PLEASANT PRAIRIE MANUFACTURER FILES CLAIM FOR PROPERTY TAX REFUND FOLLOWING RULING BY WISCONSIN TAX APPEALS COMMISSION
During a July 6 meeting, the Pleasant Prairie Village Board considered a claim submitted by a lawyer on behalf of Sanmina Corporation for a property tax refund. The claim was submitted following a recent decision of the Wisconsin Tax Appeals Commission (WI TAC) in favor of Sanmina Corporation that ordered the company’s assessed values for 2009 through 2012, as calculated and defended by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, be reduced.
The Tax Appeals Commission indicated in its ruling that while the company’s lawyers presented “credible appraisals,” the Department of Revenue “presented no credible evidence to support its assessments.” Given the commission’s decision, the Village must now refund approximately $147,281.85 to Sanmina based on the reduced assessed values for 2009 through 2012. This amount will now be added to the 2016 property tax roll.
“Going forward, the Village plans to enter into future manufacturing tax appeal cases as an interested party in order to better protect local property tax payers,” explained Village Administrator Michael Pollocoff. “Doing so, as opposed to solely relying on the state to defend their assessing work in the Village, should give us an opportunity to introduce enough data to better ensure that the property tax is applied equitably across all classifications of taxpayers.”
The Wisconsin Tax Appeals Commission consists of three members appointed by the governor. It hears and decides appeals of state assessments for manufacturing property in addition to other state-related tax appeals. Under Wisconsin law, the state Department of Revenue annually determines the value of manufacturing property and defends the value during the appeal process. Taxing entities, such as the Village, then calculate the amount of, and collect, the local property tax from the manufacturer based on the value determined by the state. These funds, along with the other property taxes collected, are then used to pay for the provision and maintenance of services within the community.