2019 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 7 - Taxation
Article 38 - Administration and Enforcement of Property Taxes
Section 7-38-8 - Reporting of property for valuation; penalties for failure to report.
A. All property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes by the department shall be reported annually to the department. The report required by this subsection shall be made by the owner of the property or such other person as may be authorized by rules of the department. The report shall be in a form and contain the information required by rules of the department. It shall be made not later than the last day of February in the tax year in which the property is subject to valuation. Claims of economic obsolescence or functional obsolescence on properties not regulated by the federal government shall be made at the time the annual report is filed; however, the department shall accept supplements to the annual report containing claims of economic obsolescence or functional obsolescence on properties regulated by the federal energy regulatory commission or its successor agency at the time the annual commission report becomes available, but no later than April 15 of the tax year or at a later time allowed by an extension granted by the department. In the case of the failure or refusal to file the report required under this subsection, the department shall determine the value of the property subject to valuation from the best information available.
B. Except as provided in Subsection D of this section, all property subject to valuation for property taxation purposes by the county assessor shall be reported as follows:
(1) property valued in the 1974 tax year by the county assessor need not be reported for any subsequent tax year unless required to be reported under Paragraph (3) of this subsection;
(2) property not valued in the 1974 tax year by the county assessor but that becomes subject to valuation by the county assessor in any subsequent tax year shall be reported to the county assessor not later than the last day of February of the tax year in which it becomes subject to valuation, but such property need not be reported for any year subsequent to the year in which initially reported unless required to be reported under Paragraph (3) of this subsection;
(3) property once valued by a county assessor in a tax year, but which is not valued for a year subsequent to the year of initial valuation because it is not subject to valuation for that subsequent year by the county assessor, shall be reported to the county assessor not later than the last day of February in a tax year in which it again becomes subject to valuation by the county assessor; and
(4) reports required under Paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection shall be in a form and contain the information required by rules of the department.
C. Not later than the last day of February of each tax year, every owner of real property who made, or caused to be made, in the preceding calendar year improvements costing more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) to that real property shall report to the county assessor the property improved, the improvements made, the cost of the improvements and such other information as the department may require.
D. Manufactured homes, livestock and land used for agricultural purposes shall be reported for valuation for property taxation purposes to the county assessor at the times and in the manner prescribed under Sections 7-36-26, 7-36-21 and 7-36-20 NMSA 1978 and rules promulgated by the department.
E. Property subject to valuation by the county assessor for property taxation purposes and improvements to such property that are required to be reported under Subsection C of this section shall be reported to the county assessor of the county in which the property is required to be valued under Section 7-36-14 NMSA 1978. Reports shall be made either by the owner of the property, the owner's authorized agent or any person having control or management of the property and shall be in a form and contain the information required by rules of the department.
F. Reports required by this section shall be made by the declarant under oath, and the secretary, employees of the department, the assessor and the assessor's employees are empowered to administer oaths for this purpose.
G. A person who intentionally refuses to make a report required under the provisions of Subsection A, B or C of this section or who knowingly makes a false statement in a report required under the provisions of Subsection A, B or C of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by the imposition of a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000).
H. A person who fails to make a report required under the provisions of Subsection A or B of this section is liable for a civil penalty in an amount equal to five percent of the property taxes ultimately determined to be due on the property for the tax year or years for which the person failed to make the required report.
I. A person who intentionally refuses to make a report required under the provisions of Subsection A or B of this section with the intent to evade any tax or who fails to make a report required under the provisions of Subsection A or B of this section with the intent to evade any tax is liable for a civil penalty in an amount equal to twenty-five percent of the property taxes ultimately determined to be due on the property for the tax year or years for which the person refused or failed to make the required report.
J. A person who is required to make a report under the provisions of Subsection C of this section and who fails to do so is personally liable for a civil penalty in an amount equal to the greater of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) or twenty-five percent of the difference between the property taxes ultimately determined to be due and the property taxes originally paid for the tax year or years for which the person failed to make the required report. This penalty shall not be considered a delinquent property tax, and the provisions of the Property Tax Code for the enforcement and collection of delinquent property taxes through the sale of the property do not apply. However, the county treasurer may use all other methods provided by law to collect the property tax or penalty due. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Property Tax Code, amounts collected pursuant to the penalty provided by this subsection shall be distributed among jurisdictions imposing tax on the property in the same proportion as the amount of tax ultimately determined to be due for the jurisdiction bears to the total due for all such jurisdictions.
