§232-7 Boards of review; duties, powers, procedure before. (a) The board of review for each district shall hear informally all disputes between the assessor and any taxpayer in all cases in which appeals have been duly taken and the fact that a notice of appeal has been duly filed by a taxpayer shall be conclusive evidence of the existence of a dispute; provided that this provision shall not be construed to permit a taxpayer to dispute an assessment to the extent that it is in accordance with the taxpayer's return.
(b) Each board shall hold public meetings at some central location in its taxation district at least once annually and shall hear, as speedily as possible, all appeals presented for each year. A taxpayer's identity and final documents submitted in support or opposition of an appeal shall be public information; provided that an individual taxpayer is authorized to redact all but the last four digits of the taxpayer's social security number from any accompanying tax return. Each board shall have the power and authority to decide all questions of fact and all questions of law, excepting questions involving the Constitution or laws of the United States, necessary to the determination of the objections raised by the taxpayer in the notice of appeal; provided that no board shall have power to determine or declare an assessment illegal or void. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, each board shall have power to allow or disallow exemptions pursuant to law whether or not previously allowed or disallowed by the assessor and to increase or lower any assessment.
(c) The board shall base its decision on the evidence before it, and, as provided in section 231-20, the assessment made by the assessor shall be deemed prima facie correct. The board shall file with the assessor concerned its decision in writing on each appeal decided by it, and a certified copy of the decision shall be furnished by the assessor to the taxpayer concerned by delivery or by mailing the copy addressed to the taxpayer's last known place of residence.
(d) Each board and each member thereof in addition to all other powers shall also have the power to subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, examine books and records, and hear and take evidence in relation to any subject pending before the board. The tax appeal court shall have the power, upon request of the boards, to enforce by proper proceedings the attendance of witnesses and the giving of testimony by them, and the production of books, records, and papers at the hearings of the boards.
(e) If there exists more than one board of review in a taxation district, the chair of one board, administratively and without requirement of any formal action, may assign a member of that board to serve as a temporary member of the requesting board for purposes of establishing a quorum at a designated meeting of the requesting board. The temporary member shall serve only for the specific board meeting for which the assignment is made and only for the period necessary to establish and maintain a quorum. A temporary member may participate in discussion and vote on all matters before the board. Nothing herein shall prevent a member from being assigned multiple times under this subsection. [L 1932 2d, c 40, §40; RL 1935, §1939; am L 1939, c 208, §6; RL 1945, §5203; am L 1951, c 133, §7; RL 1955, §116-4; am L Sp 1957, c 1, §13(c); am L Sp 1959 1st, c 28, §1; am L 1963, c 92, §§3 to 6; am L 1967, c 37, §1, c 231, §1, and c 255, §§18, 41, 46; HRS §232-7; am L 1969, c 170, §27; am L 1975, c 157, §32; gen ch 1985; am L 1989, c 14, §6; am L 2009, c 166, §18; am L 2013, c 59, §2]
Case Notes
These are statutory administrative tribunals of special and limited jurisdiction. 34 H. 515.
Board has no authority to increase the assessment at the instance of the State upon an appeal filed by the taxpayer. 56 H. 229, 533 P.2d 1218.
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