The following standards of performance will be used by the State Tax Commission in determining the acceptability of the real and personal property rolls in each county:
1. Minimum Requirements for Aerial Photography a. Aerial Photography covering the entire county will be flown periodically and accepted by the county using specifications established by the State Tax Commission. The time interval for flying aerial photography will be determined on a parcel count basis as follows: | Parcels of real property | Time period |
| |
| 10,000 parcels and less | Within 15 years |
| 10,001 to 20,000 parcels | Within 12 years |
| 20,001 parcels and above | Within 10 years |
b. The county may appe al to the MSTC for an extension of the time period based on the lack of growth in assessed value, the lack of increased parcels, or the lack of change in use value coverages. Requests for such extensions must be made two (2) years prior to the set time pe riod intervals as described above and the MSTC shall accept or reject in writing the request within ninety (90) calendar days.c. Within two (2) years after acceptance of aerial photography, the county will re - classify or verify all agricultural property according to its current use (cultivatable or uncultivatable). Counties flying multiple times within the designated time frame may request that additional verification of cultivatable or uncultivatable lands not be required.d. Prior to flying new aerial photography the county will contact the MSTC in writing. Minimum photography accuracy will be to the standards of the original ownership base if the original accuracy has been approved by the MSTC. MSTC approval of the original accuracy must be submitted to the county within ninety (90) calendar days after the county notifies the MSTC of its intent to fly new aerial photography.e. USGS Digital Orthophoto Quadrangles (DOQ'S) will be considered acceptable photography for rural areas only.2. Minimum Requi rements for Mappinga. Counties shall acquire and maintain a proper ownership mapping system performed over an appropriate aerial photography base. Ownership maps and aerial photos will be maintained as separate products but will be required to overlay and correlate. Once aerial photography is flown and accepted, the county must submit a plan acceptable to the MSTC to complete ownership map revisions.b. Originals or copies of current ownership maps and aerial photography must be housed in the Assess or's office.c. Upon flying new photography, the accepted map scales for ownership mapping are as follows: Minimum scales required
| Scale | Application |
| |
| 1"=100' | Urban Centers/Incorporated Areas |
| 1"=400' | Sparse/Moderate Rural Areas |
| Alternate scales accepted | |
| |
| 1"=50' | Downtown Business Districts |
| 1"=200' | Populated Rural Areas |
Scale requirements must be coordinated with the MSTC prior to flying aerial photography.
d. Mapping and related documents and materials will be updated annually to reflect changes such as roads, waterways, transmission lines, pipe lines, and reservoir projects. This update should also include any changes pertaining to ownership, acreage, lots, parcel numbers, and exempt properties.e. In counties that have digital mapping systems, Assessors shall have the capability to produce (or reproduce on demand) all documents, maps, photographs, copies, and materials described in these minimum requirements at the prescribed sizes, scales, and formats, and on the prescribed mediums (paper, mylar, etc.).f. All counties will have maps to be used in the field for appraisal purposes. Upon demand, the county shall have the capability to produce and reproduce maps with aerial photo or imagery composites.
3. Personal Property Standards Coming to Standarda. One Hundred Percent Compliance with Title 35 of the Mississippi Administrative Code, Part VI, Subpart 02, Chapter 08 by the 1999 Tax Roll.b. Inventory - All inventories shall be valued annually. The true value of current inventory can be determined as of January 1 [tax lien date] or an average of inventory of the previous twelve (12) months.c. Leased property - Leased property shall be captured annually. The business where the leased property is physically located shall identify said property on its Personal Property Rendition Form. However, the property shall be assessed to the Lessor. The Lessor shall actually render the property and the Assessor shall have a master card which shall correlate back to the business in which the property is located.4. Maintenance After a county has come into compliance, the maintenance program shall begin and the following shall be done:
a. The County shall annually comply with the provisions of Title 35 of the Mississippi Administrative Code, Part VI, Subpart 02, Chapter 08.b. Each county is required to physically review and verify at least 25 percent of all personal property accounts annually. In each subsequent year, an additional 25 percent of the personal property accounts shall be physically reviewed and verified. This process will result in the physical reviewing of 100 percent of all personal property accounts every four years. The 25 percent shall include a fair representation of the various types of personal property accounts located in the county. Each county must be able to identify those parcels reviewed and supply a list of the same to the MSTC.c. Leased equipment shall be updated annually d. Inventory shall be brought current annually.e. New businesses, additions, and deletions shall be captured annually.f. Rendition forms must be maintained and provided to the MSTC upon request.5. Real Property Minimum Requirements and Standards for Appraisal Updating a. Roll Year 1997 is to be a year of developing and adopting standards and minimum requirements for maintenance of real property appraisal. These standards and minimum requirements should be adopted prior to the first Monday of July 1997; or as soon thereafter, as possible. Roll