42.4.4115    PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION FOR LAND ADJACENT TO TRANSMISSION LINE RIGHT-OF-WAY OR EASEMENT

(1) The property owner of record, the property owner's agent, or the operator of a transmission line must make application to the Department of Revenue's (department) local county office for an exemption from property taxes for land that is within 660 feet on either side of the midpoint of a transmission line right-of-way or easement. The transmission line must have a design capacity of 30 megavoltamperes or greater, as certified by the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and be constructed after January 1, 2007. Application will be made on a form available from the department's local county office before March 1 of the tax year for which the exemption is sought. The DEQ certification shall be attached to and be part of the application for exemption under this part.

(2) The applicant must provide to the department's local county office, along with the application, a legal description for the property described on the application provided for in (1) and a digitized certificate of survey prepared by a surveyor registered with the Board of Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors provided for in 2-15-1763, MCA, which specifically provides the boundaries of the property listed on the application provided for in (1). The acceptable format for the digitized certificate of survey is an Environmental System Research Institute (ESRI) Shapefile file format in State Plane single zone projection. Shapefiles spatially describe points, polygons, and lines. State Plane refers to the State Plane Coordinate System.

(3) The application will be forwarded to the department's Property Assessment Division (PAD) office in Helena referred to as the "central office." The PAD central office will process the application and determine if the property meets the requirements of exemption.

(4) The central office will issue a letter indicating whether the application for exemption has been granted or denied and provide a copy of the letter to the applicant, the local county office, and the Business and Income Taxes Division.

(5) If the transmission line is either constructed or under construction after January 1 of a tax year and an application for exemption is submitted for the right-of-way or easement by March 1 of that tax year and the property qualifies for the exemption, the exemption will be effective for the whole tax year.

 

History: 15-24-3116, MCA; IMP, 2-15-1763, 15-6-229, MCA; NEW, 2008 MAR p. 811, Eff. 4/25/08; AMD, 2010 MAR p. 1407, Eff. 6/11/10; AMD, 2017 MAR p. 2095, Eff. 11/10/17.