K. The civil penalties authorized under Subsections H and I of this section shall be imposed and collected at the time and in the manner that the tax is imposed and collected. In order to assist in the imposition and collection of the penalties, the persons having responsibility for determining the value of the property shall make an entry in the valuation records indicating the liability for any penalties due under this section.
L. For the purposes of this section:
(1) "improvement" means the construction of any new structure permanently affixed to the land or the repair, rehabilitation or alteration of an existing structure permanently affixed to the land that, for property used for any commercial purpose, is required or allowed to be capitalized under the Internal Revenue Code and, for other properties, any similar construction, repair, rehabilitation or alteration; and
(2) "owner of real property" includes every owner of improvements who does not own the land upon which the improvements are made.
History: 1953 Comp., § 72-31-8, enacted by Laws 1973, ch. 258, § 48; 1974, ch. 92, § 7; 1985, ch. 109, § 8; 1991, ch. 213, § 1; 2007, ch. 273, § 2.
ANNOTATIONSCross references. — For county assessors, see Chapter 4, Article 39 NMSA 1978.
The 2007 amendment, effective July 1, 2007, provided that claims of economic obsolescence or functional obsolescence on property not regulated by the federal government shall be made at the time the annual report is filed, except that the department may accept supplements containing such claims on property regulated by the federal energy regulatory commission.
Applicability. — Laws 2007, ch. 273, § 3 provided that Laws 2007, ch. 273, §§ 1 and 2 apply to property tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2008.
The 1991 amendment, effective January 1, 1992, substituted "department" for "division" throughout the section; added Subsections C, J and L; redesignated former Subsections C to H as Subsections D to I and Subsection I as K; inserted "and improvements to such property that are required to be reported under Subsection C of this section" in the first sentence in Subsection E; inserted "upon conviction" near the end of Subsection G; and made related and minor stylistic changes throughout the section.
Property owner's responsibility to pay tax. — The ultimate responsibility for the payment of property taxes rests upon the property owner. Worman v. Echo Ridge Homes Coop., 1982-NMSC-081, 98 N.M. 237, 647 P.2d 870.
Property owner is required to make declaration of all property subject to taxation annually. Bailey v. Barranca, 1971-NMSC-074, 83 N.M. 90, 488 P.2d 725.
Duty of property owner. — Property owner has affirmative duty to declare his property. State ex rel. Prop. Appraisal Dep't v. Sierra Life Ins. Co., 1977-NMSC-023, 90 N.M. 268, 562 P.2d 829.
Description of property in declaration. — In declaring his real property, the taxpayer is required to describe the property in such a manner as would be sufficient in a deed to identify the property so that title thereto would pass. Bloch Pitt Invs. v. Assessor of Bernalillo Cnty., 1974-NMSC-073, 86 N.M. 589, 526 P.2d 183.
Applicability of nonrendition penalty. — When the taxpayer failed to report a complete list of all taxable personal property, the 25% nonrendition penalty provided in Subsection I could only be imposed on the property the taxpayer failed to report, not on the portion that was properly reported. Zwaagstra v. Board of Cnty. Comm'rs, 1995-NMCA-047, 119 N.M. 675, 894 P.2d 1031.
Stipulation fixes property values for one year only. — A stipulation fixing property tax values for a specific year is not binding for any following tax year; it is res judicata only for the year in question. Protest of Plaza Del Sol Ltd. P'ship v. Assessor for Cnty. of Bernalillo, 1986-NMCA-022, 104 N.M. 154, 717 P.2d 1123.
Statutes relating to undeclared property not applicable to that inadequately valued. — Since property was declared and listed on the tax rolls by proper description and was valued, although the value fixed by the assessor was inadequate, sections of the statutes which relate to property which has not been declared, listed on the tax rolls and valued have no application. Bloch Pitt Invs. v. Assessor of Bernalillo Cnty., 1974-NMSC-073, 86 N.M. 589, 526 P.2d 183.
Law reviews. — For comment, "Ad Valorem Taxes - Omitted Property and Improvements - Assessments," see 6 Nat. Resources J. 105 (1966).
