(1) All public service entities shall, on or before April 15 of each year, furnish a statement specifying such information as may be required by the Property Tax Administrator on forms prescribed by the Tax Commissioner to determine and distribute the entity's total taxable value including the franchise value. All information reported by the public service entities, not available from any other public source, and any memorandum thereof shall be confidential and available to taxing officials only. For good cause shown, the Property Tax Administrator may allow an extension of time in which to file such statement. Such extension shall not exceed fifteen days after April 15.

(2) The returns of public service entities shall not be held to be conclusive as to the taxable value of the property, but the Property Tax Administrator shall, from all the information which he or she is able to obtain, find the taxable value of all such property, including tangible property and franchises, and shall assess such property on the same basis as other property is required to be assessed.

(3) The county assessor shall assess all nonoperating property of any public service entity. A public service entity operating within the State of Nebraska shall, on or before January 1 of each year, report to the county assessor of each county in which it has situs all nonoperating property belonging to such entity which is not subject to assessment and assessed by the Property Tax Administrator under section 77-802.

(4) For tax years prior to tax year 2020, the Property Tax Administrator shall multiply the value of the tangible personal property of each public service entity by the compensating exemption factor calculated in section 77-1238.

Source:Laws 1903, c. 73, § 68, p. 408; Laws 1903, c. 73, § 76, p. 411; Laws 1903, c. 73, § 80, p. 412; Laws 1911, c. 104, § 6, p. 373; R.S.1913, §§ 6358, 6366, 6370; Laws 1921, c. 133, art. IX, § 1, p. 586; C.S.1922, § 5890; C.S.1929, § 77-801; R.S.1943, § 77-801; Laws 1981, LB 179, § 8; Laws 1983, LB 353, § 1; Laws 1985, LB 269, § 2; Laws 1995, LB 490, § 87; Laws 1997, LB 270, § 37; Laws 2000, LB 968, § 38; Laws 2004, LB 973, § 13; Laws 2009, LB166, § 7; Laws 2015, LB259, § 7; Laws 2020, LB1107, § 123.

Annotations

Examples of property subject to valuation by the Tax Commissioner include railroad personal property and public service entities, including pipelines. John Day Co. v. Douglas Cty. Bd. of Equal., 243 Neb. 24, 497 N.W.2d 65 (1993).
Corporation owning and operating hydro-electric power plant, selling electric energy at its generator, is subject to franchise tax hereunder. Northern Nebraska Power Co. v. Holt County, 120 Neb. 724, 235 N.W. 92 (1931).
Occupation tax and tax upon gross receipts are not double taxation. Nebraska Tel. Co. v. City of Lincoln, 82 Neb. 59, 117 N.W. 284 (1908).
Value of whole property of telegraph company as an entirety should be considered, and the relation which the value of the property in the taxing district bears to the value of the entire property. Western U. T. Co. v. Dodge County, 80 Neb. 18, 113 N.W. 805 (1907).
All items taken together going to make up value of business as going concern should be considered. Nebraska Tel. Co. v. Hall County, 75 Neb. 405, 106 N.W. 471 (1906).
Taxation of franchises must be by valuation and in proportion to value, and gross receipts alone are not proper measure of value. Western U. T. Co. v. City of Omaha, 73 Neb. 527, 103 N.W. 84 (1905).
Gross receipts refers only to gross receipts for business within state. State ex rel. Breckenridge v. Fleming, 70 Neb. 529, 97 N.W. 1063 (1903).
State statute imposing franchise tax on corporation's intangible property in state is not invalid for failure to prescribe method of assessment and taxation, and corporate taxpayer could not object that it failed to provide for allocation and distribution of tax to counties. Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Weaver, 5 F.Supp. 493 (D. Neb. 1932).

(1) Nonoperating property means property owned or leased by a public service entity that does not contribute to the entity's function;

(2) Operating property means property owned or leased that contributes to a public service entity's function; and

(3) Public service entity means any person as defined in section 49-801 or entity, organized for profit under the laws of this state or any other state or government and engaged in the business of waterworks, electrical power, gas works, natural gas, telecommunications, pipelines used for the transmission of oil, heat, steam, or any substance to be used for lighting, heating, or power, and pipelines used for the transmission of articles by pneumatic or other power and all other similar or like entities.

