L.8-2022,
339	339	5 SECTION 1, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
340	340	6 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 4.5. (a) Beginning after December 31, 2025, and
341	341	7 ending with the assessment date on which the department first
342	342	8 begins conducting assessments using the automated valuation
343	343	9 model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1, only agricultural land shall be
344	344	10 subject to annual adjustments under this section. All other tangible
345	345	11 real property, other than agricultural land, shall not be subject to
346	346	12 annual adjustments under this section, beginning after December
347	347	13 31, 2025, and ending with the assessment date on which the
348	348	14 department first begins conducting assessments using the
349	349	15 automated valuation model system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1.
350	350	16 (b) The department of local government finance shall adopt rules
351	351	17 establishing a system for annually adjusting the assessed value of real
352	352	18 property to account for changes in value in those years since a
353	353	19 reassessment under section 4.2 of this chapter for the property last took
354	354	20 effect.
355	355	21 (b) (c) Subject to subsection (f), subsections (a) and (g), the system
356	356	22 must be applied to adjust assessed values beginning with the 2006
357	357	23 assessment date and each year thereafter that is not a year in which a
358	358	24 reassessment under section 4.2 of this chapter for the property becomes
359	359	25 effective.
360	360	26 (c) (d) The rules adopted under subsection (a) (b) must include the
361	361	27 following characteristics in the system:
362	362	28 (1) Promote uniform and equal assessment of real property within
363	363	29 and across classifications.
364	364	30 (2) Require that assessing officials:
365	365	31 (A) reevaluate the factors that affect value;
366	366	32 (B) express the interactions of those factors mathematically;
367	367	33 (C) use mass appraisal techniques to estimate updated property
368	368	34 values within statistical measures of accuracy; and
369	369	35 (D) provide notice to taxpayers of an assessment increase that
370	370	36 results from the application of annual adjustments.
371	371	37 (3) Prescribe procedures that permit the application of the
372	372	38 adjustment percentages in an efficient manner by assessing
373	373	39 officials.
374	374	40 (d) (e) The department of local government finance must review and
375	375	41 certify each annual adjustment determined under this section.
376	376	42 (e) (f) For an assessment beginning after December 31, 2022,
377	377	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 9
378	378	1 agricultural improvements such as but not limited to barns, grain bins,
379	379	2 or silos on land assessed as agricultural shall not be adjusted using
380	380	3 factors, such as neighborhood delineation, that are appropriate for use
381	381	4 in adjusting residential, commercial, and industrial real property. Those
382	382	5 portions of agricultural parcels that include land and buildings not used
383	383	6 for an agricultural purpose, such as homes, homesites, and excess
384	384	7 residential land and commercial or industrial land and buildings, shall
385	385	8 be adjusted by the factor or factors developed for other similar property
386	386	9 within the geographic stratification. The residential portion of
387	387	10 agricultural properties shall be adjusted by the factors applied to
388	388	11 similar residential purposes.
389	389	12 (f) (g) In making the annual determination of the base rate to satisfy
390	390	13 the requirement for an annual adjustment for each assessment date, the
391	391	14 department of local government finance shall not later than March 1 of
392	392	15 each year determine the base rate using the methodology reflected in
393	393	16 Table 2-18 of Book 1, Chapter 2 of the department of local government
394	394	17 finance's Real Property Assessment Guidelines (as in effect on January
395	395	18 1, 2005), except that the department shall adjust the methodology as
396	396	19 follows:
397	397	20 (1) Use a six (6) year rolling average adjusted under subdivision
398	398	21 (3) instead of a four (4) year rolling average.
399	399	22 (2) Use the data from the six (6) most recent years preceding the
400	400	23 year in which the assessment date occurs for which data is
401	401	24 available, before one (1) of those six (6) years is eliminated under
402	402	25 subdivision (3) when determining the rolling average.
403	403	26 (3) Eliminate in the calculation of the rolling average the year
404	404	27 among the six (6) years for which the highest market value in use
405	405	28 of agricultural land is determined.
406	406	29 (4) After determining a preliminary base rate that would apply for
407	407	30 the assessment date without applying the adjustment under this
408	408	31 subdivision, the department of local government finance shall
409	409	32 adjust the preliminary base rate as follows:
410	410	33 (A) If the preliminary base rate for the assessment date would
411	411	34 be at least ten percent (10%) greater than the final base rate
412	412	35 determined for the preceding assessment date, a capitalization
413	413	36 rate of eight percent (8%) shall be used to determine the final
414	414	37 base rate.
415	415	38 (B) If the preliminary base rate for the assessment date would
416	416	39 be at least ten percent (10%) less than the final base rate
417	417	40 determined for the preceding assessment date, a capitalization
418	418	41 rate of six percent (6%) shall be used to determine the final
419	419	42 base rate.
420	420	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 10
421	421	1 (C) If neither clause (A) nor clause (B) applies, a capitalization
422	422	2 rate of seven percent (7%) shall be used to determine the final
423	423	3 base rate.
424	424	4 (D) In the case of a market value in use for a year that is used
425	425	5 in the calculation of the six (6) year rolling average under
426	426	6 subdivision (1) for purposes of determining the base rate for
427	427	7 the assessment date:
428	428	8 (i) that market value in use shall be recalculated by using the
429	429	9 capitalization rate determined under clauses (A) through (C)
430	430	10 for the calculation of the base rate for the assessment date;
431	431	11 and
432	432	12 (ii) the market value in use recalculated under item (i) shall
433	433	13 be used in the calculation of the six (6) year rolling average
434	434	14 under subdivision (1).
435	435	15 (g) (h) For assessment dates after December 31, 2009, an
436	436	16 adjustment in the assessed value of real property under this section
437	437	17 shall be based on the estimated true tax value of the property on the
438	438	18 assessment date that is the basis for taxes payable on that real property.
439	439	19 (h) (i) The department shall release the department's annual
440	440	20 determination of the base rate on or before March 1 of each year.
441	441	21 SECTION 12. IC 6-1.1-4-27.5, AS AMENDED BY P.L.5-2015,
442	442	22 SECTION 10, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
443	443	23 JANUARY 1, 2026]: Sec. 27.5. (a) The auditor of each county shall
444	444	24 establish a property reassessment fund. The county treasurer shall
445	445	25 deposit all collections resulting from the property taxes that the county
446	446	26 levies for the county's property reassessment fund.
447	447	27 (b) With respect to a reassessment of real property under a county's
448	448	28 reassessment plan under section 4.2 of this chapter, the county council
449	449	29 of each county shall, for property taxes due each year, levy against all
450	450	30 the taxable property in the county an amount equal to the estimated
451	451	31 costs of the reassessment under section 28.5 of this chapter for the
452	452	32 group of parcels to be reassessed in that year.
453	453	33 (c) The county assessor may petition the county fiscal body to
454	454	34 increase the levy under subsection (b) to pay for the costs of:
455	455	35 (1) a reassessment of one (1) or more groups of parcels under a
456	456	36 county's reassessment plan prepared under section 4.2 of this
457	457	37 chapter;
458	458	38 (2) verification under 50 IAC 27-4-7 of sales disclosure forms
459	459	39 forwarded to the county assessor under IC 6-1.1-5.5-3; or
460	460	40 (3) processing annual adjustments under section 4.5 of this
461	461	41 chapter.
462	462	42 The assessor must document the needs and reasons for the increased
463	463	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 11
464	464	1 funding.
465	465	2 (d) This subsection applies to an assessment date after
466	466	3 December 31, 2025, and ending before the department begins
467	467	4 conducting assessments using the automated valuation model
468	468	5 system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1. If a county fiscal body increased the
469	469	6 levy under subsection (b) to pay for the costs of processing annual
470	470	7 adjustments under section 4.5 of this chapter, the county fiscal
471	471	8 body shall reduce the levy under subsection (b) by an amount equal
472	472	9 to:
473	473	10 (1) the amount of the prior increase imposed to pay for the
474	474	11 costs of processing annual adjustments before January 1,
475	475	12 2026; minus
476	476	13 (2) the relative amount of the prior increase in subdivision (1)
477	477	14 that is attributable to the costs of processing annual
478	478	15 adjustments for agricultural land under section 4.5 of this
479	479	16 chapter.