year 1998, or year set by the MSTC, is to be governed by existing standards of compliance pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. § 27-35-113 and Property Tax Bureau Title 35 of the Mississippi Administrative Code, Part VI, Subpart 02, Chapter 06 as developed by the MSTC. Roll year 1998, or year set by the MSTC, is to serve as the benchmark year for a four-year update cycle. Counties that are presently under an Order, any county that may be placed under an Order, or those counties voluntarily updating may have differing cycle dates from 1998. A county can develop and use an update cycle of less than four (4) years but no update cycle shall be allowed beyond four (4) years.b. Assessors and Board of Supervisors that prefer to use contractors will take full responsibility that the contractor is complying with all standards and minimum requirements set forth by the MSTC. The MSTC will no longer approve individual contracts.c. The MSTC will afford counties adequate time to get into compliance with the statutes of the State of Mississippi that must be enforced by the MSTC.d. As soon as possible after the adoption of the standards and minimum requirements, all counties shall prepare and maintain a current sales file. Beginning with the appropriate land roll, as set by the MSTC, and not to exceed every four (4) years, each county shall develop and implement a new building index and current land pricing for small tracts and urban land. The index must conform to approved procedures set out by the MSTC. Failure of a county to develop and implement an index by the designated roll year or to develop and implement a new index during any update cycle will mandate the county to implement the regional index supplied by the MSTC. The year 1998 (or year approved by the MSTC) will serve as a benchmark for a four-year appraisal cycle.e. Although the MSTC will not dictate the time table, a county should accomplish various functions of an update. The MSTC will continue to monitor the progress of all counties and continue to do sales ratio studies and audit procedures to assure each county's assessment records comply with acceptable standards.6. Real Property Minimum Requirements and Standards for Appraisal Maintenance a. Estimate true value as of the value date of January 1 of the year of the upcoming roll of all real property involving changes, additions, or expansions. Additionally, the county should prepare new, add to, or change property appraisal cards as to any errors, omissions, deletions, or additions as required to reflect accurate true value of all land and improvements required to be appraised in accordance with current MSTC guidelines.b. In complying with the four-year update cycle, a county must physically observe, check condition (if necessary) and note on the property records as to the date of observation. One hundred percent of all parcels in the county shall be observed within a four (4) year period.c. At anytime during an update cycle, if the MSTC becomes aware, through an audit or other means, that the county will not be able to timely complete the update, then the MSTC will notify the Board of Supervisors, Assessor, Chancery Clerk, and County Administrator of their findings. If possible, the MSTC will provide the county detailed instructions on what the county must do in order to timely complete the update.d. All property records and supporting schedules must be maintained and provided to the MSTC upon request.e. All agricultural land use values will be sent by the MSTC to all assessors in accordance with Miss. Code Ann. § 27-35-50(4) and used annually.f. All 16th section leasehold property rights will be appraised.g. In case of ownership splits, the county will identify acreage in each major soil group as required and will estimate values annually for each accordingly.h. All new construction, additions, or expansions shall be appraised by approved MSTC methods whether or not ownership of land has changed. For the purpose of appraisal of new construction or improvements under construction, the county shall use at its discretion, in addition to physical inspection, all available information including but not limited to the following: i. Building permits issued by the county, city or town.ii. Septic tank permits issued by the Health Officer or similar official.iii. Electrical connections or services which would indicate new construction or improvements being constructed. Any records or inspection of construction in progress or completed which may be maintained by the city or county office.7. Ratio Studies a. The following shall be the standards used for ratio studies: i. A standard (acceptable limits) for overall assessment performance, i.e., compliance with statutory assessment level. ii. A standard for uniformity and equality of overall assessments.iii. A standard for price related assessment bias.b. Each standard and its range of acceptability is explained as follows: i. Ratio: The acceptable limits around a median ratio shall not exceed 20 percent, plus or minus, on Class I property, and not exceed 25 percent, plus or minus, on Class II and III properties. Further, counties which are ordered to adjust shall meet a ratio of not more than 15 percent, plus or minus, on Class I property, and 20 percent, plus or minus, on Class II and III properties after adjustments.ii. Standard of Uniformity and Equality: It is generally recognized that the coefficient of dispersion about the median is the most accurate indicator of uniformity and equality. Therefore, the coefficient of dispersion about the median shall not exceed 25 percent for purposes of rejection, and require correction to not more than 15 percent on Class I properties, and 20 percent on Classes II and III properties.iii. Price Related Assessment Bias: A standard for regressivity based on the regressivity index shall not exceed 0.92 percent on the low end, and 1.08 percent on the high end.35 Miss. Code. R. § 6-02-06-100