Appeal to department of local government finance; procedure;
expenses
Sec. 12. (a) Any civil taxing unit that determines that it cannot
carry out its governmental functions for an ensuing calendar year
under the levy limitations imposed by section 3 of this chapter may:
(1) before September 20; or
(2) in the case of a request described in section 16 of this
chapter, before December 31;
of the calendar year immediately preceding the ensuing calendar year
appeal to the department of local government finance for relief from
those levy limitations. In the appeal the civil taxing unit must state
that it will be unable to carry out the governmental functions
committed to it by law unless it is given the authority that it is
petitioning for. The civil taxing unit must support these allegations
by reasonably detailed statements of fact.
(b) The department of local government finance shall promptly
deliver to the local government tax control board every appeal
petition it receives under subsection (a) and any materials it receives
relevant to those appeals. Upon receipt of an appeal petition, the
local government tax control board shall immediately proceed to the
examination and consideration of the merits of the civil taxing unit's
appeal.
(c) In considering an appeal, the local government tax control
board has the power to conduct hearings, require any officer or
member of the appealing civil taxing unit to appear before it, or
require any officer or member of the appealing civil taxing unit to
provide the board with any relevant records or books.
(d) If an officer or member:
(1) fails to appear at a hearing of the local government tax
control board after having been given written notice from the
local government tax control board requiring his attendance; or
(2) fails to produce for the local government tax control board's
use the books and records that the local government tax control
board by written notice required the officer or member to
produce;
then the local government tax control board may file an affidavit in
the circuit court in the jurisdiction in which the officer or member
may be found setting forth the facts of the failure.
(e) Upon the filing of an affidavit under subsection (d), the circuit
court shall promptly issue a summons, and the sheriff of the county
within which the circuit court is sitting shall serve the summons. The
summons must command the officer or member to appear before the
local government tax control board, to provide information to the
local government tax control board, or to produce books and records
for the local government tax control board's use, as the case may be.
Disobedience of the summons constitutes, and is punishable as, a
contempt of the circuit court that issued the summons.
(f) All expenses incident to the filing of an affidavit under
subsection (d) and the issuance and service of a summons shall be
charged to the officer or member against whom the summons is
issued, unless the circuit court finds that the officer or member was
acting in good faith and with reasonable cause. If the circuit court
finds that the officer or member was acting in good faith and with
reasonable cause or if an affidavit is filed and no summons is issued,
the expenses shall be charged against the county in which the
affidavit was filed and shall be allowed by the proper fiscal officers
of that county.
As added by P.L.73-1983, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.90-2002,
SEC.167; P.L.178-2002, SEC.27; P.L.23-2004, SEC.23.
Last modified: May 28, 2006