480	480	17 (d) (e) If the county fiscal body denies a petition under subsection
481	481	18 (c), the county assessor may appeal to the department of local
482	482	19 government finance. The department of local government finance shall:
483	483	20 (1) hear the appeal; and
484	484	21 (2) determine whether the additional levy is necessary.
485	485	22 SECTION 13. IC 6-1.1-15-1.1, AS AMENDED BY P.L.9-2024,
486	486	23 SECTION 167, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS
487	487	24 [EFFECTIVE UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 1.1. (a) A taxpayer may appeal
488	488	25 an assessment of a taxpayer's tangible property by filing a notice in
489	489	26 writing with, before May 10, 2025, the township assessor, or the
490	490	27 county assessor if the township is not served by a township assessor,
491	491	28 and after May 9, 2025, with the county auditor. Except as provided
492	492	29 in subsections (e) and (h), an appeal under this section may raise any
493	493	30 claim of an error related to the following:
494	494	31 (1) The assessed value of the property.
495	495	32 (2) The assessment was against the wrong person.
496	496	33 (3) The approval denial or omission of a deduction, credit,
497	497	34 exemption, abatement, or tax cap.
498	498	35 (4) A clerical, mathematical, or typographical mistake.
499	499	36 (5) The description of the real property.
500	500	37 (6) The legality or constitutionality of a property tax or
501	501	38 assessment.
502	502	39 A written notice under this section must be made on a form designated
503	503	40 by the department of local government finance. A taxpayer must file a
504	504	41 separate petition for each parcel.
505	505	42 (b) A taxpayer may appeal an error in the assessed value of the
506	506	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 12
507	507	1 property under subsection (a)(1) any time after the official's action, but
508	508	2 not later than the following:
509	509	3 (1) For assessments before January 1, 2019, the earlier of:
510	510	4 (A) forty-five (45) days after the date on which the notice of
511	511	5 assessment is mailed by the county; or
512	512	6 (B) forty-five (45) days after the date on which the tax
513	513	7 statement is mailed by the county treasurer, regardless of
514	514	8 whether the assessing official changes the taxpayer's
515	515	9 assessment.
516	516	10 (2) For assessments of real property, after December 31, 2018, the
517	517	11 earlier of:
518	518	12 (A) June 15 of the assessment year, if the notice of assessment
519	519	13 is mailed by the county before May 1 of the assessment year;
520	520	14 or
521	521	15 (B) June 15 of the year in which the tax statement is mailed by
522	522	16 the county treasurer, if the notice of assessment is mailed by
523	523	17 the county on or after May 1 of the assessment year.
524	524	18 (3) For assessments of personal property, forty-five (45) days after
525	525	19 the date on which the county mails the notice under
526	526	20 IC 6-1.1-3-20.
527	527	21 A taxpayer may appeal an error in the assessment under subsection
528	528	22 (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(4), (a)(5), or (a)(6) not later than three (3) years after
529	529	23 the taxes were first due.
530	530	24 (c) Except as provided in subsection (d), an appeal under this
531	531	25 section applies only to the tax year corresponding to the tax statement
532	532	26 or other notice of action.
533	533	27 (d) An appeal under this section applies to a prior tax year if a
534	534	28 county official took action regarding a prior tax year, and such action
535	535	29 is reflected for the first time in the tax statement. A taxpayer who has
536	536	30 timely filed a written notice of appeal under this section may be
537	537	31 required to file a petition for each tax year, and each petition filed later
538	538	32 must be considered timely.
539	539	33 (e) A taxpayer may not appeal under this section any claim of error
540	540	34 related to the following:
541	541	35 (1) The denial of a deduction, exemption, abatement, or credit if
542	542	36 the authority to approve or deny is not vested in the county board,
543	543	37 county auditor, county assessor, or township assessor.
544	544	38 (2) The calculation of interest and penalties.
545	545	39 (3) A matter under subsection (a) if a separate appeal or review
546	546	40 process is statutorily prescribed.
547	547	41 However, a claim may be raised under this section regarding the
548	548	42 omission or application of a deduction approved by an authority other
549	549	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 13
550	550	1 than the county board, county auditor, county assessor, or township
551	551	2 assessor.
552	552	3 (f) The filing of a written notice under this section constitutes a
553	553	4 request by the taxpayer for a preliminary informal meeting with:
554	554	5 (1) in the case of a notice filed before May 10, 2025, the
555	555	6 township assessor, or the county assessor if the township is not
556	556	7 served by a township assessor; and
557	557	8 (2) in the case of a notice filed after May 9, 2025, the county
558	558	9 auditor.
559	559	10 (g) A county or township official, or county auditor, as applicable,
560	560	11 who receives a written notice under this section shall forward the
561	561	12 notice to:
562	562	13 (1) the county board; and
563	563	14 (2) in the case of a notice filed with a county or township
564	564	15 official before May 10, 2025, the county auditor. if the taxpayer
565	565	16 raises a claim regarding a matter that is in the discretion of the
566	566	17 county auditor.
567	567	18 (h) A taxpayer may not raise any claim in an appeal under this
568	568	19 section related to the legality or constitutionality of:
569	569	20 (1) a user fee (as defined in IC 33-23-1-10.5);
570	570	21 (2) any other charge, fee, or rate imposed by a political
571	571	22 subdivision under any other law; or
572	572	23 (3) any tax imposed by a political subdivision other than a
573	573	24 property tax.
574	574	25 (i) This subsection applies only to an appeal based on a claim of
575	575	26 error in the determination of property that is or is not eligible for a
576	576	27 standard homestead deduction under IC 6-1.1-12-37 and only for an
577	577	28 assessment date occurring before January 1, 2024. A taxpayer may
578	578	29 appeal an error in the assessment of property as described in this
579	579	30 subsection any time after the official's action, but not later than one (1)
580	580	31 year after the date on which the property that is the subject of the
581	581	32 appeal was assessed.
582	582	33 SECTION 14. IC 6-1.1-15-1.2, AS AMENDED BY P.L.9-2024,
583	583	34 SECTION 168, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS
584	584	35 [EFFECTIVE UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 1.2. (a) A county or township
585	585	36 official, or county auditor, as applicable, who receives a written
586	586	37 notice under section 1.1 of this chapter shall schedule, at a time during
587	587	38 business hours that is convenient to the taxpayer, a preliminary
588	588	39 informal meeting with the taxpayer in order to resolve the appeal. If the
589	589	40 taxpayer raises a claim regarding a matter that is in the discretion of the
590	590	41 county auditor, the An informal meeting held after May 9, 2025, must
591	591	42 include the county auditor, if the county auditor did not receive the
592	592	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 14
593	593	1 written notice under section 1.1 of this chapter. At the preliminary
594	594	2 informal meeting, in order to facilitate understanding and the resolution
595	595	3 of disputed issues:
596	596	4 (1) a county or township official;
597	597	5 (2) the county auditor; if the matter is in the discretion of the
598	598	6 county auditor; and
599	599	7 (3) the taxpayer;
600	600	8 shall exchange the information that each party is relying on at the time
601	601	9 of the preliminary informal meeting to support the party's respective
602	602	10 position on each disputed issue concerning the assessment or
603	603	11 deduction. If additional information is obtained by the county or
604	604	12 township official, the county auditor, or the taxpayer after the
605	605	13 preliminary informal meeting and before the hearing held by the county
606	606	14 board, the party obtaining the information shall provide the information
607	607	15 to the other party. If the county or township official, the county auditor,
608	608	16 or the taxpayer obtains additional information and provides the
609	609	17 information to the other party for the first time at the hearing held by
610	610	18 the county board, the county board, unless waived by the receiving
611	611	19 party, shall continue the hearing until a future hearing date of the
612	612	20 county board so that the receiving party has an opportunity to review
613	613	21 all the information that the offering party is relying on to support the
614	614	22 offering party's positions on the disputed issues concerning the
615	615	23 assessment or deduction.
616	616	24 (b) The official or county auditor, as applicable, shall report on a
617	617	25 form prescribed by the department of local government finance the
618	618	26 results of the informal meeting. If the taxpayer and the official or
619	619	27 county auditor, as applicable, agree on the resolution of all issues in
620	620	28 the appeal, the report shall state the agreed resolution of the matter and
621	621	29 be signed by the official or county auditor, as applicable, and the
622	622	30 taxpayer. If an informal meeting is not held, or the informal meeting is
623	623	31 unsuccessful, the official or county auditor, as applicable, shall
624	624	32 report those facts on the form. The official or county auditor, as
625	625	33 applicable, shall forward the report on the informal meeting to the
626	626	34 county board.
