Site Tools
Welcome to the State of California

1110-1112 Billing Procedures & Requirements: Tax Bill - Mailing

1110. GENERAL REQUIREMENT
On or before November 1 of each year, the county tax collector must mail or electronically deliver a tax bill (or a copy of one) for each property on the secured roll if taxes are due (Rev. & Tax. Code §2610.5).

Pursuant to Revenue and Taxation Code section 610, land once described on the roll need not be described a second time, but any person claiming and desiring to be assessed for it may have his/her name inserted with that of the original assessee.

A person is "claiming" property for purposes of being assessed only if he/she provides the assessor with one of the following supporting documents:

1) A certified copy of a deed, judgment, or other instrument that creates or legally verifies that person's ownership interest in the property;

2) A certified copy of a document creating that person's security interest in the property; or

3) The person's declaration, under penalty of perjury, that he/she currently has possession of the property and intends to be assessed for the property in order to perfect a claim in adverse possession (Rev. & Tax. Code §610).

The tax collector is required to send a separate tax bill to the initial seller or the purchaser of an individual condominium unit if either person requests it (Rev. & Tax. Code §2188.6); (M-1140 and M-1141). The county tax collector is not required to send a separate tax bill where adequate security has been posted for the payment of property taxes, in accordance with Government Code section 66493.

1111. TAX BILL TO PERSON OTHER THAN ASSESSEE
Any person may be authorized to pay a property tax bill on behalf of the assessee. When mailing a tax bill to an authorized person other than the assessee, the tax collector shall send an information copy of the tax bill to the assessee (Rev. & Tax. Code §2610.6).

The copy shall clearly state that the copy is not a bill and that the original bill has been sent to another person for payment (Rev. & Tax. Code §2610.6).

1112. FAILURE TO MAIL TAX BILL
Failure to receive a tax bill does not relieve the owner from liability for taxes. However, the penalty imposed for delinquent taxes (as provided in Rev. & Tax. Code §§2617-2618, 2621, 2704-2705 and 2922) shall be canceled by the auditor or tax collector if the assessee demonstrates that delinquency is due to the tax collector's failure to mail the tax bill to the address provided on the assessor's roll or to electronically transmit the bill to the address provided and authorized by the taxpayer (Rev. & Tax. Code §§2610.5, 4985-4985.2).

Revenue and Taxation Code section 2610.5 provides the county with an option of canceling penalties for individuals who acquire secured property after the lien date.

Various conditions must be met as part of any program the county chooses to establish before it may cancel or recommend canceling penalties pursuant to Revenue and Taxation Code section 2610.5. The conditions are as follows:

1) The eligible claimant was not sent a notice by the county;

2) The claimant demonstrates that the delinquency was due to the county's failure to send a notice to him/her; and

3) The claimant pays the full amount due, exclusive of penalties and cost, before July 1 of the year after the year in which he/she acquired the property.