The opinion
IN THE OREGON TAX COURT
MAGISTRATE DIVISION
Property Tax
JIMMIE ROOFENER )
and DEBORAH ROOFENER, )
)
Plaintiffs, ) TC-MD 160072R
)
v. )
)
WASHINGTON COUNTY ASSESSOR, )
)
)
Defendant. ) FINAL DECISION OF DISMISSAL1
This matter is before the court on Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiffs’ Complaint for
lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
Plaintiffs filed their complaint on March 14, 2016, requesting a reduction in the real
market value of property identified as Account R771418 (subject property). In its Answer, filed
April 13, 2016, Defendant requested that the case be dismissed unless the court determined that
“good and sufficient cause” existed for Plaintiffs’ “failure to appeal per ORS 305.288.” (Answer
at 1.) The parties and the court discussed Defendant’s motion at the case management
conference held May 2, 2016, and Plaintiff agreed to file a response to the motion by May 20,
2016. Defendant agreed to file a reply, if any, by May 31, 2016. Plaintiffs filed their Response
on May 18, 2016; Defendant did not file a reply. This matter is now ready for the court’s
determination.
Plaintiffs’ Complaint requests a reduction in the real market value of the subject property,
as determined by Defendant. In most cases, the first step for a taxpayer to challenge the real
1
This Final Decision of Dismissal incorporates without change the court’s Decision of Dismissal, entered
June 6, 2016. The court did not receive a statement of costs and disbursements within 14 days after its Decision of
Dismissal was entered. See Tax Court Rule–Magistrate Division (TCR–MD) 16 C(1).
FINAL DECISION OF DISMISSAL TC-MD 160072R 1
market value assigned to its property is to file a petition with the local county board of property
tax appeals (BOPTA), no later than December 31 of the current year. See ORS 309.100. A
taxpayer who is dissatisfied with the BOPTA order may then appeal to this court under ORS
305.275 within 30 days of the date of the order. See ORS 305.275(3) (providing that an appeal
to the Magistrate Division is an appeal “from an order of the board”); ORS 305.280(4)
(providing 30 days to appeal a BOPTA order to the Magistrate Division). If a taxpayer fails to
timely appeal to BOPTA, then this court lacks jurisdiction to hear the appeal under ORS
305.275. See Richardson v. Dept. of Rev., __OTR__ (Feb 19, 2016) (slip op at 2) (“As taxpayers
did not appeal * * * to the appropriate BOPTA in the appropriate year, this route to relief is
foreclosed.”).
In limited circumstances, however, the court may consider an appeal of real market value
even if the taxpayer failed to file a petition with BOPTA or failed to timely appeal a BOPTA
order to this court. ORS 305.288(3) provides that “the tax court may order a change or
correction * * * for the current tax year * * * if, for the year to which the change or correction is
applicable, the * * * taxpayer has no statutory right of appeal remaining and the tax court
determines good and sufficient cause exists for the failure by the * * * taxpayer to pursue the
statutory right of appeal.” Or in other words, when the taxpayer fails to appeal to BOPTA, the
court may still have jurisdiction if the taxpayer can show “good and sufficient cause” for failing
to appeal to BOPTA before filing a complaint in the Tax Court.
ORS 305.288(5)(b) provides the applicable definition of “good and sufficient cause”:
“(A) * * * an extraordinary circumstance that is beyond the control of the
taxpayer, or the taxpayer’s agent or representative, and that causes the taxpayer,
agent or representative to fail to pursue the statutory right of appeal; and
“(B) Does not include inadvertence, oversight, lack of knowledge, hardship or
reliance on misleading information provided by any person except an authorized
tax official providing the relevant misleading information.”
FINAL DECISION OF DISMISSAL TC-MD 160072R 2
In this case, there is no evidence that Plaintiffs filed a petition with BOPTA for the
subject property for the tax year appealed. Therefore, the court concludes that it does not have
jurisdiction to hear Plaintiffs’ appeal under ORS 305.275, and the court must determine whether
Plaintiffs’ appeal meets the requirements of ORS 305.288(3).
Plaintiffs’ Response did not identify any circumstances from which the court could find
that “good and sufficient cause” existed for Plaintiffs’ failure to appeal to BOPTA.
Consequently, the court concludes that Defendant’s motion to dismiss must be granted.
Plaintiffs’ appeal is dismissed. Now, therefore,
IT IS THE DECISION OF THIS COURT that Defendant’s motion to dismiss is granted.
Plaintiffs’ appeal is dismissed.
Dated this day of June 2016.
RICHARD DAVIS
MAGISTRATE
If you want to appeal this Final Decision of Dismissal, file a complaint in the
Regular Division of the Oregon Tax Court, by mailing to: 1163 State Street,
Salem, OR 97301-2563; or by hand delivery to: Fourth Floor, 1241 State Street,
Salem, OR.
Your complaint must be submitted within 60 days after the date of the Final
Decision of Dismissal or this Final Decision of Dismissal cannot be changed.
TCR-MD 19 B.
This document was filed and entered on June 24, 2016.
FINAL DECISION OF DISMISSAL TC-MD 160072R 3