627	627	35 (c) If the county board receives a report on the informal meeting
628	628	36 indicating an agreed resolution of the matter, the county board shall
629	629	37 vote to accept or deny the agreed resolution. If the county board accepts
630	630	38 the agreed resolution, the county board shall issue a notification of final
631	631	39 assessment determination adopting the agreed resolution and vacating
632	632	40 the hearing if scheduled.
633	633	41 (d) The county board, upon receipt of a written notice under section
634	634	42 1.1 of this chapter, shall hold a hearing on the appeal not later than one
635	635	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 15
636	636	1 hundred eighty (180) days after the filing date of the written notice.
637	637	2 The county board shall, by mail, give at least thirty (30) days notice of
638	638	3 the date, time, and place fixed for the hearing to the taxpayer, the
639	639	4 county or township official with whom the taxpayer filed the written
640	640	5 notice, and the county auditor. If the county board has notice that the
641	641	6 taxpayer is represented by a third person, any hearing notice shall be
642	642	7 mailed to the representative.
643	643	8 (e) If good cause is shown, the county board shall grant a request for
644	644	9 continuance filed in writing at least ten (10) days before the hearing,
645	645	10 and reschedule the hearing under subsection (d).
646	646	11 (f) A taxpayer may withdraw an appeal by filing a written request
647	647	12 at least ten (10) days before the hearing. The county board shall issue
648	648	13 a notification of final assessment determination indicating the
649	649	14 withdrawal and no change in the assessment. A withdrawal waives a
650	650	15 taxpayer's right to appeal to the Indiana board.
651	651	16 (g) The county board shall determine an appeal without a hearing if
652	652	17 requested by the taxpayer in writing at least twenty (20) days before the
653	653	18 hearing.
654	654	19 (h) If a taxpayer appeals the assessment of tangible property under
655	655	20 section 1.1 of this chapter, the taxpayer is not required to have an
656	656	21 appraisal of the property in order to initiate the appeal or prosecute the
657	657	22 appeal. If the taxpayer presents an appraisal to the county board that:
658	658	23 (1) is prepared by a certified appraiser in compliance with the
659	659	24 Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice to
660	660	25 determine the market value in use;
661	661	26 (2) is addressed to the property owner or the assessor's office;
662	662	27 (3) is commissioned for the purpose of the assessment appeal; and
663	663	28 (4) has an effective date that is the same date as the date of the
664	664	29 assessment that is the subject of the appeal;
665	665	30 the value of the property contained in the appraisal is presumed to be
666	666	31 correct. If the county board disagrees with the taxpayer's appraisal, the
667	667	32 county board may seek review of the appraisal by a third party
668	668	33 independent certified appraiser or obtain an independent appraisal
669	669	34 report conducted by a certified appraiser in compliance with the
670	670	35 Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. If the county
671	671	36 board's appraisal differs from the taxpayer's appraisal, the county board
672	672	37 shall weigh the evidence and determine the true tax value of the
673	673	38 property based on the totality of the probative evidence before the
674	674	39 county board. The county board's determination of the property's true
675	675	40 tax value may be higher or lower than the assessment but may not be
676	676	41 lower than the lowest appraisal presented to or obtained by the county
677	677	42 board, or higher than the highest appraisal presented to or obtained by
678	678	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 16
679	679	1 the county board. After the assignment of value, the parties shall retain
680	680	2 their rights to appeal the assessment or assessments to the Indiana
681	681	3 board, which must hear the appeal de novo.
682	682	4 (i) At a hearing under subsection (d), the taxpayer shall have the
683	683	5 opportunity to present testimony and evidence regarding the matters on
684	684	6 appeal. If the matters on appeal are in the discretion of the county
685	685	7 auditor, The county auditor or the county auditor's representative shall
686	686	8 attend the hearing. A county or township official, or the county auditor
687	687	9 or the county auditor's representative, shall have an opportunity to
688	688	10 present testimony and evidence regarding the matters on appeal. The
689	689	11 county board may adjourn and continue the hearing to a later date in
690	690	12 order to make a physical inspection or consider the evidence presented.
691	691	13 (j) The county board shall determine the assessment by motion and
692	692	14 majority vote. Except as provided in subsection (m), a county board
693	693	15 may, based on the evidence before it, increase an assessment. The
694	694	16 county board shall issue a written decision. Written notice of the
695	695	17 decision shall be given to the township official, county official, county
696	696	18 auditor, and the taxpayer.
697	697	19 (k) If more than one hundred eighty (180) days have passed since
698	698	20 the date the notice of appeal was filed, and the county board has not
699	699	21 issued a determination, a taxpayer may initiate any appeal with the
700	700	22 Indiana board of tax review under section 3 of this chapter.
701	701	23 (l) The county assessor or county auditor, as applicable, may
702	702	24 assess a penalty of fifty dollars ($50) against the taxpayer if the
703	703	25 taxpayer or representative fails to appear at a hearing under subsection
704	704	26 (d) and, under subsection (e), the taxpayer's request for continuance is
705	705	27 denied, or the taxpayer's request for continuance, request for the board
706	706	28 to take action without a hearing, or withdrawal is not timely filed. A
707	707	29 taxpayer may appeal the assessment of the penalty to the Indiana board
708	708	30 or directly to the tax court. The penalty may not be added as an amount
709	709	31 owed on the property tax statement under IC 6-1.1-22 or IC 6-1.1-22.5.
710	710	32 (m) The determination of an appealed assessed value of tangible
711	711	33 property by a county or township official, or county auditor, as
712	712	34 applicable, resulting from an informal meeting under subsection (a),
713	713	35 or by a county board resulting from an appeal hearing under subsection
714	714	36 (d), may be less than or equal to the tangible property's original
715	715	37 appealed assessed value at issue, but may not exceed the original
716	716	38 appealed assessed value at issue. However, an increase in assessed
717	717	39 value that is attributable to substantial renovation, new improvements,
718	718	40 zoning change, or use change is excluded from the limitation under this
719	719	41 subsection.
720	720	42 SECTION 15. IC 6-1.1-15-3, AS AMENDED BY P.L.154-2020,
721	721	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 17
722	722	1 SECTION 4, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
723	723	2 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 3. (a) A taxpayer may obtain a review by the
724	724	3 Indiana board of:
725	725	4 (1) a county board's action with respect to a claim under section
726	726	5 1.1 of this chapter; or
727	727	6 (2) a denial by the county auditor, the county assessor, or the
728	728	7 county treasurer of a claim for refund under IC 6-1.1-9-10(c)(2)
729	729	8 that is appealed to the Indiana board as authorized in
730	730	9 IC 6-1.1-26-2.1(d)(2).
731	731	10 (b) The county assessor (before the abolishment of the office) and
732	732	11 the county auditor is the party are parties to a review under
733	733	12 subsection (a)(1) to defend the determination of the county board. The
734	734	13 county auditor may appear as an additional party to the review if the
735	735	14 determination concerns a matter that is in the discretion of the county
736	736	15 auditor. At the time the notice of that determination is given to the
737	737	16 taxpayer, the taxpayer shall also be informed in writing of:
738	738	17 (1) the taxpayer's opportunity for review under subsection (a)(1);
739	739	18 and
740	740	19 (2) the procedures the taxpayer must follow in order to obtain
741	741	20 review under this section.
742	742	21 (c) A county assessor or county auditor who dissents from the
743	743	22 determination of the county board may obtain a review by the Indiana
744	744	23 board. A county auditor who dissents from the determination of the
745	745	24 county board concerning a matter that is in the discretion of the county
746	746	25 auditor may obtain a review by the Indiana board.
747	747	26 (d) In order to obtain a review by the Indiana board under
748	748	27 subsection (a)(1), the party must, not later than forty-five (45) days
749	749	28 after the date of the notice given to the party or parties of the
750	750	29 determination of the county board:
751	751	30 (1) file a petition for review with the Indiana board; and
752	752	31 (2) mail a copy of the petition to the other party.
753	753	32 (e) The Indiana board shall prescribe the form of the petition for
754	754	33 review under this chapter. The Indiana board shall issue instructions for
755	755	34 completion of the form. The form and the instructions must be clear,
756	756	35 simple, and understandable to the average individual. A petition for
757	757	36 review of such a determination must be made on the form prescribed
758	758	37 by the Indiana board. The form must require the petitioner to specify
759	759	38 the reasons why the petitioner believes that the determination by the
760	760	39 county board is erroneous.
