Grand Blanc Township Supervisor v. Genesee County Board of Commissioners

304 N.W.2d 543, 104 Mich. App. 260, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2784
CourtMichigan Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 4, 1981
DocketDocket No. 49338
StatusPublished

This text of 304 N.W.2d 543 (Grand Blanc Township Supervisor v. Genesee County Board of Commissioners) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Grand Blanc Township Supervisor v. Genesee County Board of Commissioners, 304 N.W.2d 543, 104 Mich. App. 260, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2784 (Mich. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

Danhof, C.J.

Petitioners, township supervisors of various townships1 in Genesee County, appeal as of right from an order of the Michigan Tax Tribunal dismissing their petition for review.

The pertinent facts began on May 5, 1975, when the Genesee County Board of Commissioners, respondents herein, adopted an equalization report setting the total equalized value of real property in the county at $2,050,286,417. The board rejected an equalization report submitted by the County Equalization Department setting the total value at $2,229,208,234. The City of Flint filed a petition with the Tax Tribunal claiming that it had been allocated too high a share of the real property valuation. During the course of the proceedings in the Tax Tribunal, the State Tax Commission refused to accept the equalization report adopted by the county board and instead adopted the higher total valuation originally rejected by the board. On May 19, 1977, the tribunal entered an order setting aside the equalization report adopted by the board on May 5, 1975, and adopting the report which had been recommended by the County [264]*264Equalization Department. This report contained the higher total-equalized-value figure and allocated a lower percentage of the total to Flint than the other report had. The tribunal ordered the assessing authorities in county taxing units to determine the difference between taxes imposed in 1975, based upon the original equalized value figures, and the amount that would have been imposed based upon the corrected figures. Where additional taxes were found owing, the county board was ordered to make up the difference by spreading the additional levy upon the next succeeding annual tax roll and collecting the additional taxes accordingly.

The May 19, 1977, order of the Tax Tribunal was appealed to this Court by the townships of Argentine, Atlas, Clayton, Davison, Fenton, Flushing, Forest, Gaines, Genesee, Grand Blanc, Mont-rose, Mt. Morris, Thetford and Vienna and the cities of Burton, Clio, and Davison. The following issues were raised:

I. May the Michigan Tax Tribunal raise the total county value of real property pursuant to an equalization appeal?

II. May a three-year average of real property sales and appraisals be used to determine equalized values?

III. Must State Tax Commission figures as to real property valuation of the appellant taxing units, prepared for the purpose of arriving at the state equalized value, be followed by the Genesee County Board of Commissioners in establishing the equalized real property value of appellants?

IV. Was the decision of the Michigan Tax Tribunal supported by competent, material and substantial evidence?2 The Tax Tribunal order was af[265]*265firmed in a memorandum opinion, which stated:

"A review of the records and briefs discloses no fraud, error of law or the adoption of wrong principles in the tax tribunal’s decision changing the allocation of assessed valuation among the governmental units in Genesee County.” City of Flint v Argentine Twp (Docket No. 77-2048, decided December 1, 1978 [unreported]), lv den 406 Mich 879 (1979).

On October 23, 1979, the County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution concerning the levy and assessment of 1979 property taxes and the additional taxes required due to the changes in 1975 equalized values. The resolution directed that the additional levies for 1975 be spread upon the assessment rolls of the proper taxing units and collected pursuant to law. Township and city assessing officers were directed to certify the additional 1975 levies to the board.

The petitioners filed a petition for review with the Tax Tribunal on November 19, 1979, challenging the board’s resolution. They claimed that the amounts of additional taxes allegedly due for 1975 had not been certified or determined to be due by township assessing authorities and were thus not authorized by law. Petitioners also claim that the respondent board lacked legal authority to order certification of the additional 1975 taxes or spreading of the additonal levies on assessment rolls.

On December 19, 1979, respondents filed a pleading entitled "Motion for Order in the Nature of Accelerated Judgment” with the tribunal, claiming that the tribunal lacked jurisdiction and that petitioners lacked capacity to sue. On December 28, 1979, before petitioners filed any response to the motion and without a hearing, the tribunal entered an "Ex Parte Order of Dismissal”, holding [266]*266that the board’s resolution complied with the applicable statutes and the prior order of the tribunal and that the petition for review failed to state any cause of action over which the tribunal had jurisdiction. The present appeal was subsequently filed.

We first address the question of jurisdiction. MCL 205.731; MSA 7.650(31) provides:

"The tribunal’s exclusive and original jurisdiction shall be:
"(a) A proceeding for direct review of a final decision, finding, ruling, determination, or order of an agency relating to assessment, valuation, rates, special assessments, allocation, or equalization, under property tax laws.”

Respondents claim that jurisdiction was lacking because the petitioners were actually attempting to appeal the decision of this Court affirming the 1977 Tax Tribunal order back to the Tax Tribunal; a situation not covered by the jurisdiction statute. This argument assumes that the questions raised in the petition had been addressed in the prior litigation. We agree that the issues decided in the prior appeal, which we have set forth above, cannot be relitigated in the instant appeal, under the doctrines of collateral estoppel or law of the case. Topps-Toellar, Inc v City of Lansing, 47 Mich App 720; 209 NW2d 843 (1973). However, the present appeal involves claims not previously raised relating to procedures for the collection of the additional 1975 taxes implemented after the prior appeal was decided. We will address these claims.

Petitioners contend that it was illegal for the county board to order spreading and collection of the additional taxes for 1975, where such taxes were not certified to the county clerk by township [267]*267authorities as required by §§ 35 and 36 of the General Property Tax Act, MCL 211.35; MSA 7.53 and MCL 211.36; MSA 7.54. Initially, we note that the board, in the October 23, 1979, resolution, directed certification of the additional 1975 taxes by local assessing officers as well as spreading and collection of such monies. This is the procedure contemplated by § 39a of the General Property Tax Act, which states:

"(1) If the determination of the equalized value is delayed as a result of an appeal taken pursuant to this act and pending before the tax commission or the tax tribunal, the assessing officer shall levy taxes upon the equalized value of property as determined by the county board of commissioners which is being reviewed by the tax commission or tax tribunal. The payment of taxes thusly levied, hereinafter called the 'tentative levy’, shall not constitute a final and ultimate discharge of the taxpayer’s obligation except as provided in subsection (3).
"(2) .After the final determination of equalized value by the state tax commission or tax tribunal,

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Bluebook (online)
304 N.W.2d 543, 104 Mich. App. 260, 1981 Mich. App. LEXIS 2784, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/grand-blanc-township-supervisor-v-genesee-county-board-of-commissioners-michctapp-1981.