AAC F R I E N D S A N D F A M I L Y » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » »» » May v. White dismissal affirmation good for counties
Te Supreme Court of Arkansas ruled Jan. 12 in favor of the counties and affirmed the dis- missal of the complaints of the plaintiffs (taxpay- ers) in May v. White, Arkansas Supreme Court Case No. 11-652; regarding assessments of min- eral interests in Arkansas. Te court ruled that: “Because the taxpayers’
claim did not challenge the validity of the un- derlying tax, it is clear to this court that this suit does not come within the Arkansas illegal exac- tion provision.” Te court further held that in Arkansas the
proper legal process for contesting an assessment of real property on its value (or on an ad valorem basis) is before the county board of equalization and county court where the property is situated
Qualifications for students
seeking AAC Scholarships:
1. Applicants must plan on attending
or is already attending college, graduate school or other qualifying education in- stitution.
2. Applicant must have a financial need. 3. Applicant must have a current grade
point average of 3.0 or above and a mini- mum ACT score of 18.
4. Applicant must be or will be a high school graduate of the State of Arkansas.
5. Applicant must be a child, grand- child, adopted child, or stepchild of a current or retired county employee of Arkansas.
Instructions for
completing application: 1. Application is to be completed by ap-
plicant. 2. All parts of the application must be
On the Web: Go to
www.arcounties.org, click on Risk Management Services and then click on AAC Scholarships for complete application.
COUNTY LINES, WINTER 2012
as per A.C.A. 26-27-317 and 318. Te court further held it would not allow plaintiffs or tax- payers to bypass or ignore the legal process set forth by law for contesting property assessments in Arkansas which involves processes concerning the equalization board and determines that ap- peals go through the county court. Many county attorneys filed briefs and raised
all of the necessary and important issues to the lower court and supreme court concerning this decision. Te Association of Arkansas Counties is appreciative of the intervention by the schools and the Attorney General. An escrow as initially considered by the lower
court would be damaging to the state and to the taxing units; and the team effort clearly persuad-
2012 AAC Scholarship application process
completed in full. Please type or print in black or blue ink. 3. Te following is required to be at- tached to completed application: Without the following information, application will not be processed: • Tree (3) character reference let- ters, one from a county employee other than a relative.
• •
An official transcript of courses taken along with ACT/SAT scores.
A biographical statement, in- cluding family and educational background, financial need, work history and other pertinent infor- mation about yourself.
4. Send completed application with at- tachments to: Scholarship Trust Association of Arkansas Counties 1415 W. Tird Street Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 5. Completed applications must be re-
ceived between January 1, 2012 and May 1, 2012 in order to be considered for this year’s scholarship.
ed the lower court to “see the light” and the law. Following this ruling by the supreme court, it will be much more difficult for a taxpayer or their counsel in good faith to seek to contest their ad valorem property tax assessment by fil- ing directly in circuit court (as an illegal exaction claim or otherwise). Also following this ruling, such a filing may
likely be met with a claim for award of attorney’s fees to the counties. Tere will always be disputes over property assessments, but unless complaints can allege an illegal tax, an illegal exaction claim, then the contest will go through the process afforded by law to the county equalization board and then to county court.
stepchildren and grandchildren of Arkansas county and district officials and employees. “Providing scholarships to the relatives of county and district officials and employees has been a positive endeavor for the AAC for more than 25 years,” Chris Villines, AAC executive director, said. “We are proud to carry on the tradition of the Scholarship Trust and look forward to the qualified applicants every year. Education is the key to a fundamentally sound future and we are pleased to impact the futures of our scholarship recipients.” Some of the requirements for applicants include a mini- mum 3.0 grade point average, a minimum ACT score of 18, high school graduate of Arkansas and all recipients must be a child, grandchild, adopted child, or stepchild of a current or retired county employee of Arkansas.
T
Te deadline for 2012 scholarship applications is May, 1, 2012.
Along with the Association of Arkansas Counties, the
following affiliate associations contribute to the scholarship trust annually: •The County Judges Association of Arkansas •The Arkansas County Clerks Association •The Arkansas Circuit Clerks Association •The County Collectors Association of Arkansas •The Arkansas County Treasurers Association •The Assessors Association of Arkansas •The Arkansas Association of Quorum Courts •The Arkansas Sheriffs’ Association Te success of this Scholarship Trust can be attributed to the financial support from the county and district officials of Arkansas along with the many memorials and honorariums from various groups and organizations, as well as relatives and friends.
17
AAC scholarships provided more than $140,000
he Association of Arkansas Counties established a Scholarship Trust in 1985 for the purpose of pro- viding college financial assistance to the children,
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60