761	761	40 (f) If the action for which a taxpayer seeks review under this section
762	762	41 is the assessment of tangible property, the taxpayer is not required to
763	763	42 have an appraisal of the property in order to do the following:
764	764	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 18
765	765	1 (1) Initiate the review.
766	766	2 (2) Prosecute the review.
767	767	3 (g) If an owner petitions the Indiana board under IC 6-1.1-11-7(d),
768	768	4 the Indiana board is authorized to approve or disapprove an exemption
769	769	5 application:
770	770	6 (1) previously submitted to a county board under IC 6-1.1-11-6;
771	771	7 and
772	772	8 (2) that is not approved or disapproved by the county board within
773	773	9 one hundred eighty (180) days after the owner filed the
774	774	10 application for exemption under IC 6-1.1-11.
775	775	11 The county assessor (before the abolishment of the office) and after
776	776	12 May 9, 2025, the county auditor, is a party are parties to a petition
777	777	13 to the Indiana board under IC 6-1.1-11-7(d).
778	778	14 (h) This subsection applies only to the review by the Indiana board
779	779	15 of a denial of a refund claim described in subsection (a)(2). The county
780	780	16 assessor (before the abolishment of the office) and after May 9,
781	781	17 2025, the county auditor, is the party are parties to a review under
782	782	18 subsection (a)(2) to defend the denial of the refund under
783	783	19 IC 6-1.1-26-2.1. In order to obtain a review by the Indiana board under
784	784	20 subsection (a)(2), the taxpayer must, within forty-five (45) days of the
785	785	21 notice of denial under IC 6-1.1-26-2.1(d):
786	786	22 (1) file a petition for review with the Indiana board; and
787	787	23 (2) mail a copy of the petition to the county auditor.
788	788	24 SECTION 16. IC 6-1.1-15-4, AS AMENDED BY P.L.156-2020,
789	789	25 SECTION 17, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
790	790	26 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 4. (a) After receiving a petition for review
791	791	27 which is filed under section 3 of this chapter, the Indiana board shall
792	792	28 conduct a hearing at its earliest opportunity. The Indiana board may
793	793	29 correct any errors related to a claim under section 1.1 of this chapter
794	794	30 that is within the jurisdiction of the Indiana board under IC 6-1.5-4-1.
795	795	31 (b) If the Indiana board conducts a site inspection of the property as
796	796	32 part of its review of the petition, the Indiana board shall give notice to
797	797	33 all parties of the date and time of the site inspection. The Indiana board
798	798	34 is not required to assess the property in question. The Indiana board
799	799	35 shall give notice of the date fixed for the hearing, by mail, to the parties
800	800	36 or a party's representative. The Indiana board shall give these notices
801	801	37 at least thirty (30) days before the day fixed for the hearing unless the
802	802	38 parties agree to a shorter period. With respect to a petition for review
803	803	39 filed by a county assessor or county auditor, the county board that
804	804	40 made the determination under review under this section may file an
805	805	41 amicus curiae brief in the review proceeding under this section. The
806	806	42 expenses incurred by the county board in filing the amicus curiae brief
807	807	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 19
808	808	1 shall be paid from the property reassessment fund under
809	809	2 IC 6-1.1-4-27.5 of the county in which the property is located. The
810	810	3 executive of a taxing unit may file an amicus curiae brief in the review
811	811	4 proceeding under this section if the property that is the subject of the
812	812	5 appeal is subject to assessment by that taxing unit.
813	813	6 (c) If a petition for review does not comply with the Indiana board's
814	814	7 instructions for completing the form prescribed under section 3 of this
815	815	8 chapter, the Indiana board shall return the petition to the petitioner and
816	816	9 include a notice describing the defect in the petition. The petitioner
817	817	10 then has thirty (30) days from the date on the notice to cure the defect
818	818	11 and file a corrected petition. The Indiana board shall deny a corrected
819	819	12 petition for review if it does not substantially comply with the Indiana
820	820	13 board's instructions for completing the form prescribed under section
821	821	14 3 of this chapter.
822	822	15 (d) After the hearing, the Indiana board shall give the parties and
823	823	16 any entity that filed an amicus curiae brief, or their representatives:
824	824	17 (1) notice, by mail, of its final determination; and
825	825	18 (2) for parties entitled to appeal the final determination, notice of
826	826	19 the procedures they must follow in order to obtain court review
827	827	20 under section 5 of this chapter.
828	828	21 (e) The Indiana board shall conduct a hearing not later than one (1)
829	829	22 year after a petition in proper form is filed with the Indiana board.
830	830	23 (f) The Indiana board shall issue a determination not later than the
831	831	24 later of:
832	832	25 (1) ninety (90) days after the hearing; or
833	833	26 (2) the date set in an extension order issued by the Indiana board.
834	834	27 The board may not extend the date by more than one hundred
835	835	28 eighty (180) days.
836	836	29 (g) The time periods described in subsections (e) and (f) do not
837	837	30 include any period of time that is attributable to a party's:
838	838	31 (1) request for a continuance, stay, extension, or summary
839	839	32 disposition;
840	840	33 (2) consent to a case management order, stipulated record, or
841	841	34 proposed hearing date;
842	842	35 (3) failure to comply with the board's orders or rules; or
843	843	36 (4) waiver of a deadline.
844	844	37 (h) If the Indiana board fails to take action required under
845	845	38 subsection (e) or (f), the entity that initiated the petition may:
846	846	39 (1) take no action and wait for the Indiana board to hear the
847	847	40 matter and issue a final determination; or
848	848	41 (2) petition for judicial review under section 5 of this chapter.
849	849	42 (i) This subsection applies when the board has not held a hearing.
850	850	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 20
851	851	1 A person may not seek judicial review under subsection (h)(2) until:
852	852	2 (1) the person requests a hearing in writing; and
853	853	3 (2) sixty (60) days have passed after the person requests a hearing
854	854	4 under subdivision (1) and the matter has not been heard or
855	855	5 otherwise extended under subsection (g).
856	856	6 (j) A final determination must include separately stated findings of
857	857	7 fact for all aspects of the determination. Findings of ultimate fact must
858	858	8 be accompanied by a concise statement of the underlying basic facts of
859	859	9 record to support the findings. Findings must be based exclusively
860	860	10 upon the evidence on the record in the proceeding and on matters
861	861	11 officially noticed in the proceeding. Findings must be based upon a
862	862	12 preponderance of the evidence.
863	863	13 (k) The Indiana board may limit the scope of the appeal to the issues
864	864	14 raised in the petition and the evaluation of the evidence presented to
865	865	15 the county board in support of those issues only if all parties
866	866	16 participating in the hearing required under subsection (a) agree to the
867	867	17 limitation. A party participating in the hearing required under
868	868	18 subsection (a) is entitled to introduce evidence that is otherwise proper
869	869	19 and admissible without regard to whether that evidence has previously
870	870	20 been introduced at a hearing before the county board.
871	871	21 (l) The Indiana board may require the parties to the appeal:
872	872	22 (1) to file not more than five (5) business days before the date of
873	873	23 the hearing required under subsection (a) documentary evidence
874	874	24 or summaries of statements of testimonial evidence; and
875	875	25 (2) to file not more than fifteen (15) business days before the date
876	876	26 of the hearing required under subsection (a) lists of witnesses and
877	877	27 exhibits to be introduced at the hearing.
878	878	28 (m) A party to a proceeding before the Indiana board shall provide
879	879	29 to all other parties to the proceeding the information described in
880	880	30 subsection (l) if the other party requests the information in writing at
881	881	31 least ten (10) days before the deadline for filing of the information
882	882	32 under subsection (l).
883	883	33 (n) The Indiana board may base its final determination on a
884	884	34 stipulation between the respondent and the petitioner. If the final
885	885	35 determination is based on a stipulated assessed valuation of tangible
886	886	36 property, the Indiana board may order the placement of a notation on
887	887	37 the permanent assessment record of the tangible property that the
888	888	38 assessed valuation was determined by stipulation. The Indiana board
889	889	39 may:
890	890	40 (1) order that a final determination under this subsection has no
891	891	41 precedential value; or
892	892	42 (2) specify a limited precedential value of a final determination
893	893	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 21
894	894	1 under this subsection.