The Tax Commissioner shall have power to require any officer, agent, or servant of any public service entity having any portion of its property in this state to attend a hearing and to answer under oath questions regarding the property. The Tax Commissioner shall have power to issue whatever notice or process may be necessary to compel the attendance of any such person as a witness.

The Property Tax Administrator shall apportion the total taxable value including the franchise value to all taxing subdivisions in proportion to the ratio of the original cost of all operating real and tangible personal property of that public service entity having a situs in that taxing subdivision to the original cost of all operating real and tangible personal property of that public service entity having a situs in the state.

If the apportionment in accordance with this section does not fairly represent the proportion of the taxable value, including franchise value properly allocable to the county, the taxpayer may petition for or the Property Tax Administrator may require the inclusion of any other method to effectuate an equitable allocation of the value of the public service entity for purposes of taxation.

On or before July 25, the Property Tax Administrator shall mail a draft appraisal to each public service entity as defined in section 77-801.01. On or before August 10, the Property Tax Administrator shall, by mail, notify each public service entity of its taxable value and the distribution of that value to the taxing subdivisions in which the entity has situs. On or before August 10, the Property Tax Administrator shall also certify to the county assessors the taxable value so determined.

Annotations

Personal notice to taxpayer is not necessary where, on taxpayer's failure to make return, assessing board meets at time and place fixed by statute and makes original assessment. Northern Nebraska Power Co. v. Holt County, 120 Neb. 724, 235 N.W. 92 (1931).

For purposes of certifying values pursuant to section 13-509, the county assessor shall include the public service entity value as certified by the Property Tax Administrator pursuant to section 77-802. The taxes so levied shall be included upon the personal property tax roll and be due and payable in the same manner as personal property taxes pursuant to sections 77-203 and 77-204. From the date the taxes are due and payable, the taxes shall be a first lien upon the personal property of the public service entity to whom assessed until paid. The procedure for the collection of any delinquent tax pursuant to this section shall be that used for the collection of personal property tax.

On or before September 10, if a public service entity feels aggrieved, such public service entity may file an appeal with the Tax Commissioner. The Tax Commissioner shall act upon the appeal and shall issue a written order mailed to the entity within seven days after the date of the order. The order may be appealed within thirty days after the date of the order to the Tax Equalization and Review Commission in accordance with section 77-5013.

For each day's failure to furnish the statement required by section 77-801 or for each day's failure to furnish the information as required on those statements, the public service entity may be assessed a penalty in the amount of one hundred dollars, except that the penalty shall not exceed ten thousand dollars. Such penalty shall be collected by the Tax Commissioner and credited to the Department of Revenue Property Assessment Division Cash Fund. The Tax Commissioner, in his or her discretion, may waive all or part of the penalty provided in this section.

Source:Laws 1903, c. 73, § 77, p. 411; Laws 1903, c. 73, § 81, p. 412; Laws 1911, c. 104, § 9, p. 375; R.S.1913, §§ 6367, 6371; Laws 1921, c. 133, art. IX, § 3, p. 587; C.S.1922, § 5892; C.S.1929, § 77-803; R.S.1943, § 77-803; Laws 1986, LB 732, § 3; Laws 1986, LB 817, § 6; Laws 1995, LB 490, § 89; Laws 1997, LB 270, § 43; Laws 1999, LB 36, § 17; Laws 2007, LB334, § 50.

Any sale of a public service entity as defined in section 77-801.01 shall be reported by the purchaser to the Property Tax Administrator within thirty days from the date of the sale. The purchaser shall identify the seller, the date of the sale, any change in name of the entity, and the purchase price of the entity. If additional information regarding the sale is needed by the Property Tax Administrator, a specific written request shall be made. For each day's failure to furnish the information, an entity may be assessed a penalty in the amount of one hundred dollars, except that the penalty shall not exceed ten thousand dollars. Such penalty shall be collected by the Tax Commissioner and credited to the Department of Revenue Property Assessment Division Cash Fund. The Tax Commissioner may waive all or part of the penalty provided in this section.