Z‑0382.1 _____________________________________________
SENATE BILL 5398
_____________________________________________
State of Washington 57th Legislature 2001 Regular Session
By Senators Brown, Franklin, Fairley, McAuliffe, Kohl‑Welles, Costa, Oke, Kline, Eide, Carlson, West, Johnson, Honeyford, Rossi, Haugen, Gardner and Rasmussen; by request of Governor Locke
Read first time 01/22/2001. Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.
_1 AN ACT Relating to a property tax exemption from the state levy
_2 for real property occupied by senior citizens and persons retired
_3 by reason of disability; and amending RCW 84.36.381 and 84.36.387.
_4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
_5 Sec. 1. RCW 84.36.381 and 1998 c 333 s 1 are each amended to read
_6 as follows:
_7 A person shall be exempt from any legal obligation to pay all
_8 or a portion of the amount of excess and regular real property
_9 taxes due and payable in the year following the year in which a
10 claim is filed, and thereafter, in accordance with the following:
11 (1) The property taxes must have been imposed upon a residence
12 which was occupied by the person claiming the exemption as a
13 principal place of residence as of the time of filing((:
PROVIDED,
14 That)). Any person who sells, transfers,
or is displaced from his
15 or her residence may transfer his or her exemption status to a
16 replacement residence, but no claimant shall receive an exemption
17 on more than one residence in any year((: PROVIDED
FURTHER,
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_1 That)). Confinement of the person to a
hospital or nursing home
_2 shall not disqualify the claim of exemption if:
_3 (a) The residence is temporarily unoccupied;
_4 (b) The residence is occupied by a spouse and/or a person
_5 financially dependent on the claimant for support; or
_6 (c) The residence is rented for the purpose of paying nursing
_7 home or hospital costs;
_8 (2) The person claiming the exemption must have owned, at the
_9 time of filing, in fee, as a life estate, or by contract purchase,
10 the residence on which the property taxes have been imposed or if
11 the person claiming the exemption lives in a cooperative housing
12 association, corporation, or partnership, ((such))
the person must
13 own a share therein representing the unit or portion of the
14 structure in which ((he or she)) the person
resides. For purposes
15 of this subsection, a residence owned by a marital community or
16 owned by cotenants shall be deemed to be owned by each spouse or
17 cotenant, and any lease for life shall be deemed a life estate;
18 (3) The person claiming the exemption must be sixty-one years
19 of age or older on December 31st of the year in which the
20 exemption claim is filed, or must have been, at the time of
21 filing, retired from regular gainful employment by reason of
22 physical disability((: PROVIDED, That any)).
A surviving spouse of
23 ((a)) the person who was receiving an
exemption at the time of the
24 person's death shall qualify if the surviving spouse is fifty-
25 seven years of age or older and otherwise meets the requirements
26 of this section;
27 (4) The amount that the person shall be exempt from an
28 obligation to pay shall be calculated on the basis of combined
29 disposable income, as defined in RCW 84.36.383. If the person
30 claiming the exemption was retired for two months or more of the
31 assessment year, the combined disposable income of ((such))
the
32 person shall be calculated by multiplying the average monthly
33 combined disposable income of ((such)) the
person during the
34 months ((such)) the person was retired by
twelve. If the income of
35 the person claiming exemption is reduced for two or more months of
36 the assessment year by reason of the death of the person's spouse,
37 or when other substantial changes occur in disposable income that
38 are likely to continue for an indefinite period of time, the
SB 5398 p. 2
_1 combined disposable income of ((such)) the
person shall be
_2 calculated by multiplying the average monthly combined disposable
_3 income of ((such)) the person after such
occurrences by twelve. If
_4 it is necessary to estimate income to comply with this subsection,
_5 the assessor may require confirming documentation of ((such))
the
_6 income prior to May 31st of the year following application;
_7 (5)(a) A person who otherwise qualifies under this section and
_8 has a combined disposable income of thirty thousand dollars or
_9 less shall be exempt from all excess property taxes; and
10 (b)(i) A person who otherwise qualifies under this section and
11 has a combined disposable income of twenty-four thousand dollars
12 or less but greater than eighteen thousand dollars shall be exempt
13 from all regular property taxes on the greater of forty thousand
14 dollars or thirty-five percent of the valuation of ((his
or her))