895	895	2 (o) If a party to a proceeding, or a party's authorized representative,
896	896	3 elects to receive any notice under this section by electronic mail, the
897	897	4 notice is considered effective in the same manner as if the notice had
898	898	5 been sent by United States mail, with postage prepaid, to the party's or
899	899	6 representative's mailing address of record.
900	900	7 (p) At a hearing under this section, the Indiana board shall admit
901	901	8 into evidence an appraisal report, prepared by an appraiser, unless the
902	902	9 appraisal report is ruled inadmissible on grounds besides a hearsay
903	903	10 objection. This exception to the hearsay rule shall not be construed to
904	904	11 limit the discretion of the Indiana board, as trier of fact, to review the
905	905	12 probative value of an appraisal report.
906	906	13 SECTION 17. IC 6-1.1-15-5, AS AMENDED BY P.L.156-2020,
907	907	14 SECTION 18, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
908	908	15 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 5. (a) Not later than fifteen (15) days after the
909	909	16 Indiana board gives notice of its final determination under section 4 of
910	910	17 this chapter to the party or the maximum allowable time for the
911	911	18 issuance of a final determination by the Indiana board under section 4
912	912	19 of this chapter expires, a party to the proceeding may request a
913	913	20 rehearing before the Indiana board. The Indiana board may conduct a
914	914	21 rehearing and affirm or modify its final determination, giving the same
915	915	22 notices after the rehearing as are required by section 4 of this chapter.
916	916	23 The Indiana board has fifteen (15) days after receiving a petition for a
917	917	24 rehearing to determine whether to grant a rehearing. Failure to grant a
918	918	25 rehearing not later than fifteen (15) days after receiving the petition
919	919	26 shall be treated as a final determination to deny the petition. A petition
920	920	27 for a rehearing does not toll the time in which to file a petition for
921	921	28 judicial review unless the petition for rehearing is granted. If the
922	922	29 Indiana board determines to rehear a final determination, the Indiana
923	923	30 board:
924	924	31 (1) may conduct the additional hearings that the Indiana board
925	925	32 determines necessary or review the written record without
926	926	33 additional hearings; and
927	927	34 (2) shall issue a final determination not later than ninety (90) days
928	928	35 after notifying the parties that the Indiana board will rehear the
929	929	36 final determination.
930	930	37 If the Indiana board fails to make a final determination within the time
931	931	38 allowed under subdivision (2), the entity that initiated the petition for
932	932	39 rehearing may take no action and wait for the Indiana board to make a
933	933	40 final determination or petition for judicial review under subsection (g).
934	934	41 (b) A party may petition for judicial review of the final
935	935	42 determination of the Indiana board. In order to obtain judicial review
936	936	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 22
937	937	1 under this section, a party must:
938	938	2 (1) file a petition with the Indiana tax court;
939	939	3 (2) serve a copy of the petition on:
940	940	4 (A) the parties to the review by the Indiana board;
941	941	5 (B) the attorney general; and
942	942	6 (C) any entity that filed an amicus curiae brief with the Indiana
943	943	7 board; and
944	944	8 (3) file a written notice of appeal with the Indiana board
945	945	9 informing the Indiana board of the party's intent to obtain judicial
946	946	10 review.
947	947	11 Petitions for judicial review may be consolidated at the request of the
948	948	12 appellants if it can be done in the interest of justice. The department of
949	949	13 local government finance may intervene in an action taken under this
950	950	14 subsection if the interpretation of a rule of the department is at issue in
951	951	15 the action. The county assessor (before the abolishment of the office)
952	952	16 and after May 9, 2025, the county auditor, is a party are parties to
953	953	17 the review under this section.
954	954	18 (c) Except as provided in subsection (g), to initiate a proceeding for
955	955	19 judicial review under this section, a party must take the action required
956	956	20 by subsection (b) not later than:
957	957	21 (1) forty-five (45) days after the Indiana board gives the person
958	958	22 notice of its final determination, unless a rehearing is conducted
959	959	23 under subsection (a); or
960	960	24 (2) forty-five (45) days after the Indiana board gives the person
961	961	25 notice under subsection (a) of its final determination, if a
962	962	26 rehearing is conducted under subsection (a) or the maximum time
963	963	27 elapses for the Indiana board to make a determination under this
964	964	28 section.
965	965	29 (d) The failure of the Indiana board to conduct a hearing within the
966	966	30 period prescribed in section 4(e) of this chapter does not constitute
967	967	31 notice to the party of an Indiana board final determination.
968	968	32 (e) The county assessor or county auditor may petition for judicial
969	969	33 review to the tax court in the manner prescribed in this section. If the
970	970	34 county auditor appeared before the Indiana board concerning the
971	971	35 matter, the county auditor may petition for judicial review to the tax
972	972	36 court in the manner prescribed in this section.
973	973	37 (f) The county assessor or county auditor may not be represented
974	974	38 by the attorney general in a judicial review initiated under subsection
975	975	39 (b) by the county assessor or county auditor.
976	976	40 (g) If the maximum time elapses for the Indiana board to give notice
977	977	41 of its final determination under subsection (a) or section 4 of this
978	978	42 chapter, a party may initiate a proceeding for judicial review by taking
979	979	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 23
980	980	1 the action required by subsection (b) at any time after the maximum
981	981	2 time elapses. If:
982	982	3 (1) a judicial proceeding is initiated under this subsection; and
983	983	4 (2) the Indiana board has not issued a determination;
984	984	5 the tax court shall determine the matter de novo.
985	985	6 SECTION 18. IC 6-1.1-15-19, AS ADDED BY P.L.244-2015,
986	986	7 SECTION 3, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
987	987	8 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 19. (a) Before July 1, 2025, a county
988	988	9 assessor, and after June 30, 2025, a county auditor, shall quarterly
989	989	10 send a notice to the fiscal officer of each taxing unit affected by an
990	990	11 appeal prosecuted under this chapter, including the fiscal officer of an
991	991	12 affected redevelopment commission established under IC 36-7. The
992	992	13 notice must include the following information:
993	993	14 (1) The date on which a notice for review was filed.
994	994	15 (2) The name and address of the taxpayer who filed the notice for
995	995	16 review.
996	996	17 (3) The assessed value for the assessment date the year before the
997	997	18 appeal, and the assessed value on the most recent assessment
998	998	19 date.
999	999	20 (4) The status of the taxpayer's appeal.
1000	1000	21 (b) Each township assessor (if any) shall furnish to the county
1001	1001	22 assessor all requested information necessary for purposes of providing
1002	1002	23 the quarterly notices under this section.
1003	1003	24 (c) A notice required by this section may be provided to the
1004	1004	25 appropriate fiscal officer in an electronic format.
1005	1005	26 SECTION 19. IC 6-1.1-22-9, AS AMENDED BY P.L.218-2013,
1006	1006	27 SECTION 12, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1007	1007	28 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 9. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the
1008	1008	29 property taxes assessed for a year under this article are:
1009	1009	30 (1) due in two (2) equal installments on May 10 and November 10
1010	1010	31 of the following year, except as provided in subdivision (2); and
1011	1011	32 (2) due in two (2) equal installments on May 10 and November
1012	1012	33 10 of the year the property taxes are assessed, beginning with
1013	1013	34 the first assessment date that the department begins
1014	1014	35 conducting assessments using an automated valuation model
1015	1015	36 system under IC 6-1.1-2.5-1.
1016	1016	37 (b) Subsection (a) does not apply if any of the following apply to the
1017	1017	38 property taxes assessed for the year under this article:
1018	1018	39 (1) Subsection (c).
1019	1019	40 (2) Subsection (d).
1020	1020	41 (3) IC 6-1.1-7-7.
1021	1021	42 (4) Section 9.5 of this chapter.
1022	1022	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 24
1023	1023	1 (5) Section 9.7 of this chapter.
1024	1024	2 (6) Section 9.9 of this chapter.
1025	1025	3 (c) A county council may adopt an ordinance to require a person to
1026	1026	4 pay the person's property tax liability in one (1) installment, if the tax
1027	1027	5 liability for a particular year is less than twenty-five dollars ($25). If the
1028	1028	6 county council has adopted such an ordinance, then whenever a tax
1029	1029	7 statement mailed under section 8.1 of this chapter shows that the
1030	1030	8 person's property tax liability for a year is less than twenty-five dollars
1031	1031	9 ($25) for the property covered by that statement, the tax liability for
1032	1032	10 that year is due in one (1) installment on May 10 of that year.
