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2150-2154 Billing and Payment Processing: Corrections,

2150. WHO MAY CORRECT ROLL
Corrections are made on the roll by the auditor (Rev. & Tax. Code §4834).

2151. CHANGE IN THE AMOUNT OF TAX
If a correction increases the amount of an assessment, the tax rate applied to the increase must be the rate for the year in which the error was made (Rev. & Tax. Code §532). The increased taxes are entered on the roll prepared or being prepared for the current assessment year (Rev. & Tax. Code §4836.5).

If the correction decreases the amount due, it is necessary to obtain the consent of the board of supervisors (Rev. & Tax. Code §4835).

2152. CORRECTION TIME FRAME
Any increase in the amount of taxes due created by the correction cannot constitute a lien or charge on the real property if the property has been sold or encumbered for value prior to enrollment of the correction (Rev. & Tax. Code §4836.5). These taxes are transferred to the unsecured roll and collected in the same manner and subject to the same penalties as other taxes transferred under provisions of Revenue and Taxation Code section 5090 (Rev. & Tax. Code §4831(b)).

The tax collector may file a certificate of lien against the assessee liable for the amount due (Rev. & Tax. Code §2191.3). Any such recorded lien has the force, effect, and priority of a judgment lien (Rev. & Tax. Code §2191.4).

Assessments (usually of personal property) based on erroneous information supplied by the assessee may be corrected within the time limitation imposed by Revenue and Taxation Code sections 532 and 532.1 (Rev. & Tax. Code §4831.5). Currently, most corrections must be made within four years from July 1 of the assessment year in which a problem occurs.

An escape involving fraud or willful concealment may be corrected within six years after July 1 of the assessment year in which the escape occurs. Revenue and Taxation Code section 4840 provides a method whereby the lien of taxes improperly entered on the secured roll can be canceled and then re-entered, either as cross-secured to other real property or on the unsecured roll.

After four years, corrections can be made only by the auditor, at the direction of either the county board of equalization (Rev. & Tax. Code §1614) or the assessment appeals board (Rev. & Tax. Code §§1620-1630).

If an error is discovered from an audit of the taxpayer's books and records, the assessor has six months after the completion of the audit to make the correction (Rev. & Tax. Code §4831).

2153. CORRECTION OF ENTRIES ON UNSECURED ROLL
Any error or omission involving the exercise of a value judgment that arises solely from a failure to reflect a decline in the taxable value of real property, as required by subdivision (b) of section 51, may be corrected within one year after the assessment being corrected was made (Rev. & Tax. Code §4831).

Any error resulting in incorrect entries on the unsecured roll may be corrected within four years after the assessment being corrected was made. This does not apply to either of the following:

1) Errors involving value judgments; or

2) Escape assessments caused by the assessee's failure to report information required under Revenue and Taxation Code section 441 et seq.

2154. FOUR-YEAR INSTALLMENT COLLECTION OF TAX INCREASE
When an increase in property tax results from either an escape assessment for a prior year only or correction of an error on the roll of a prior year, the assessee has the option of paying the tax over a four-year period (Rev. & Tax. Code §4837.5).

The assessee cannot make installment payments pursuant to Revenue and Taxation Code section 4837.5 if the additional tax is less than $500.

The current taxes for the same property must be kept current. If not, the four-year plan is defaulted. The payment plan can be reinstated only if the assessee or the agent of the assessee can, by substantial evidence, convince the tax collector that the payment was not made through any fault of the assessee and if payment of the installment amount plus any additional interest that has accrued is made prior to the time the property becomes tax-defaulted or prior to June 30, whichever is earlier.

Also, in the case of an escape assessment triggered because there was a violation of assessment requirement, such as a failure to file a change-of-ownership statement, the assessee is required to pay interest at the rate of 3/4% per month for the life of the payment plan.

NOTE: When the installment account is paid in full or placed on the tax rolls due to a defaulted payment plan and the tax collector has filed for record a certificate of lien, the tax collector shall also file for record a release of lien. The filings of the certificates of lien and the release of lien are not subject to recording fees (Rev. & Tax. Code §4837.5).