Delaware General Assembly

AN ACT TO AMEND § 8312, TITLE 9, DELAWARE CODE, AND § 8313 (a), TITLE 9, DELAWARE CODE, RELATING TO THE DATE OF AND PROCEDURE IN HEARING APPEALS BY THE BOARDS OF ASSESSMENT OF THE SEVERAL COUNTIES.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Delaware:

Section 1. § 8312, Title 9, Delaware Code, is repealed and a new § 8312 enacted in lieu thereof to read as follows:

(a) The Board of Assessment for New Castle County or its representatives shall sit in its office, or some other public and convenient place in New Castle County, during each secular day from March 15 to April 30 of each year, to hear appeals and make additions, alterations or corrections to the assessment. Any person desiring to make an appeal shall, during the period from March 1 to March 15, file written notice with the Board on such forms as the Board may prescribe and make available upon request, setting forth the assessment or assessments appealed from, the name and address to which the Board shall mail notice of the time and place of hearing, and such other information as the Board may require. The Board shall notify each person who has filed an appeal of the time and place of hearing of said appeal by depositing such notice in the mail addressed to the person and address designated in the notice of appeal not later than the 5th day preceding the day designated in the notice of such hearing. Failure of the appealing party to appear at the time and place fixed by the Board shall constitute the abandonment of the appeal.

(b) The Board of Assessment for Kent County or its representatives shall sit in its offices during each secular day from April 1 through April 15, of each year to hear appeals and make additions, alterations or corrections to the assessment.

(c) The Board of Assessment for Sussex County or its representatives shall sit in its offices during each secular day from February 15 through March 1 of each year to hear appeals and make additions, alterations or corrections to the assessment.

Section 2. § 8313 (a), Title 9, Delaware Code, is repealed and a new §8313 (a) is enacted in lieu thereof to read as follows:

(a) Each Board of Assessment shall publish notices of the places where the assessments may be inspected together with a notice of the time and place of the sittings to hear appeals and make additions or corrections in regard to the assessments. The notices published by the Board of Assessment for New Castle County shall also state the time and place for filing written notices of appeal with the Board, as provided in § 8312 (a) of this chapter. Such notice shall appear at least once a week for two weeks in at least two newspapers in the case of Kent and Sussex Counties; and in at least four newspapers, one of which shall be published in the City of Wilmington, in the case of New Castle County. The Boards may use such other means as will best bring such notice to the attention of the parties or taxables interested.