1033	1033	11 (d) If the county treasurer receives a copy of an appeal petition
1034	1034	12 under IC 6-1.1-18.5-12(d) before the county treasurer mails or
1035	1035	13 transmits statements under section 8.1 of this chapter, the county
1036	1036	14 treasurer may:
1037	1037	15 (1) mail or transmit the statements without regard to the pendency
1038	1038	16 of the appeal and, if the resolution of the appeal by the department
1039	1039	17 of local government finance results in changes in levies, mail or
1040	1040	18 transmit reconciling statements under subsection (e); or
1041	1041	19 (2) delay the mailing or transmission of statements under section
1042	1042	20 8.1 of this chapter so that:
1043	1043	21 (A) the due date of the first installment that would otherwise
1044	1044	22 be due under subsection (a) is delayed by not more than sixty
1045	1045	23 (60) days; and
1046	1046	24 (B) all statements reflect any changes in levies that result from
1047	1047	25 the resolution of the appeal by the department of local
1048	1048	26 government finance.
1049	1049	27 (e) A reconciling statement under subsection (d)(1) must indicate:
1050	1050	28 (1) the total amount due for the year;
1051	1051	29 (2) the total amount of the installments paid that did not reflect
1052	1052	30 the resolution of the appeal under IC 6-1.1-18.5-12(d) by the
1053	1053	31 department of local government finance;
1054	1054	32 (3) if the amount under subdivision (1) exceeds the amount under
1055	1055	33 subdivision (2), the adjusted amount that is payable by the
1056	1056	34 taxpayer:
1057	1057	35 (A) as a final reconciliation of all amounts due for the year;
1058	1058	36 and
1059	1059	37 (B) not later than:
1060	1060	38 (i) November 10; or
1061	1061	39 (ii) the date or dates established under section 9.5 of this
1062	1062	40 chapter; and
1063	1063	41 (4) if the amount under subdivision (2) exceeds the amount under
1064	1064	42 subdivision (1), that the taxpayer may claim a refund of the excess
1065	1065	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 25
1066	1066	1 under IC 6-1.1-26.
1067	1067	2 (f) If property taxes are not paid on or before the due date, the
1068	1068	3 penalties prescribed in IC 6-1.1-37-10 shall be added to the delinquent
1069	1069	4 taxes.
1070	1070	5 (g) Notwithstanding any other law, a property tax liability of less
1071	1071	6 than five dollars ($5) is increased to five dollars ($5). The difference
1072	1072	7 between the actual liability and the five dollar ($5) amount that appears
1073	1073	8 on the statement is a statement processing charge. The statement
1074	1074	9 processing charge is considered a part of the tax liability.
1075	1075	10 (h) This subsection applies only if a statement for payment of
1076	1076	11 property taxes and special assessments by electronic mail is transmitted
1077	1077	12 to a person under section 8.1(h) of this chapter. If a response to the
1078	1078	13 transmission of electronic mail to a person indicates that the electronic
1079	1079	14 mail was not received, the county treasurer shall mail to the person a
1080	1080	15 hard copy of the statement in the manner required by section 8.1(a) of
1081	1081	16 this chapter for persons who do not opt to receive statements by
1082	1082	17 electronic mail. The due date for the property taxes and special
1083	1083	18 assessments under a statement mailed to a person under this subsection
1084	1084	19 is the due date indicated in the statement transmitted to the person by
1085	1085	20 electronic mail.
1086	1086	21 (i) In a county in which an authorizing ordinance is adopted under
1087	1087	22 section 8.1(h) of this chapter, a person may direct the county treasurer
1088	1088	23 to transmit a reconciling statement under subsection (d)(1) by
1089	1089	24 electronic mail under section 8.1(h) of this chapter.
1090	1090	25 SECTION 20. IC 6-1.1-30-20 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA
1091	1091	26 CODE AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1092	1092	27 [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025]: (a) The department shall develop an
1093	1093	28 automated valuation model system for the assessment of all
1094	1094	29 tangible property except agricultural land using data that is readily
1095	1095	30 available to the public.
1096	1096	31 (b) The department shall present a plan of implementation for
1097	1097	32 an automated valuation model system to the interim study
1098	1098	33 committee on fiscal policy before November 1, 2025, and provide
1099	1099	34 an update to the interim study committee on fiscal policy on the
1100	1100	35 progress of the implementation before November 1 in subsequent
1101	1101	36 years until the automated valuation model system is operational
1102	1102	37 for use.
1103	1103	38 (c) The department shall include in the plan of implementation
1104	1104	39 presented under subsection (b), a plan to transition from the
1105	1105	40 payment of property taxes in arrears to the payment of property
1106	1106	41 taxes in the year of the assessment under IC 6-1.1-22-9(a)(2).
1107	1107	42 (d) The interim study committee on fiscal policy shall
1108	1108	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 26
1109	1109	1 recommend legislation to implement an automated valuation model
1110	1110	2 system of statewide assessment following presentation by the
1111	1111	3 department that the automated valuation model system is
1112	1112	4 operational for use.
1113	1113	5 SECTION 21. IC 6-1.1-51.5 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
1114	1114	6 AS A NEW CHAPTER TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1115	1115	7 JANUARY 1, 2026]:
1116	1116	8 Chapter 51.5. Property Tax Liability Credit
1117	1117	9 Sec. 1. As used in this chapter, "property tax liability" means
1118	1118	10 liability for the tax imposed on property under this article
1119	1119	11 determined after application of all credits and deductions under
1120	1120	12 this article, but does not include any interest or penalty imposed
1121	1121	13 under this article.
1122	1122	14 Sec. 2. As used in this chapter, "taxable property" means all
1123	1123	15 tangible property that is subject to the tax imposed by this article
1124	1124	16 and is not exempt from tax under IC 6-1.1-10 or any other law. The
1125	1125	17 term includes a mobile home or manufactured home that is not
1126	1126	18 assessed as real property that an individual uses as the individual's
1127	1127	19 residence.
1128	1128	20 Sec. 3. This section applies for taxes first due and payable in
1129	1129	21 2027 through the first date that taxes are first due and payable
1130	1130	22 based on assessments under the automated valuation model system
1131	1131	23 in IC 6-1.1-2.5-1. A credit shall be applied against a taxpayer's
1132	1132	24 property tax liability as set forth in this chapter. The amount of the
1133	1133	25 credit under this section is equal to:
1134	1134	26 (1) for taxes first due and payable in 2027, the lesser of:
1135	1135	27 (A) the property tax liability first due and payable on the
1136	1136	28 property for the calendar year; or
1137	1137	29 (B) the property tax liability imposed on the taxpayer's
1138	1138	30 property for taxes first due and payable in 2021; and
1139	1139	31 (2) for taxes first due and payable in 2028 and thereafter the
1140	1140	32 greater of zero (0) or the result of:
1141	1141	33 (A) the property tax liability first due and payable on the
1142	1142	34 property for the calendar year; minus
1143	1143	35 (B) the result of:
1144	1144	36 (i) the property tax liability first due and payable on the
1145	1145	37 property for the immediately preceding year after the
1146	1146	38 application of the credit granted under this section for
1147	1147	39 that year; multiplied by
1148	1148	40 (ii) one and three-hundredths (1.03).
1149	1149	41 Sec. 4. The amount of property tax liability determined in this
1150	1150	42 chapter is the maximum property tax liability to which taxable
1151	1151	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 27
1152	1152	1 property is subject for taxes first due and payable in 2027 through
1153	1153	2 the first date that taxes are first due and payable based on
1154	1154	3 assessments under the automated valuation model system in
1155	1155	4 IC 6-1.1-2.5-1.
1156	1156	5 Sec. 5. The department of local government finance shall apply
1157	1157	6 the credit under this chapter to a determination of property tax
1158	1158	7 liability for all taxable property as set forth in this chapter.
1159	1159	8 SECTION 22. IC 36-2-15-0.1 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA
1160	1160	9 CODE AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1161	1161	10 [EFFECTIVE UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 0.1. (a) This section applies to
1162	1162	11 the office of a county assessor in existence on May 10, 2025.
1163	1163	12 (b) On July 1, 2025, the office of county assessor is abolished.
