(a) Every assessee of any taxable property, or any person liable for the taxes thereon, whose property was damaged or destroyed without his fault, may apply for the reassessment of that property if the damage or destruction to the property was caused by any of the following:
(1) A major misfortune or calamity in an area or region subsequently proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of disaster if that property was damaged or destroyed by the major misfortune or calamity that caused the Governor to proclaim the area or region to be in a state of disaster. As used in this paragraph, “damage” includes a diminution in the value of property as a result of restricted access to the property where that restricted access was caused by the major misfortune or calamity;
(2) A misfortune or calamity; or
(3) A misfortune or calamity that, with respect to a possessory interest in land owned by the State or Federal government, has caused the permit or other right to enter upon the land to be suspended or restricted. As used in this paragraph, “misfortune or calamity” includes a drought condition such as existed in the State in 1976 and 1977.
As used in this section, a “misfortune or calamity” shall be limited to accidental, unpredictable, and unforeseen occurrences which adversely affect the value of the affected property in a manner which was not previously considered, in whole or in part, by the Assessor in determining the actual or assessed value of the property.
(b) An application for the reassessment of such property pursuant to this section shall be filed with the Assessor in accordance with Section 170 of the Revenue and Taxation Code of the State no later than twelve (12) months after such misfortune or calamity.
(c) Upon receiving a timely and proper application for reassessment as provided in said Section 170, the Assessor shall appraise and reassess the property and otherwise carry out the provisions of said Section 170.
(d) Intercounty transfers of base year values following disaster
(1) Any person owning property which is substantially damaged or destroyed following a disaster may transfer, subject to the conditions and limitations provided in Section 69.3 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, the base year value of that property, provided that the property is located in the state of California, to any replacement dwelling of equal or lesser value which is located within Yolo County and is purchased or newly constructed by that person within three years after the date of the loss by that person of the original property.
(2) All claims for transfers of base year value from original property located in another county in California shall be granted, if the claims meet the applicable requirements of both subdivision (e) of Section 2 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution and Section 69.3 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. All claims for transfers of base year value shall be filed with the assessor, on forms prescribed by the State Board of Equalization for this purpose.
(3) In determining the base year valuation of original property located in another county, the base year valuation as determined by the assessor of such other county shall be accepted by the assessor of this county, in connection with the granting of claims for transfers of base year value.
(4) The provisions of this Section shall be applicable to all replacement dwellings which are purchased or newly constructed on or after January 1, 2017.
(§ 1, Ord. 1051, eff. April 23, 1987; and as amended by § 1, Ord. 1302, eff. July 24, 2003, and § 2, Ord. 1534, eff. May 6, 2021)