Jefferson County Appraisal District

After the Protest Filing Deadline

Once the deadline for filing a protest has passed, the appraisal roll may be changed only under limited circumstances. Both the Chief Appraiser and the ARB have the authority to make changes to the appraisal roll as outlined below:

Corrections Under the Authority of the Appraisal Review Board

When the Appraisal Review Board (ARB) approves the appraisal records, which is generally around July 20, the ARB loses most of its authority to make any revisions to the appraisal roll. The ARB does, however, have limited authority to make changes after the protest filing deadline as outlined below:

Motion for Hearing to Correct Substantial Error

Under Section 25.25d of the Property Tax Code, a taxpayer may file a motion to correct an appraisal error for the current tax year providing the appraised value exceeds the correct value by more than one-third. An easier way to state this is the error must be at least 25 percent of the market value of the property as determined by the Appraisal District.

This motion must be filed before the taxes on the property become delinquent, which is generally before February 1. Further, the taxpayer could not have filed a protest on the property prior to the normal protest deadline, and taxes cannot become delinquent. Upon filing this motion, the taxpayer has the option of paying the full amount of taxes due or the amount of taxes that would be due based on the taxpayer’s opinion of the value. If the full amount of taxes is not paid, and the ARB does not reduce the value of the property, then the unpaid taxes are treated as delinquent taxes.

The ARB will hold a hearing on the substantial error motion in the same manner as a regular protest hearing. Substantial error hearings are generally held in March after the taxes for the year are due. The only limitation is that if the ARB cannot find at least a 25 percent error in the appraised value, then no change can be made.

If the ARB does make a change under this type of motion, the taxpayer must pay a late-correction penalty equal to 10 percent of the amount of taxes as calculated on the basis of the corrected appraised value. The penalty applies only if a change in the value is made by the ARB.

Within 15 days after a substantial error motion if filed, the Appraisal District will review the property valuation. If the Appraisal District finds an error and the taxpayer agrees to the District’s recommended value, then a Joint Motion can be filed as outlined under "Corrections Under the Authority of the Chief Appraiser" below and no further action is required by the taxpayer. However, if the Appraisal District does not agree that an error has been made or the taxpayer does not agree to the Appraisal District’s recommended value, then the ARB will schedule a hearing with the ARB on the substantial error motion.

A Motion for Hearing to Correct Substantial Error form can be found under the "Request Forms - Protest of Valuation" section. Please call the Appraisal District office for more information on the substantial error motion.

Section 25.25c Motion to Correct Error in Appraisal Records

Under Section 25.25c of the Property Tax Code, upon the motion of a taxpayer or the Chief Appraiser, the ARB may correct the appraisal records for the current and four preceding tax years for the following reasons:

1. Clerical errors that affect tax liability: A clerical error is defined as an error caused by a mistake in writing, copying, transcribing, computer data entry or retrieval, or a mathematical error that prevents the appraisal or tax roll from correctly showing the correct value. A clerical error is not a mistake in reasoning or judgment in making a finding or determination.

For example, if an appraiser appraises a house at $50,000 but the value is entered into the computer at $5,000, the error is clerical. However, if in the appraiser’s judgment the appraised value of the house is $50,000, but the market indicates a value of $40,000, the error is not clerical.

2. Multiple appraisals: A multiple appraisal occurs when a property is listed in the appraisal records more than once for the same year resulting in a duplication of value.

3. Non-existent property: Non-existent property is property that does not exist either in the form or at the location described on the appraisal roll. The Dallas Court of Appeals has ruled that the term "form" refers to the property’s physical description not to the property’s use.

The ARB will schedule a hearing on the 25.25c motion unless the Appraisal District agrees that an error exists. In that case, the Chief Appraiser will approve the change without any further action by the taxpayer.

A Section 25.25c Motion to Correct Error in Appraisal Records form can be found under the "Request Forms - Protest of Valuation" section. Please call the Appraisal District office for more information on this motion.