1164	1164	13 (c) On July 1, 2025, all the powers and duties of the county
1165	1165	14 assessor are transferred to the county auditor.
1166	1166	15 (d) On July 1, 2025, all of the following are transferred to the
1167	1167	16 county auditor:
1168	1168	17 (1) All employment positions as of June 30, 2025, of all
1169	1169	18 employees of the county assessor.
1170	1170	19 (2) The real and personal property of the county assessor.
1171	1171	20 (3) The obligations outstanding on June 30, 2025, of the
1172	1172	21 county assessor.
1173	1173	22 (4) The funds of the county assessor.
1174	1174	23 (e) Before July 1, 2025, the county auditor shall interview, or
1175	1175	24 give the opportunity to interview to, each individual who:
1176	1176	25 (1) is, as of May 15, 2025, an employee of the county assessor;
1177	1177	26 and
1178	1178	27 (2) applies before June 1, 2025, for an employment position
1179	1179	28 referred to in subsection (d)(1).
1180	1180	29 SECTION 23. IC 36-2-15-0.2 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA
1181	1181	30 CODE AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1182	1182	31 [EFFECTIVE UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 0.2. (a) Each county assessor
1183	1183	32 whose duties will be transferred under section 0.1 of this chapter
1184	1184	33 shall:
1185	1185	34 (1) organize the records of the assessor's office relating to the
1186	1186	35 assessment of tangible property in a manner prescribed by the
1187	1187	36 department of local government finance; and
1188	1188	37 (2) transfer the records before July 1, 2025, as directed by the
1189	1189	38 department of local government finance.
1190	1190	39 (b) The department of local government finance shall determine
1191	1191	40 a procedure and schedule for the transfer of the records and
1192	1192	41 operations from the county assessor to the county auditor. The
1193	1193	42 assessors shall assist each other and coordinate their efforts to:
1194	1194	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 28
1195	1195	1 (1) ensure an orderly transfer of all records; and
1196	1196	2 (2) provide for an uninterrupted and professional transition
1197	1197	3 of any functions of assessors that are consistent with this
1198	1198	4 chapter, IC 6-1.1, and the directions of the department of
1199	1199	5 local government finance.
1200	1200	6 SECTION 24. IC 36-2-15-2, AS AMENDED BY P.L.167-2015,
1201	1201	7 SECTION 6, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1202	1202	8 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 2. (a) A county assessor shall be elected under
1203	1203	9 IC 3-10-2-13 by the voters of the county.
1204	1204	10 (b) To be eligible to serve as an assessor, an individual must meet
1205	1205	11 the following qualifications before taking office:
1206	1206	12 (1) If the individual has never held the office of county assessor,
1207	1207	13 the individual must have attained a level two assessor-appraiser
1208	1208	14 certification under IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1209	1209	15 (2) If the individual has held the office of county assessor, the
1210	1210	16 individual must have attained a level three assessor-appraiser
1211	1211	17 certification under IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1212	1212	18 (c) A county assessor must reside within the county as provided in
1213	1213	19 Article 6, Section 6 of the Constitution of the State of Indiana. The
1214	1214	20 assessor forfeits office if the assessor ceases to be a resident of the
1215	1215	21 county.
1216	1216	22 (d) The term of office of a county assessor is four (4) years,
1217	1217	23 beginning January 1 after election and continuing until a successor is
1218	1218	24 elected and qualified.
1219	1219	25 (e) This section expires July 1, 2025.
1220	1220	26 SECTION 25. IC 36-2-15-3, AS AMENDED BY P.L.146-2008,
1221	1221	27 SECTION 692, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1222	1222	28 [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 3. (a) Subject to subsection (b), the
1223	1223	29 assessor shall keep the assessor's office in a building provided at the
1224	1224	30 county seat by the county executive. The assessor shall keep the office
1225	1225	31 open for business during regular business hours on every day of the
1226	1226	32 year except Sundays and legal holidays. However, the assessor may
1227	1227	33 close the office on days specified by the county executive according to
1228	1228	34 custom and practice of the county.
1229	1229	35 (b) After June 30, 2008, the county assessor may establish one (1)
1230	1230	36 or more satellite offices in the county.
1231	1231	37 (c) This section expires July 1, 2025.
1232	1232	38 SECTION 26. IC 36-2-15-5, AS AMENDED BY P.L.167-2015,
1233	1233	39 SECTION 7, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1234	1234	40 JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 5. (a) Subject to section 0.1 of this chapter, the
1235	1235	41 county assessor shall perform the functions assigned by statute to the
1236	1236	42 county assessor, including the following:
1237	1237	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 29
1238	1238	1 (1) Countywide equalization.
1239	1239	2 (2) Selection and maintenance of a countywide computer system.
1240	1240	3 (3) Certification of gross assessments to the county auditor.
1241	1241	4 (4) Discovery of omitted property.
1242	1242	5 (5) In:
1243	1243	6 (A) a township in which the transfer of duties of the elected
1244	1244	7 township assessor is required by subsection (c); or
1245	1245	8 (B) a township in which the duties relating to the assessment
1246	1246	9 of tangible property are not required to be performed by a
1247	1247	10 township assessor elected under IC 36-6-5;
1248	1248	11 Performance of the assessment duties prescribed by IC 6-1.1.
1249	1249	12 (b) A transfer of duties between assessors does not affect:
1250	1250	13 (1) any assessment, assessment appeal, or other official action
1251	1251	14 made by an assessor before the transfer; or
1252	1252	15 (2) any pending action against, or the rights of any party that may
1253	1253	16 possess a legal claim against, an assessor that is not described in
1254	1254	17 subdivision (1).
1255	1255	18 Any assessment, assessment appeal, or other official action of an
1256	1256	19 assessor made by the assessor within the scope of the assessor's official
1257	1257	20 duties before the transfer is considered as having been made by the
1258	1258	21 assessor to whom the duties are transferred.
1259	1259	22 (c) If the individual elected to the office of township assessor has
1260	1260	23 not attained the assessor-appraiser certification level required by
1261	1261	24 IC 36-6-5-1 before the date the term of office begins, the assessment
1262	1262	25 duties prescribed by IC 6-1.1 that would otherwise be performed in the
1263	1263	26 township by the township assessor are transferred to the county
1264	1264	27 assessor on that date. If assessment duties in a township are transferred
1265	1265	28 to the county assessor under this subsection, those assessment duties
1266	1266	29 are transferred back to the township assessor if at a later election an
1267	1267	30 individual who has attained the assessor-appraiser certification level
1268	1268	31 required by IC 36-6-5-1 is elected to the office of township assessor.
1269	1269	32 SECTION 27. IC 36-2-15-7, AS ADDED BY P.L.219-2007,
1270	1270	33 SECTION 109, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1271	1271	34 [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 7. (a) Each county assessor, elected
1272	1272	35 township assessor, or township trustee-assessor whose assessment
1273	1273	36 duties prescribed by IC 6-1.1 will be transferred under section 5 of this
1274	1274	37 chapter shall:
1275	1275	38 (1) organize the records of the assessor's office relating to the
1276	1276	39 assessment of tangible property in a manner prescribed by the
1277	1277	40 department of local government finance; and
1278	1278	41 (2) transfer the records as directed by the department of local
1279	1279	42 government finance.
1280	1280	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 30
1281	1281	1 (b) The department of local government finance shall determine a
1282	1282	2 procedure and schedule for the transfer of the records and operations.
1283	1283	3 The assessors shall assist each other and coordinate their efforts to:
1284	1284	4 (1) ensure an orderly transfer of all records; and
1285	1285	5 (2) provide for an uninterrupted and professional transition of the
1286	1286	6 property assessment functions consistent with this chapter and the
1287	1287	7 directions of the department of local government finance.
1288	1288	8 (c) This section expires July 1, 2025.
1289	1289	9 SECTION 28. IC 36-6-5-0.3 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
1290	1290	10 AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1291	1291	11 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 0.3. (a) This section applies to the office of
1292	1292	12 a township assessor in existence on May 10, 2025.
1293	1293	13 (b) On July 1, 2025, the office of township assessor is abolished.
1294	1294	14 (c) On July 1, 2025, all the powers and duties of the township
1295	1295	15 assessor are transferred to the county auditor of the county in
1296	1296	16 which the township is located.
1297	1297	17 (d) On July 1, 2025, all of the following are transferred to the
1298	1298	18 county auditor:
1299	1299	19 (1) All employment positions as of June 30, 2025, of all
1300	1300	20 employees of each township assessor in the county.
