Title 84 — Title 84 PROPERTY TAXES

The owner of personal property removing from one county to another between the first day of January and the first day of July shall be assessed in either in which he or she is first called upon by the assessor. The owner of personal property moving into this state from another st…

In all questions that may arise under this title as to the proper place to list personal property, or where the same cannot be listed as stated in this title, if between several places in the same county, or between different counties, or places in different counties, the place f…

(1) Prior to July 15th, the county legislative authority must form a board for the equalization of the assessment of the property of the county. The members of the board must receive a per diem amount as set by the county legislative authority for each day of actual attendance of…

The board of equalization of each county shall consist of not less than three nor more than seven members including alternates. Such members shall be appointed by a majority of the members of the county legislative authority, and shall be selected based upon the qualifications es…

The members of each board of equalization shall meet and choose a chair. A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum.[ 2013 c 23 s 368; 1970 ex.s. c 55 s 4.]Notes:Effective date—1970 ex.s. c 55: See note following RCW 84.36.050.

All meetings of the board of equalization shall be held at the county courthouse, or other suitable place within the county, and the county legislative authority shall make provision for a suitable meeting place.[ 1994 c 124 s 26; 1970 ex.s. c 55 s 5.]Notes:Effective date—1970 ex…

The terms of each appointed member of the board shall be for three years or until their successors are appointed. Each appointed member may be removed by a majority vote of the county legislative authority.[ 1994 c 124 s 27; 1970 ex.s. c 55 s 6.]Notes:Effective date—1970 ex.s. c …

The board may appoint a clerk of the board and any assistants the board might need, all to serve at the pleasure of the members of the board, and the clerk or assistant shall attend all sessions thereof, and shall keep the record. Neither the assessor nor any of the assessor's st…

The board may hire one or more appraisers accredited by the department of revenue or certified by the Washington state department of licensing, society of real estate appraisers, American institute of real estate appraisers, or international association of assessing officers, and…

The board of equalization may enter an order that has effect up to the end of the assessment year, if there has been no intervening change in the value during that time.[ 2015 c 86 s 104; 1994 c 301 s 47.]

The county legislative authority may provide an adequate annual budget and funds for operation and needs of the board of equalization, including, but not limited to the costs and expenses of the board, such as the meeting place, the necessary equipment and facilities, materials, …

The prosecuting attorney of each county shall serve as legal advisor to the board of equalization.[ 1970 ex.s. c 55 s 10.]Notes:Effective date—1970 ex.s. c 55: See note following RCW 84.36.050.

The department of revenue shall establish a school for the training of members of the several boards of equalization throughout the state. Sessions of such schools shall, so far as practicable, be held in each district of the Washington state association of counties. Every member…

The department of revenue shall provide a manual for the operation procedures of the several boards of equalization so that uniformity of assessment may be obtained throughout the state, and the several boards of equalization shall follow such manual in all of its operations and …

(1) The county assessor must, on or before the fifteenth day of January in each year, prepare a complete abstract of the tax rolls of the county, showing the number of acres that have been assessed and the total value of the real property, including the structures on the real pro…

(1)(a) The county assessor or treasurer may cancel or correct assessments on the assessment or tax rolls which are erroneous due to manifest errors in description, double assessments, clerical errors in extending the rolls, and such manifest errors in the listing of the property …

(1) The department of revenue shall annually, prior to the first Monday in September, determine and submit to each assessor a preliminary indicated ratio for each county: PROVIDED, That the department shall establish rules and regulations pertinent to the determination of the ind…

(1) Annually during the months of September and October, the department of revenue shall examine and compare the returns of the assessment of the property in the several counties of the state, and the assessment of the property of railroad and other companies assessed by the depa…

After certifying the record of the proceedings of the department in accordance with RCW 84.48.080, the department shall transmit to each county assessor a copy of the record of the proceedings of the department, specifying the amount to be levied and collected for state purposes …

It shall be the duty of the assessor of each county, when the assessor shall have received from the state department of revenue the assessed valuation of the property of railroad and other companies assessed by the department of revenue and apportioned to the county, and placed t…

It shall be the duty of the assessor of each county, when the assessor shall have received from the state department of revenue the certificate of the assessed valuation of the property of railroad and/or other companies assessed by the department of revenue and apportioned to th…

The county legislative authority of any county may designate one or more persons to act as a property tax advisor to any person liable for payment of property taxes in the county. A person designated as a property tax advisor shall not be an employee of the assessor's office or h…

(1) The assessor must, upon the request of any taxpayer who petitions the board of equalization for review of a tax claim or valuation dispute, make available to said taxpayer a compilation of comparable sales utilized by the assessor in establishing such taxpayer's property valu…

The department of revenue shall make such rules consistent with this chapter as shall be necessary or desirable to permit its effective administration. The rules may provide for changes of venue for the various boards of equalization.[ 1988 c 222 s 26.]