15 the residence, but not to exceed sixty thousand dollars of the
16 valuation of ((his or her)) the residence;
or
17 (ii) A person who otherwise qualifies under this section and
18 has a combined disposable income of eighteen thousand dollars or
19 less shall be exempt from all regular property taxes on the
20 greater of fifty thousand dollars or sixty percent of the
21 valuation of ((his or her)) the residence;
and
22 (6) For a person who otherwise qualifies under this section and
23 has a combined disposable income of thirty thousand dollars or
24 less, the valuation of the residence shall be the assessed value
25 of the residence on the later of January 1, 1995, or January 1st
26 of the assessment year the person first qualifies under this
27 section. If the person subsequently fails to qualify under this
28 section only for one year because of high income, this same
29 valuation shall be used upon requalification. If the person fails
30 to qualify for more than one year in succession because of high
31 income or fails to qualify for any other reason, the valuation
32 upon requalification shall be the assessed value on January 1st of
33 the assessment year in which the person requalifies. If the person
34 transfers the exemption under this section to a different
35 residence, the valuation of the different residence shall be the
36 assessed value of the different residence on January 1st of the
37 assessment year in which the person transfers the exemption.
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_1 In no event may the valuation under this subsection be greater
_2 than the true and fair value of the residence on January 1st of
_3 the assessment year.
_4 This subsection does not apply to subsequent improvements to
_5 the property in the year in which the improvements are made.
_6 Subsequent improvements to the property shall be added to the
_7 value otherwise determined under this subsection at their true and
_8 fair value in the year in which they are made.
_9 All taxpayers who qualify for exemption under this section
10 shall also be allowed a property tax exemption from the state levy
11 equal to the tax imposed on the assessed value of the owner-
12 occupied residential property for the state levy.
13 Sec. 2. RCW 84.36.387 and 1992 c 206 s 14 are each amended to read
14 as follows:
15 (1) All claims for exemption under RCW 84.36.381 shall be made
16 and signed by the person entitled to the exemption, by
((his or
17 her)) the person's attorney in fact or in
the event the residence
18 of ((such)) the person is under mortgage
or purchase contract
19 requiring accumulation of reserves out of which the holder of the
20 mortgage or contract is required to pay real estate taxes, by
21 ((such)) the holder or by the owner,
either before two witnesses
22 or the ((county)) assessor or ((his)) the
assessor's deputy in the
23 county where the real property is located((:
PROVIDED, That)). If
24 a claim for exemption is made by a person living in a cooperative
25 housing association, corporation, or partnership, ((such))
the
26 claim shall be made and signed by the person entitled to the
27 exemption and by the authorized agent of ((such))
the cooperative.
28 (2) If the taxpayer is unable to personally
submit ((his own)) a
29 claim, the claim shall be submitted by a duly authorized agent or
30 by a guardian or other person charged with the care of the person
31 or property of ((such)) the taxpayer.
32 (3) All claims for exemption and renewal applications shall be
33 accompanied by ((such)) the documented
verification of income as
34 shall be prescribed by rule adopted by the department of revenue.
35 (4) Any person signing a false claim with the intent to defraud
36 or evade the payment of any tax shall be guilty of the offense of
37 perjury.
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_1 (5) The tax liability of a cooperative housing association,
_2 corporation, or partnership shall be reduced by the amount of tax
_3 exemption to which a claimant residing therein is entitled and
_4 ((such)) the cooperative shall reduce any
amount owed by the
_5 claimant to the cooperative by ((such)) the
exact amount of tax
_6 exemption or, if no amount be owed, the cooperative shall make
_7 payment to the claimant of ((such)) the
exact amount of exemption.
_8 (6) A remainderman or other person who would have otherwise
_9 paid the tax on real property that is the subject of an exemption
10 granted under RCW 84.36.381 for an estate for life shall reduce
11 the amount which would have been payable by the life tenant to the
12 remainderman or other person to the extent of the exemption. If no
13 amount is owed or separately stated as an obligation between these
14 persons, the remainderman or other person shall make payment to
15 the life tenant in the exact amount of the exemption.
‑‑‑ END ‑‑‑
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