Title 15, Title 15

(1) (a) Subject to the provisions of 15-10-425(2)(b) and this section, a governmental entity that is authorized to impose mills may impose a mill levy sufficient to generate the amount of property taxes actually assessed in the prior year plus the average rate of inflation for th…

(1) A county, consolidated government, incorporated city, incorporated town, school district, or other taxing entity may impose a new mill levy, increase a mill levy that is required to be submitted to the electors, or exceed the mill levy limit provided for in 15-10-420 by condu…

(1) The board of county commissioners of each county shall appoint a county tax appeal board, with a minimum of three members and with the members to serve staggered terms of 3 years each. The members of each county tax appeal board must be residents of the county in which they s…

(1) The county tax appeal board may not reduce the valuation of property or review eligibility for the homestead reduced tax rate provided for in 15-6-405 or the rental property reduced tax rate provided for in 15-6-411, or review eligibility as a primary residence under 15-6-703…

(1) Before the county tax appeal board grants any application or makes any reduction applied for, it shall examine on oath the person or agent making the application with regard to the value of the property of the person or eligibility for the homestead reduced tax rate provided …

(1) If the appearance provisions of 15-15-103(1) have been complied with, a person or the department, on behalf of the state, or any municipal corporation aggrieved by the action of any county tax appeal board may appeal to the Montana board under 15-2-301. (2) If an appeal has b…

(1) (a) A taxpayer who seeks to appeal the imposition of local option taxes on light vehicles or fees in lieu of tax assessed against a motor vehicle and imposed by the department of justice under authority of 15-8-202 shall file a written application for the appeal not later tha…

(1) Within 10 days after the receipt of the property tax record, the county treasurer shall publish a notice specifying: (a) that one-half of all taxes levied and assessed will be due and payable before 5 p.m. on the next November 30 or within 30 days after the notice is postmark…

(1) Unless suspended or canceled under the provisions of 10-1-606, 15-23-708, or Title 15, chapter 24, part 17, all taxes levied and assessed in the state of Montana, except assessments made for special improvements in cities and towns payable under 15-16-103, are payable as prov…

(1) Special assessments or installments of special assessments made for special improvements in towns and cities, the bonds for which annual interest payments have been specified, and that have been duly and regularly made and levied by resolution according to law, are payable as…

(1) The county treasurer shall note the date and the amount of the payment of any tax in the property tax record opposite the name of the person paying. (2) (a) Except as provided in subsection (2)(b), the county treasurer shall give a receipt to the person paying any tax, specif…

When the county treasurer discovers that any property has been assessed more than once for the same year, the county treasurer shall collect only the tax due and report that fact to the department.

(1) If the taxes and special assessments due for the current year shown in the written notice sent to the taxpayer as required in 15-16-101(2) are less than $5 or if a tax notice of taxes and special assessments due on personal property is less than $5, the county treasurer shall…

(1) If the taxes on personal property are not a lien upon real property in the same county in an amount sufficient to secure the payment of the taxes, the department shall assess the property and compute the tax for the assessment. The department shall notify the county treasurer…

(1) At the request of the owner of a primary residence, a county treasurer shall enter into a written agreement with the owner for the payment of current property taxes on an alternative payment schedule of seven payments as provided in 15-16-102(2)(b) and this section. (2) To pa…

(1) A person intending to construct or locate a major new industrial facility, as defined in subsection (2) of this section, shall upon request of the board of county commissioners of the county in which the facility is to be located, prepay, when permission is granted to constru…

(1) Subject to 15-10-420, real property or improvements exempt from taxation under Title 15, chapter 6, that during a tax year become the property of a person subject to taxation must be assessed and taxed from the date of change from a nontaxable status to a taxable status. (2) …

(1) On the third Monday of June of each year, the county treasurer shall make a report to the county clerk and recorder in detail, showing the amount of taxes collected and a complete list of all persons and property then owing taxes. The report may be submitted to the county cle…

(1) The county treasurer shall, at the time specified in 15-16-301, deliver to the county clerk and recorder a complete delinquent list of all persons owing taxes and the property on which the taxes are owed. (2) In the list, all matters and things contained in the property tax r…

After settlement with the county treasurer as prescribed in 15-16-302, the county clerk and recorder shall charge the treasurer with the amount of taxes due on the delinquent tax list, minus taxes suspended or cancelled under the provisions of 15-23-708 or Title 15, chapter 24, p…

Unless suspended or cancelled under the provisions of 15-23-708 or Title 15, chapter 24, part 17, every tax has the effect of a judgment against the person, and every lien created by this title has the force and effect of an execution duly levied against all personal property in …

(1) The tax due on personal property is a prior lien upon the personal property. The lien has precedence over any other lien, claim, or demand upon the personal property. Except as provided in subsection (2), the tax on personal property is also a lien upon the real property of t…

Every tax due upon real property is a lien against the property assessed, and every tax due upon improvements upon real estate assessed to other than the owner of the real estate is a lien upon the land and improvements, which several liens attach as of January 1 in each year. A …

The county has a general lien, dependent on possession, upon any moneys in its possession belonging to any taxpayer for any amounts due the county for any delinquent personal property taxes that are not a lien on real estate of the taxpayer and that are not delinquent personal pr…

If any person moves from one county to another after being assessed on personal property, the treasurer of the county in which the person was assessed may sue for and collect the the taxes in the name of the county where the assessment was made.