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2442-S.SL) ***(1) Except as is permitted under RCW 84.55.050, all taxes must be levied or voted in specific amounts.(2) The rate percent of all taxes for state and county purposes, and purposes of taxing districts coextensive with the county, must be d…

Whenever any property value or claim for exemption or cancellation of a property assessment is appealed to the state board of tax appeals or court of competent jurisdiction and the dollar difference between the total value asserted by the taxpayer and the total value asserted by …

It shall be the duty of the city council or other governing body of every city, other than a city having a population of three hundred thousand or more, the board of directors of school districts of the first class, the superintendent of each educational service district for each…

The governing body of all taxing districts within or coextensive with any county, which are required by law to certify to a board of county commissioners, for the purpose of levying district taxes, budgets or estimates of the amounts to be raised by taxation on the assessed valua…

For the purpose of raising revenue for state, county, and other taxing district purposes, the county legislative authority of each county, and all other officials or boards authorized by law to levy taxes for taxing district purposes, must levy taxes on all the taxable property i…

Whenever any taxing district or the officers thereof shall, pursuant to any provision of law or of its charter or ordinances, levy any tax, the assessed value of the property of such taxing district shall be taken and considered as the taxable value upon which such levy shall be …

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2442-S.SL) ***Within and subject to the limitations imposed by RCW 84.52.050 as amended, the regular ad valorem tax levies upon real and personal property by the taxing districts hereafter named are as follows:(1) Levies of the senior taxing districts …

(1) If a fire protection district is a participating fire protection jurisdiction in a regional fire protection service authority, the regular property tax levies of the fire protection district are limited as follows:(a) The regular levy of the district under RCW 52.16.130 shall…

Except as hereinafter provided, the aggregate of all tax levies upon real and personal property by the state and all taxing districts, now existing or hereafter created, shall not in any year exceed one percentum of the true and fair value of such property in money: PROVIDED, HOW…

The department of revenue shall adopt such rules consistent with chapter 274, Laws of 1988 as shall be necessary or desirable to permit its effective administration.[ 2000 c 103 s 29; 1988 c 274 s 9.]Notes:Purpose—Severability—1988 c 274: See notes following RCW 84.52.010.

The limitations imposed by RCW 84.52.050 through 84.52.056, and RCW 84.52.043 shall not prevent the levy of additional taxes by any taxing district, except school districts and fire protection districts, in which a larger levy is necessary in order to prevent the impairment of th…

(1) The limitations imposed by RCW 84.52.050 through 84.52.056, and 84.52.043 shall not prevent the levy of taxes by school districts, when authorized so to do by the voters of such school district in the manner and for the purposes and number of years allowable under Article VII…

(1) Beginning with taxes levied for collection in 2020, the maximum dollar amount which may be levied by or for any school district for enrichment levies under RCW 84.52.053 is equal to the lesser of $2.50 per $1,000 of the assessed value of property in the school district or the…

The additional tax provided for in Article VII, section 2 of the state Constitution, and specifically authorized by RCW 84.52.052, 84.52.053, 84.52.0531, and 84.52.130, shall be set forth in terms of dollars on the ballot of the proposition to be submitted to the voters, together…

(1) Any municipal corporation otherwise authorized by law to issue general obligation bonds for capital purposes may, at an election duly held after giving notice thereof as required by law, authorize the issuance of general obligation bonds for capital purposes only, which does …

For districts in a high/nonhigh relationship, if the high school district is subject to the maximum per pupil limit under RCW 84.52.0531, the high school district's maximum levy amount must be reduced by an amount equal to the estimated amount of the nonhigh payment due to the hi…

A rural library district may impose a regular property tax levy in an amount equal to that which would be produced by a levy of fifty cents per thousand dollars of assessed value multiplied by an assessed valuation equal to one hundred percent of the true and fair value of the ta…

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 6162-S.SL) ***(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, subject to the limitations in RCW 84.55.010, in each year the state must levy for collection in the following year for the support of common schools of the state a tax of three dollars and…

Property taxes levied by the state under RCW 84.52.065(1) for the support of common schools must be paid into the general fund of the state treasury as provided in RCW 84.56.280. Property taxes levied by the state under RCW 84.52.065(2) for the support of common schools shall be …

(1) As used in this section, "taxing district" means a county, emergency medical service district, city or town, public hospital district, urban emergency medical service district, regional fire protection service authority, or fire protection district.(2) Except as provided in s…

(1) It is the duty of the county legislative authority of each county, on or before the 15th day of December in each year, to certify to the county assessor the amount of taxes levied upon the property in the county for county purposes, and on or before the first Monday in Decemb…

(1) The county assessor must extend the taxes upon the tax rolls in the form prescribed in this section. The rate percent necessary to raise the amounts of taxes levied for state and county purposes, and for purposes of taxing districts coextensive with the county, must be comput…

(1) If an error has occurred in the levy of property taxes that has caused all taxpayers within a taxing district, other than the state, to pay an incorrect amount of property tax, the assessor shall correct the error by making an appropriate adjustment to the levy for that taxin…

(1) A county, city, or town may impose additional regular property tax levies of up to fifty cents per thousand dollars of assessed value of property in each year for up to ten consecutive years to finance affordable housing for very low-income households, and affordable homeowne…

A metropolitan park district with a population of 150,000 or more may submit a ballot proposition to voters of the district authorizing the protection of the district's tax levy from prorationing under RCW 84.52.010(3)(b) by imposing all or any portion of the district's 25 cent p…

*** CHANGE IN 2026 *** (SEE 2442-S.SL) ***A fire protection district or regional fire protection service authority may protect the district's or authority's tax levy from prorationing under RCW 84.52.010(3)(b) by imposing up to a total of twenty-five cents per thousand dollars of…