1301	1301	21 (2) The real and personal property of each township assessor
1302	1302	22 in the county.
1303	1303	23 (3) The obligations outstanding on June 30, 2025, of each
1304	1304	24 township assessor in the county.
1305	1305	25 (4) The funds of each township assessor in the county.
1306	1306	26 (e) Before July 1, 2025, the county auditor shall interview, or
1307	1307	27 give the opportunity to interview to, each individual who:
1308	1308	28 (1) is, as of May 15, 2025, an employee of a township assessor
1309	1309	29 in the county; and
1310	1310	30 (2) applies before June 1, 2025, for an employment position
1311	1311	31 referred to in subsection (d)(1).
1312	1312	32 SECTION 29. IC 36-6-5-0.5 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
1313	1313	33 AS A NEW SECTION TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
1314	1314	34 UPON PASSAGE]: Sec. 0.5. (a) Each township assessor whose
1315	1315	35 duties will be transferred under section 0.3 of this chapter shall:
1316	1316	36 (1) organize the records of the assessor's office relating to the
1317	1317	37 assessment of tangible property in a manner prescribed by the
1318	1318	38 department of local government finance; and
1319	1319	39 (2) transfer the records before July 1, 2025, as directed by the
1320	1320	40 department of local government finance.
1321	1321	41 (b) The department of local government finance shall determine
1322	1322	42 a procedure and schedule for the transfer of the records and
1323	1323	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 31
1324	1324	1 operations from the township assessor to the county auditor. The
1325	1325	2 assessors shall assist each other and coordinate their efforts to:
1326	1326	3 (1) ensure an orderly transfer of all records; and
1327	1327	4 (2) provide for an uninterrupted and professional transition
1328	1328	5 of any functions of assessors that are consistent with this
1329	1329	6 chapter, IC 6-1.1, and the directions of the department of
1330	1330	7 local government finance.
1331	1331	8 SECTION 30. IC 36-6-5-1 IS REPEALED [EFFECTIVE JULY 1,
1332	1332	9 2025]. Sec. 1. (a) Subject to subsection (g), before 2009, a township
1333	1333	10 assessor shall be elected under IC 3-10-2-13 by the voters of each
1334	1334	11 township:
1335	1335	12 (1) having:
1336	1336	13 (A) a population of more than eight thousand (8,000); or
1337	1337	14 (B) an elected township assessor or the authority to elect a
1338	1338	15 township assessor before January 1, 1979; and
1339	1339	16 (2) in which the number of parcels of real property on January 1,
1340	1340	17 2008, is at least fifteen thousand (15,000).
1341	1341	18 (b) Subject to subsection (g), before 2009, a township assessor shall
1342	1342	19 be elected under IC 3-10-2-14 (repealed effective July 1, 2008) in each
1343	1343	20 township:
1344	1344	21 (1) having a population of more than five thousand (5,000) but
1345	1345	22 not more than eight thousand (8,000), if:
1346	1346	23 (A) the legislative body of the township, by resolution,
1347	1347	24 declares that the office of township assessor is necessary; and
1348	1348	25 (B) the resolution is filed with the county election board not
1349	1349	26 later than the first date that a declaration of candidacy may be
1350	1350	27 filed under IC 3-8-2; and
1351	1351	28 (2) in which the number of parcels of real property on January 1,
1352	1352	29 2008, is at least fifteen thousand (15,000).
1353	1353	30 (c) Subject to subsection (g), a township government that is created
1354	1354	31 by merger under IC 36-6-1.5 shall elect only one (1) township assessor
1355	1355	32 under this section.
1356	1356	33 (d) Subject to subsection (g), after 2008 a township assessor shall
1357	1357	34 be elected under IC 3-10-2-13 only by the voters of each township in
1358	1358	35 which:
1359	1359	36 (1) the number of parcels of real property on January 1, 2008, is
1360	1360	37 at least fifteen thousand (15,000); and
1361	1361	38 (2) the transfer to the county assessor of the assessment duties
1362	1362	39 prescribed by IC 6-1.1 is disapproved in the referendum under
1363	1363	40 IC 36-2-15.
1364	1364	41 (e) The township assessor must reside within the township as
1365	1365	42 provided in Article 6, Section 6 of the Constitution of the State of
1366	1366	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 32
1367	1367	1 Indiana. The assessor forfeits office if the assessor ceases to be a
1368	1368	2 resident of the township.
1369	1369	3 (f) The term of office of a township assessor is four (4) years,
1370	1370	4 beginning January 1 after election and continuing until a successor is
1371	1371	5 elected and qualified. However, the term of office of a township
1372	1372	6 assessor elected at a general election in which no other township
1373	1373	7 officer is elected ends on December 31 after the next election in which
1374	1374	8 any other township officer is elected.
1375	1375	9 (g) To be eligible to serve as a township assessor, an individual
1376	1376	10 must meet the following qualifications before taking office:
1377	1377	11 (1) If the individual has never held the office of township
1378	1378	12 assessor, the individual must have attained a level two
1379	1379	13 assessor-appraiser certification under IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1380	1380	14 (2) If the individual has held the office of township assessor, the
1381	1381	15 individual must have attained a level three assessor-appraiser
1382	1382	16 certification under IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1383	1383	17 (h) After June 30, 2008, the county assessor shall perform the
1384	1384	18 assessment duties prescribed by IC 6-1.1 in a township in which the
1385	1385	19 number of parcels of real property on January 1, 2008, is less than
1386	1386	20 fifteen thousand (15,000).
1387	1387	21 SECTION 31. IC 36-6-5-3, AS AMENDED BY P.L.146-2008,
1388	1388	22 SECTION 711, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS
1389	1389	23 [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025]: Sec. 3. (a) Except as provided in
1390	1390	24 subsection (b) and section 0.3 of this chapter, the assessor shall
1391	1391	25 perform the duties prescribed by statute, including assessment duties
1392	1392	26 prescribed by IC 6-1.1.
1393	1393	27 (b) Subsection (a) does not apply if the duties of the township
1394	1394	28 assessor have been transferred to the county assessor as described in
1395	1395	29 IC 6-1.1-1-24 or IC 36-2-15.
1396	1396	30 SECTION 32. IC 36-6-5-4 IS REPEALED [EFFECTIVE JULY 1,
1397	1397	31 2025]. Sec. 4. (a) Before July 1, 2017, an employee of a township
1398	1398	32 assessor who performs real property assessing duties must have
1399	1399	33 attained the level of certification under IC 6-1.1-35.5 that the township
1400	1400	34 assessor is required to attain under section 1(g) of this chapter.
1401	1401	35 (b) After June 30, 2017, an employee of a township assessor who is
1402	1402	36 responsible for placing an assessed valuation on real property must
1403	1403	37 have attained the certification of a level three assessor-appraiser under
1404	1404	38 IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1405	1405	39 (c) This subsection applies after June 30, 2017. If the township
1406	1406	40 assessor has not attained the certification of a level three
1407	1407	41 assessor-appraiser under IC 6-1.1-35.5, the township fiscal body shall
1408	1408	42 authorize either of the following:
1409	1409	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120 33
1410	1410	1 (1) The appointment of at least one (1) deputy or employee who
1411	1411	2 has attained the certification of a level three assessor-appraiser
1412	1412	3 under IC 6-1.1-35.5.
1413	1413	4 (2) Contracting with a person who has attained, or who employs
1414	1414	5 for purposes of the contract an individual who has attained, the
1415	1415	6 certification of a level three assessor-appraiser under
1416	1416	7 IC 6-1.1-35.5. The individual under contract with the township
1417	1417	8 assessor under this subdivision shall assist the township assessor
1418	1418	9 with assessment duties as determined by the township assessor.
1419	1419	10 Payment for the deputy, employee, or contractor shall be made from the
1420	1420	11 budget for the township assessor.
1421	1421	12 SECTION 33. [EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025] (a) The legislative
1422	1422	13 services agency shall prepare legislation for introduction in the
1423	1423	14 2026 regular session of the general assembly to make appropriate
1424	1424	15 changes in statutes that are required by this act.
1425	1425	16 (b) This SECTION expires December 31, 2026.
1426	1426	17 SECTION 34. An emergency is declared for this act.
1427	1427	2025 IN 508—LS 7582/DI 120