On trial, a certified copy of the assessment signed by the county clerk and recorder of the county where the assessment was made, with the affidavit of the county treasurer that the tax has not been paid attached to the copy, describing the assessment as on the property tax recor…

(1) A taxing jurisdiction may bring a civil action to collect the entire balance due of delinquent property taxes when the amount equals $250,000 or more owed to all taxing jurisdictions. (2) A civil action may be brought as provided in this section for property to which a tax li…

Sections 15-16-603 through 15-16-605 may not be considered or construed to be in conflict with the provisions of chapter 1, part 4. Sections 15-16-603 through 15-16-605 and the provisions of part 4 provide and afford concurrent remedies.

(1) Subject to the provisions in subsections (2) and (3), a board of county commissioners shall order a refund: (a) on a tax, penalty, interest, or cost paid more than once or erroneously or illegally collected if an appeal pursuant to 15-1-402 was not available; (b) on a tax pai…

(1) A taxpayer aggrieved by a final decision of the board of county commissioners under 15-16-603 is entitled to a judicial review of the decision under this section. (2) Proceedings for review of a decision of the board of county commissioners must be instituted by filing a peti…

(1) In the order to refund a tax, penalty, interest, or cost under 15-16-603, the board of county commissioners shall determine the method of payment. The board may refund the amount due the taxpayer in installments over a period not to exceed 10 years. If the refund is made in i…

(1) The department shall, upon showing by a taxpayer that some or all of the improvements on the taxpayer's real property, that a trailer or mobile home, or that personal property taxed under Title 15, chapter 6, part 1, has been destroyed to such an extent that the improvements …

(1) If the property is destroyed after the property taxes have been paid for the current year, the taxpayer is entitled to a refund of the amount of tax paid in excess of the adjusted amount required by 15-16-611. (2) A refund must be made as provided for in 15-16-603 through 15-…

(1) Subject to the provisions of 15-16-603 through 15-16-605 and upon proof that a property tax was paid in another state on the same property, a taxpayer whose property is assessed under 15-24-303 for a period longer than the actual number of months that the property is located …

(1) (a) The county treasurer shall prepare and submit to the board of county commissioners of the county, on or before the first Monday in June of each year, a list of personal property taxes that are not a lien on real estate and that have been delinquent for 5 years or more. Th…

(1) Within 30 days of receiving any list prepared under 15-16-701, the board of county commissioners shall examine the list and make any necessary corrections. After examining the list, the board shall make its order canceling all personal property taxes and contractual obligatio…

Upon notification of the order for cancellation, the county clerk and recorder and county treasurer shall adjust their taxes-receivable accounts to conform to the order of cancellation.

All unpaid taxes constituting a lien on real property in the state, levied and assessed against real property which have remained delinquent more than 10 years prior to July 1, 1976, whether the levy be by general or special assessment or by the state or any county, city, or poli…

If collection of delinquent coal gross proceeds or property taxes has been suspended in accordance with 15-23-708 or Title 15, chapter 24, part 17, but the coal gross proceeds taxpayer or purchaser of the commercial property fails to comply with any of the provisions of the resol…

Except as otherwise specifically provided, when terms mentioned in Title 15, chapters 17 and 18, are used in connection with taxation, they are defined in the following manner: (1) "Assignee" means a person, other than the person to whom the property is assessed, who pays the del…

(1) The county treasurer shall publish or post a notice of a pending attachment of a tax lien. The notice must include: (a) the specific date on which the county will attach a property tax lien to property on which the taxes are delinquent; and (b) a statement that the delinquent…

(1) Following publication or posting of the notice required in 15-17-122, the county treasurer shall file a copy of the notice with the county clerk. The copy must be accompanied by an affidavit signed by the county treasurer stating: (a) the name of the newspaper and its address…

If the county treasurer discovers, prior to attachment of the tax lien, that property on which the taxes are delinquent has been irregularly assessed, the county treasurer may not attach a tax lien. The taxes on the property must be listed on the property tax record as uncollecte…

(1) (a) The county treasurer shall attach a tax lien no later than the first working day in August to properties on which the taxes are delinquent and for which proper notification was given as provided in 15-17-122 and subsection (4) of this section. Upon attachment of a tax lie…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), payment of all property taxes on a parcel by any co-owner is considered payment by all owners, whether or not the property is assessed and taxed separately to co-owners or to a single owner. Any payment by a co-owner in excess of the amou…

Unless the context indicates otherwise, as used in 15-17-316 through 15-17-320, the following definitions apply: (1) "Improvement fund" means, with respect to any special assessments, the fund of the municipality into which collections of the special assessments have been pledged…