AI-assisted research summary: The department’s director must request funding to pay next year’s property taxes on eligible open space property, and the county treasurer must certify the taxes due.
As a part of the budget proposal submitted to the general assembly under section 455A.4, subsection 1, paragraph “c”, the director of the department of natural resources shall submit a budget request to pay the property taxes for the next fiscal year on open space property acquired by the department which would otherwise be subject to the levy of property taxes. The assessed value of open space property acquired by the department shall be that determined under section 427.1, subsection 18, and the director may protest the assessed value in the manner provided by law for any property owner to protest an assessment. For the purposes of chapter 257, the assessed value of the open space property acquired by the department shall be included in the valuation base of the school district and the payments made pursuant to this section shall be considered as property tax revenues and not as miscellaneous income. The county treasurer shall certify taxes due to the department. The taxes shall be paid annually from the departmental fund or account from which the open space property acquisition was funded. If the departmental fund or account has no moneys or no longer exists, the taxes shall be paid from funds as otherwise provided by the general assembly. If the total amount of taxes due certified to the department exceeds the amount appropriated, the taxes due shall be reduced proportionately so that the total amount equals the amount appropriated. This section applies to open space property acquired by the department on or after January 1, 1987. 87 Acts, ch 174, §4; 89 Acts, ch 135, §52 CS87, §111E.4 C93, §465A.4 Referred to in §455A.19