RETURNS

 

§246-40  Returns, made when; form; open topublic.  Whenever the department of taxation finds that the filing ofreturns under this paragraph is advisable for the making of assessments and soorders, the assessor shall give, to the taxpayers of the assessor's districtduring the month of December of the year the order is made, public notice atleast three times on different days during the month, in the district requiringthe taxpayers to file with the assessor, on or before January 15 of the succeedingyear, returns in the manner and form required by this section.  After thenotice, every person owning, or having possession, custody, or control of, realproperty in the district, whether entitled to exemption or not, during themonth of January, shall file upon forms prescribed by the department and in themanner required by the forms, a return signed as provided in section 231-15setting forth the description and location of all real property in the districtbelonging to the person or of which the person had possession, custody, orcontrol on January 1, and setting forth the taxpayer's opinion of the fairmarket value thereof as of January 1.  It shall be sufficient to describe theperson's property by setting forth the location and a brief description insufficient detail to identify the property.

Whenever the department shall determine thatthere are not sufficient evidences of value to form the basis of a soundappraisal, for assessment purposes, of the value of the real property or realproperties, or portions thereof, of any taxpayer upon notice of not less thanthirty days, it may require the taxpayer to file a return as described in theforegoing paragraph.

All returns made under this section shall beopen to inspection by the public, and shall be admissible in evidence againstthe person making the return, in any state court in any action wherein thevalue of the real property, or portion thereof, covered by the return, may bein dispute.

Returns made under this section shall be takeninto consideration by the tax assessor in making appraisals for assessmentpurposes; the opinion of any taxpayer as to fair market value shall not bebinding upon the assessor, but no taxpayer shall be deemed to be aggrieved byany assessment made upon the taxpayer's property which is based upon theopinion of value set forth in the taxpayer's return unless the taxpayer showslack of uniformity or inequality as set forth in section 232-3.  The opinion ofvalue shall constitute a rebuttable presumption that the fair market value ofthe real property on the date of the return was not greater than the valuestated in the return in any subsequent proceeding brought to condemn theproperty or any part thereof for public purposes.

Failure to file a return required under thissection shall render the taxpayer liable for payment of an added tax as definedin and prescribed by section 231-39(b)(1). [L 1932 2d, c 40, §28; RL 1935,§1928; am L 1939, c 208, §2; am L 1943, c 4, §§1 to 5; RL 1945, §5155; RL 1955,§128-23; am L Sp 1957, c 1, §14(f); am L Sp 1959 1st, c 28, §13; am L Sp 19592d, c 1, §16; am L 1963, c 143, §2; am L 1967, c 37, §1; HRS §246-40; am L1969, c 170, §18; am L 1975, c 157, §18; gen ch 1985; am L 1998, c 2, §68]

 

Case Notes

 

  Cited:  33 H. 214,215; 34 H. 515, 530.