The Wells County Assessor and all township assessors, are issuing a reminder to all personal property owners in Wells County, IN.  March 1st is the lien date for all personal property in the State of Indiana.  May 15th is the filing date for this property.  To avoid a late penalty, a taxpayer must file a personal property return with the appropriate township assessor by May 15, 2006.

The penalty imposed for failure to file a timely personal property return is $25.  If the return is not filed within thirty days of the filing date, there will be another penalty of 20% of the tax finally determined.  IC 6-1.1-37-7.

Motor homes, travel trailers, truck campers, trailers over 3,000 lbs., snowmobiles and off-road vehicles, are to be reported to the township assessor.  There is no need to report property that has had excise tax paid on it.

All business tangible property is also to be filed at this time.  Leased property is included in these filing requirements.  If the taxpayer has leased equipment in their possession or own property that has been leased to someone else, they must report this on a Form 103-N or 103-O.

Farmers must report all livestock, grain, machinery and equipment on hand as of March 1, 2006.  This includes all leased equipment and machinery.

Wells County has eliminated the tax on inventory; however, the inventory must be included in the personal property filing.  We must keep track of all inventory in order to replace the inventory assessed value with CEDIT.  Otherwise, this amount will fall back on property tax.

Forms may be acquired from township assessors, the County Assessor’s Office or by clicking here.

Township Trustee/Assessor
Informational Meeting
Thursday, February 22, 2007
7:00 PM
Commissioners' Room

· Advises and instructs the county's township assessors/trustees.

· Oversees the general reassessment process.

· Serves as member/secretary of the Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals.

· Insures countywide uniform property assessment equalization.

· Acts as the Inheritance Tax Appraiser and represents the Inheritance Tax Division.

· Discovers and identifies omitted property.

· Calculates the total assessed value of each taxing district.

· Certifies current assessments to the County Auditor's Office.

· Utilizes recent sales of land to establish base market value in each neighborhood, adjusts the base values for location, nearness to amenities and other influence factors.

· Is responsible for the selection of assessment software and computer systems.

Should a property owner disagree with their assessment, they are entitled to an appeal. A review of the property record card is important to ensure that the features of the property have been reported correctly. These include square footage, number of plumbing fixtures, finished and unfinished attics and basements. Any discrepancy of the objective portions of the assessment may be handled anytime. If, however, there are subjective aspects of the assessment that need to be appealed, a Form 130 should be filed with the County Assessor for further review.

A Summary of the Various Levels of Appeal:
Within 45 days of the date of the Notice of Assessment (Form 11), file the Form 130 with the County Assessor. The Assessor will attempt to hold an informal hearing with the taxpayer; if the appeal is not settled in the informal hearing, the appeal then goes to the Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA).

Department of Local Government Finance:
If the taxpayer disagrees with the Final Determination of the PTABOA, they may file an appeal (Form 131) with the Department of Local Government Finance. This form must be filed with the County Assessor within 30 days of the Final Determination from the PTABOA. Along with the Form 131, the taxpayer must submit a copy of the appeal documents filed with the PTABOA and a copy of their determination.

Time for Filing Inheritance Tax Returns
For descendents dying after July 1, 2001, an inheritance tax return is required to be filed within nine months of the date of death rather than one year as was previously required. The Probate Court still has authority to extend the time for filing and to waive the penalty for late filing.

Time for Payment of Inheritance Tax
For descendents dying on or after July 1, 2002, payment of inheritance tax must be made within nine months of the date of death to obtain the fiver percent discount. Payments made more than one year after the date of death are subject to interest from the date of death until the date of payment at ten percent per annum for descendents dying on or after July 1, 2001. The Probate Court still has authority to reduce the amount of interest from ten to six percent.

Time for Payment of Indiana Estate Tax and Indiana Generation Skipping Transfer Tax
Payment of Indiana Estate Tax and Indiana Generation Skipping Transfer Tax is one year after date of death for descendents dying on or after July 1, 2001. For descendents dying earlier, the due date is 18 months after the date of death.

Affidavit of No Inheritance Tax Due
An affidavit of No Inheritance Tax Due may be used to state that, after the exemptions, no inheritance tax is due. Pursuant to 2001 legislation, the Department and the County Assessor may rely on this affidavit in determining whether a transfer of funds will jeopardize collection of inheritance tax and if the County Assessor should allow the transfer of funds.

Family Allowance
The family allowance provided by the I.C. 29-1-4-1 is now $25,000.

Inventory of Sale Deposit Boxes
Lockboxes no longer have to be inventoried at descendent's death.

Exemptions and Rates
Class A Beneficiaries Exemptions:
Adult Child: $100,000
Minor Child: $100,000
Parent: $100,000
Other lineal ancestor or descendent: $100,000

Tax Rates
0 - $25,000:
1% of net taxable value

$25,000 - $49,999:
$250 plus 2% of net over $25,000

Click the forms below to download the PDF version. Requires Adobe Acrobat.

· FORM 130: Petition to the Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals

· FORM 131: Petition to the Department of Local Government Finance

· FORM 133: Petition for Correction of Error

· Power of Attorney Form

· Sales Disclosure Form

Click the forms below to download the PDF version. Requires Adobe Acrobat.

· FORM 105: Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Summary of Returns)

· FORM 104: Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Public)

· FORM 103S: Short Form Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Confidential)

· FORM 103L: Long Form Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Confidential)

· FORM 103C: Consolidated Return - Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Confidential)

· FORM 104C: Consolidated Return - Business Tangible Personal Property Return (Public)

· FORM 103-I: Return for Interstate Carriers

· FORM 133: Petition for Correction of Error

Click the forms below to download the PDF version. Requires Adobe Acrobat.

· Small Estate Affidavit

· Consents to Transfer

Chester Township
Garry Story
7898 S Meridian Rd
Poneto, IN 46781
(260) 694-6891 - Office
(260) 694-6562 - Home

Jackson Township
Marilyn Lieurance
10392 S St. Rd. 3
Montpelier, IN 47359
(765) 348-4610 - Home

Liberty Township
Diane Rockwell
0056 W. First St.
P.O. Box 56
Poneto, IN 46781
(260) 694-6181 - Home

Nottingham Township
Jim Uptgraft
3765 E 750 S
Keystone, IN 46759
(260) 346-2406 - Home

Union Township
Brian Imel
8313 N 600 W
Markle, IN 46770
(260) 758-2426 - Home