County of Keith v. State Board of Equalization & Assessment
County of Keith v. State Board of Equalization & Assessment
Opinion of the Court
Keith County and rural property owners of Keith County appeal from the order of the State Board of Equalization and Assessment increasing the assessed value of rural lands 71 percent and of urban property 7 percent. The increase on rural property is the only issue argued and considered here.
We consider this case in context with the other cases decided today. In 1965 the board ordered a 43 percent increase on rural property in Keith County based on an invalid sales-assessment ratio of 18.97, whereas it should have been 24.239. We reversed, because the deviation produced from the mean for rural ratios over the state was too great. County of Keith v. State Board of Equalization & Assessment, 180 Neb. 494, 143 N. W. 2d 902. In 1966, in this case, based on a sales-assessment ratio (exhibits 2 and 5) the State Board ordered a rural increase of 71 percent. No action of the State Board on the previous order of reversal appears. Exhibits 2 and 5 show 16 sales and one (No. 50) was excluded by the State Board. The State Board allowed a tolerance of 10 percent on the sales and reduced the total sales by that percentage. The ratio resulting between the sales on exhibits 2 and 5 and the assessed valuations listed
But the State Board’s order in this case must be reversed on more basic grounds. The primary duty of the State Board is to equalize. It is not restricted to one single method of determining actual value. Sixteen counties were equalized on the basis of appraisals, 38 on sales-assessment ratios, and the balance on perimeter studies. But the board found perimeter studies to be unreliable, old appraisal figures were used without adjustments for increases or fluctuation of values occurring since completion of the appraisals, and there was a wide divergence in adjusted sales-assessment
The order directing a 71 percent increase on rural property in Keith County is reversed.
Reversed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- In re Valuation and Equalization of Real Property in the State of Nebraska for 1966. County of Keith v. State Board of Equalization and Assessment of the State of Nebraska
- Status
- Published