Failure to Receive Required Notice - Section 41.411 Protest

Sometimes taxpayers do not file a protest during the proper time period because they did not receive notification from the Appraisal District as required by law. Examples of such notifications are: a notice of appraised value during a reappraisal year or during any other year if the value is increased, notice of the date and time scheduled for a protest hearing, and notice of the denial of an exemption or agricultural-use special appraisal.

A taxpayer may file a protest under Section 41.411 of the Property Tax Code at any time after the normal protest filing deadline but before the taxes for the year become delinquent, which is generally February 1.

The ARB will schedule a hearing on the protest to determine whether or not the required notice was delivered. If the ARB determines that the notice was not delivered by the Appraisal District as required, then the ARB will hear any evidence concerning the property value or other matter at issue. However, if the ARB determines that the Appraisal District delivered the required notice, then the ARB cannot address the property value or other matter at issue.

In the context of the law, "delivery" means that the Appraisal District mailed the notice, correctly addressed to the taxpayer at the last address furnished by the taxpayer. Delivery is presumed unless the taxpayer provides some evidence that the notice was not received. In that case, the burden shifts to the Appraisal District to show that the notice was properly mailed to the last correct address in its possession.

The courts have looked at the following evidence on delivery of notice: (1) sufficient postage, (2) the notice was mailed, (3) the notice was sent by first class mail, and (4) the notice was sent to the most current address and not returned.

A Section 41.411 protest can be filed using the Notice of Protest form found under the "Request Forms - Protest of Valuation" section.

Corrections Under the Authority of the Chief Appraiser

The Chief Appraiser may correct the appraisal roll only in those cases where the amount of tax liability on a property is not increased as outlined below:

Section 25.25b Motion to Correct Error in Appraisal Records

Under Section 25.25b of the Property Tax Code, the Chief Appraiser may change the appraisal roll at any time to correct a name or address, a description of property, or a clerical error or any other inaccuracy that does not increase the amount of tax liability. For errors that decrease the tax liability, the Chief Appraiser may make corrections for the current and four previous tax years only. Types of errors that decrease a taxpayer’s tax liability include:

1. Late-filed homestead exemptions that are permitted by law;

2. Corrections to the market, appraised, or taxable value of property that result in an error of 20 percent or more of the market value listed on the appraisal roll. Reductions in the market, appraised, or taxable value cannot exceed $1,000,000.

A taxpayer may request that the Chief Appraiser correct an error under this section by filing a Section 25.25b Motion to Correct Error in Appraisal Records form that can be found under the "Request Forms - Protest of Valuation" section. In order for any correction to be made, the Chief Appraiser must agree that an error exists as defined under this section. If the Chief Appraiser does not agree that an error exists, that decision is not appealable to the ARB.

Joint Motion to Correct Error in Appraisal Records

Under Section 25.25h of the Property Tax Code, if the Appraisal District and taxpayer agree that an error was made on a property, the Chief Appraiser may correct the error for the current tax year. The error must be 20 percent or more of the market value on the appraisal roll. A motion made under this section must be filed before the taxes for the year become delinquent, which is generally February 1.

This motion is very similar to the substantial error motion with the following exceptions:

1. A substantial error motion is filed by the taxpayer only and must be determined by the ARB. A joint motion must be agreed to by the Chief Appraiser and does not require ARB approval.

2. A substantial error motion requires that the error be at least 25 percent of the market value of the property as determined by the Appraisal District while a joint motion only requires a 20 percent error.

3. A taxpayer must pay the taxes on the property for the year under the substantial error motion while there are no tax payment restrictions under the joint motion.

4. There is a late-correction penalty equal to 10% of the taxes if the value is reduced under a substantial error motion while there is no penalty under the joint motion.

A Joint Motion to Correct Appraisal Records form can be found under the "Request Forms - Protest of Valuation" section.