Timber company files lawsuits against board of tax assessors
Source: The Lincoln Journal
September 06, 2007
Forty lawsuits or notices of appeal were recently filed against the Lincoln County Board of Tax Assessors by Plum Creek Timberlands, L.P.
Plum Creek bought out Georgia Pacific and is considered the largest or second-largest landowner in the United States.
Due to the complex and specialized nature of the appeals, the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted to give the tax assessors the fiscal authority to hire William J. Keough III, an attorney with the Hull Firm of Augusta, to handle the case, with assistance from Britt Hammond, county attorney, and Kenny Adair, chief tax appraiser for the county.
Keough's fee is not to exceed $155 an hour.
Moreover, Hammond will review and approve any bills from the Augusta attorney as well as issue a monthly financial statement to the commissioners.
"We're already talking about ways to keep costs down," said Hammond. "We're not concerned that this will become a big money pit - we plan to keep it reasonable. We can always stop if there is disagreement at any point."
He said he believes the firm's rates are fair, considering the level of expertise involved.
The action to give the board of tax assessors the fiscal authority to hire Keough was taken at a called meeting of the county commissioners held Thursday, August 30, in the conference room at the courthouse.
A copy of one of the appeals filed by Plum Creek charges that the board of tax assessors "failed to apply and execute Georgia law, resulting in the erroneous valuation of the plaintiff's property for ad valorem tax purposes. The values placed upon the property do not represent the true and accurate fair market value of said property. The grounds for this appeal include uniformity, valuation, equalization, taxability, and exemption."
According to Kenny Adair, chief tax appraiser, Plum Creek is leasing 8,000 acres of land, divided into 40 parcels, from local families for the purpose of managing the timber on the land.
"The land was valued at an average of $1,151 per acre, which would generate a total of approximately $92,000 in taxes - Plum Creek thinks the property should have been valued at $482 an acre," stated the chief appraiser.
"Basically, they're suing over technical issues involved in the appraisal process," he continued. "Under the terms of the lease, the land can be sold. However, Plum Creek is contending that the long-term lease diminishes the attractiveness of the property to potential buyers, and as a result, should receive a much lower valuation."
Adair said the timber company has asked him to look at the value of properties that have been sold while under lease, but there are not any in the state.
In other discussion, Hammond reported that he and Adair had met with representatives of the Brunswickbased law firm of Gilbert, Harrell, Sumerford, & Martin, which is representing Plum Creek in this matter. "We tried desperately to resolve the case, but we were too far apart. There was no room for resolution."
Adair said, "Plum Creek wants to pay less than the conservation rate of $550 per acre. If I had cut it from $1,151 per acre to $600, the company wouldn't have accepted it."
He went on to add, "The timber industry has been lobbying for years because it doesn't get tax breaks or conservation use in Georgia. In fact, timber companies pay three to four times more tax per acre in Georgia than they do in other states. They get no exemptions here. As a smaller county, we have fewer resources to fight this type of thing."
If Plum Creek wins the appeal and its taxes are lowered to $482 per acre, the county will lose from $55,000 to $60,000 in revenues each year.
Likewise, if the court decreases the value of the acreage by more than 15 percent, the county will have to pay all court costs.
"I believe Plum Creek wants this to go to the Georgia Appellate Court - if the ruling goes in the company's favor, it could potentially change state law," said the chief tax appraiser. "There's no doubt that the eyes of the timber industry as well as those of the department of revenue are on this case."
"It looks as if Plum Creek is going for the jugular in Lincoln County," stated Commissioner Larry Collins. "If we fall, all of the other counties in the state will fall like dominoes."
Considering the fact that the case can potentially affect state law, the commission discussed the possibility of asking the ACCG (Association County Commissioners of Georgia), the state, and other counties for their support.
"We're going to pursue this," said Hammond. "We hope these entities will assist us in any way possible. We won't get any financial assistance from the state, but we may get help in terms of experts and friendly briefs. Still, I don't look for anyone's support until the case gets a little further down the road."
The appeals will be filed in Lincoln County Superior Court this week.
In other business, the commission voted to raise the fee for curbside garbage pickup from $158.28 to $162.36 a year, which represents a 2.8-percent increase.
The county's initial agreement with Advanced Disposal stated, "After 15 months, the cost may increase a maximum of three percent a year based on the CPI (Consumer Price Index)."
The 15-month contract expired July 1, 2007.
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