Request By:
Mark E. Vogt
Kenton County Property Valuation Administrator
Room 210 County Building
303 Court Street
Coving, Kentucky 410011-1679
Opinion
Opinion By: Chris Gorman, Attorney General; Ross T. Carter, Assistant Attorney General
You have asked the following questions relative to KRS 132.285(1), which allows a property valuation administrator to bill a city for its use of assessment information generated by the PVA:
1) Once a city who uses the county assessment is billed by invoice from the PVA, how long may the city take before making payment to the PVA . . . 30 days, 60 days, etc.?
2) The PVA performs many time consuming tasks, including the revaluation and district coding of city automobiles. When a city adopts use of the automobile assessments pursuant to KRS 132.487, can the PVA bill the city pursuant to KRS 132.285(1) & (3)?
KRS 65.140 states:
(1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires, "purchaser" means any city, county, or urban-county government which receives goods or services from a vendor.
(2) Unless the purchaser and vendor otherwise contract, all bills for goods or services shall be paid within thirty (30) working days of receipt of a vendor's invoice except when payment is delayed because the purchaser has made a written disapproval of improper performances or improper invoicing by the vendor or by the vendor's subcontractor.
(3) An interest penalty of one percent (1%) of any amount approved and unpaid shall be added to the amount approved for each month or fraction thereof after the thirty (30) working days which followed receipt of vendor's invoice by the purchaser.
Although the statute does not define "vendor, " we see no reason why the PVA should not be considered a vendor for the purpose of billing the city for the city's tax assessments, since the PVA is providing a service for which the city is obligated to make payment. Therefore we conclude that the city must make payment within thirty working days of receipt of the invoice from the PVA.
Regarding your second question, we stated in OAG 88-75 (attached) that a city does not have to pay for motor vehicle assessments furnished under KRS 132.487.
You have also asked the following question regarding KRS 132.590:
Is the term "assessment" meant to be the Fair Cash Value assessment that the PVA has to arrive at before establishing the taxable assessment, or is the sum to be paid based on the taxable assessment?
KRS 132.590 provides that the PVA's compensation is based on the county's "assessment." "Assessment" and "valuation" are different concepts, although they are frequently confused. Valuation refers to the process of determining the value in money of specified property. Assessment refers to the determination of tax liability.
Russman v. Luckett, Ky., 391 S.W.2d 694 (1965). In Kentucky, the state constitution (section 172) requires that property be assessed at its fair cash value ; that is, Kentucky normally assessed at 100% of value . Other states may assess at a different rate, such as 50% of value.
In a few instances, property in Kentucky is not assessed at 100% of value. Exempt property of charitable institutions, for example, is not assessed at all, even though the PVA may place a valuation on it. Thus the total assessment for a county may differ from the total valuation for that county.
KRS 132.590 bases the PVA's compensation on the county's assessment, not on the county's valuation. We conclude therefore that the statute requires that the compensation be based on the taxable assessment rather than on the fair cash value of the property in the county.