[Vision2020] Tax Code we probably can't understand

[Joan Opyr]

Hmm.  This statute doesn't seem to be written in Latin or Greek or Tocharian B.  It seems to be written in English, which just happens to be my native language.  Now, admittedly, I did not learn English from a lawyer, but I somehow feel that I really, truly understand what this statute is saying.  Taxpayers (that's you and me) may file an appeal of an assessment (that's a particular tax valuation on a particular property) with the Board of Equalization within a specific set of defined parameters, i.e., there are date constraints and certain forms to fill out.  Call me naive, but I don't think you need to be Alan Dershowitz to comprehend that.

I'm bearing in mind, of course, that we're not talking about interpretation here.  That does require a lawyer, or, in some cases, many lawyers and perhaps a judicial proceeding or two.  Sometimes, a law is so unclear that its meaning must be contested all the way to the Supreme Court, where legal geniuses like Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia work their voodoo on the official interpretation.  (The next time you're home alone late at night and you hear a strange thumping sound down in the basement, just keep repeating to yourself, "That's not Antonin Scalia coming to destroy my civil rights.  It's only a crazed lunatic with a hatchet."  There now, doesn't that feel better?)

About yesterday's Board of Equalization meeting -- I think it's a shame that anyone would take time out of his or her busy day to attend the hearing only to be insulted by the county attorney.  The "I could read it but you wouldn't understand it" remark was out of line, and so an apology from Mr. Whitney would be in order.  I agree with Mark Solomon that Rose and Saundra might do well to consult an attorney of their own, but with or without legal counsel, the issues they bring forward as citizens and taxpayers should be treated with the utmost seriousness and respect.  While I am confident that the members of the BOE will do just that, yesterday's proceedings make me worry about the tenor of their legal advice.   

Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment

----- Original Message -----
From: DonaldH675 at aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 12:04 AM
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Subject: [Vision2020] Tax Code we probably can't understand

Visionaries:
The code below is the one cited that the questioner could read but probably wouldn't understand.  For those of you who are having a really slow evening, an amble through Idaho Code 63-501  http://www3.state.id.us/idstat/TOC/63005KTOC.html is arguably, worth the trip.
Rose


 TITLE  63
                             REVENUE AND TAXATION
                                  CHAPTER 5
                         EQUALIZATION OF ASSESSMENTS
    63-501A.  TAXPAYER'S RIGHT TO APPEAL. (1) Taxpayers may file an appeal of
an assessment with the county board of equalization. An appeal shall be made
in writing on a form provided by the county board of equalization or assessor
and must identify the taxpayer, the property which is the subject of the
appeal and the reason for the appeal. An appeal of an assessment listed on the
property roll must be filed on or before the end of the county's normal
business hours on the fourth Monday of June. An appeal of an assessment listed
on the subsequent property roll must be filed on or before the end of the
county's normal business hours on the fourth Monday of November. An appeal of
an assessment listed on the missed property roll must be filed on or before
the board of equalization adjourns on the day of its January meeting. The
board of equalization may consider an appeal only if it is timely filed.
    (2)  Appeals from the county board of equalization shall be made pursuant
to section 63-511, Idaho Code.
http://www3.state.id.us/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=630050001A.K



"One cannot level one's moral lance at every evil in the universe. There are  
just too many of them. But you can do something, and the difference between doing something and doing nothing is everything."  

- Daniel Berrigan  


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