12D-13.006. Procedure for the Correction of Errors by the Tax Collector; Correcting Erroneous or Incomplete Personal Property Assessments; Tax Certificate Corrections

(1) This rule applies to errors made by tax collectors in the collection of taxes on real and personal property. A tax collector may correct any error of omission or commission made by him or her, including those described in Rule 12D-8.021, F.A.C.

(2) The payment of taxes, interest, fees and costs will not be excused because of an error on the part of a property appraiser, tax collector, value adjustment board, board of county commissioners, clerk of the circuit court or newspaper in which an advertisement may be published. An error may be corrected at any time by the party responsible. The party who discovers the error must notify the party responsible for the error. Subject to the limitations in this rule section, the error must be corrected.

(3) The tax collector and the clerk must notify the property appraiser of the discovery of any errors on the prior year’s tax rolls when the property appraiser has not certified the current tax roll to the tax collector for collection.

(4) The tax collector shall correct errors on all tax rolls in his or her possession when the corrections are certified by the property appraiser, taxing districts or non-ad valorem districts, or approved by the value adjustment board.

(5) The tax collector must prepare and send an original tax notice as provided in Section 197.322, F.S., and send a duplicate tax notice, as provided in Section 197.344, F.S.

(6) When the correction of any error will increase the assessed valuation and subsequently the taxes, the property appraiser must notify the property owner of the owner’s right to petition the value adjustment board, except when a property owner consents to an increase, as provided in subsection (7) of this rule section and Rule subsection 12D-8.021(10), F.A.C., or when the property appraiser has served a notice of intent to record a lien when the property has improperly received homestead exemption. However, this must not restrict the tax collector, clerk of the court, or any other interested party from reporting errors to the value adjustment board.

(7) If the value adjustment board has adjourned, the property owner must be granted these options when the correction of an error will increase the assessed valuation and subsequently the taxes. The options are:

(a) The property owner may consent to the increase in assessed valuation and subsequently the taxes by waiver, stating that he or she does not want to petition the value adjustment board and that he or she wants to pay the taxes on the current tax roll. If the property owner makes this waiver, the tax collector must proceed under Rule 12D-13.002, F.A.C.; or

(b) If the property owner decides to petition the value adjustment board, the property appraiser must notify the property owner and tax collector that the correction must appear on the subsequent year’s tax roll. The property owner will have the right to file a petition contesting the corrected assessment.

(8) When the property owner waives the right to petition the value adjustment board, the tax collector must prepare a corrected notice immediately and send it to the property owner.

(9) Correction of Erroneous or Incomplete Tangible Personal Property Assessments.

(a) If the property appraiser does not correct an erroneous or incomplete personal property assessment, the tax collector must report the assessment as an error or insolvency on the final report to the Board of County Commissioners.

(b) When personal property being levied on cannot be identified, it is the responsibility of the property appraiser to provide necessary information to identify the property. This applies to all assessments.

(c) Tax returns on file in the property appraiser’s office may be used to identify property. The return may be used to identify property at risk of being removed from the county before payment of taxes.

(10) Double Assessments. When a tax collector discovers property that has been assessed more than once for the same year’s taxes, he or she must collect only the tax due. The tax collector must notify the property appraiser that a double assessment exists and furnish the information as shown on the tax roll to substantiate the double assessment. After receiving notification from the tax collector, the property appraiser must proceed under rule subsection 12D-8.021(11), F.A.C.

(11) Tax Certificate Corrections and Collections.

(a) When a correction in assessment, or any other error that can be corrected, is certified to the tax collector on property on which a tax certificate has been sold, the tax collector must submit a request to correct or cancel the tax certificate to the Department. If the Department approves the request to correct or cancel the tax certificate, according to Section 197.443, F.S., the tax collector must notify the certificate holder and any affected taxing jurisdictions.

(b) If the tax collector issues a tax certificate against a parcel of real property which is subject to the protection of a United States Bankruptcy Court, the Department must approve the cancellation of the certificate when requested by the tax collector.

(c) When a tax certificate has been canceled or corrected, the tax collector must correct the tax certificate records and notify the certificate holder it has been corrected or canceled.

(d) When the correction results in a reduction in the face amount of the tax certificate, the holder of the certificate is entitled to a refund of the amount of the reduction plus interest at the rate bid, not to exceed eight percent annually. Interest must be calculated monthly from the date the certificate was purchased to the date the refund is issued.

(e) This subsection applies to all tax certificates even if a tax deed application has been filed with the tax collector and advertised by the clerk.

(f) When a void tax certificate or tax deed must be cancelled as provided by law, the tax collector must complete and send Form DR-510, Cancellation or Correction of Tax Certificate, incorporated by reference in Rule 12D-16.002, F.A.C., to the Department and add a memorandum of error to the list of tax certificates sold.

(12) Corrections to a non-ad valorem assessment must be prepared by the local governing board that prepared and certified the roll for collection, consistent with Rule 12D-18.006, F.A.C.

Rulemaking Authority 195.027(1), 213.06(1) FS. Law Implemented 192.048, 197.122, 197.123, 197.131, 197.162, 197.182, 197.322, 197.323, 197.344, 197.432, 197.442, 197.443, 197.444, 197.492, 197.593 FS. History–New 6-18-85, Formerly 12D-13.06, Amended 5-23-91, 12-10-92, 12-25-96, 12-31-98, 4-5-16.