3.40.070 Termination of exemption, additional taxes due.
A. If the City of Hood River has granted an exemption under this chapter to property in anticipation of future development, or actual use of property, for low-income housing in connection with the exempt property and finds that the property is being used for any purpose other than the provision of low-income housing, or that any provision of this chapter is not being complied with, the City shall give notice of proposed termination of the exemption to the owner, by mailing the notice to the last-known address of the owner, and to every known lender, by mailing the notice to the last-known address of every known lender.
B. The notice required under this section shall state the reasons for the proposed termination and shall require the owner to appear before the governing body at a specified time, not less than 20 days after mailing the notice, to show cause, if any, why the exemption should not be terminated.
C. If the owner fails to appear and show cause why the exemption should not be terminated, the governing body shall notify every known lender, and shall allow any lender not less than 30 days after the date the notice of the failure to appear and show cause is mailed to cure any noncompliance or to provide assurance adequate to the governing body that all noncompliance will be remedied.
D. If the owner fails to appear and show cause why the exemption should not be terminated, and the lender fails to cure or give adequate assurance of the cure of any noncompliance, the governing body shall adopt a decision stating its findings based upon the evidence in the record and the criteria in HRMC 3.40.030 and terminate the exemption.
E. Within 10 days of the governing body’s decision being reduced to writing, the City shall file a copy of the decision described in this section with the County Assessor, and send a copy of the decision to the owner at the owner’s last-known address and to the lender at the lender’s last-known address.
F. Upon the County Assessor’s receipt of the governing body’s termination decision:
1. The exemption granted the housing unit or portion under ORS 307.540 to 307.548 shall terminate immediately;
2. From that point forward, the property shall be assessed and taxed as other property similarly situated is assessed and taxed; and
3. Notwithstanding ORS 311.235, there shall be added to the general property tax roll for the tax year next following the presentation or discovery, to be collected and distributed in the same manner as other real property tax, an amount equal to the difference between the taxes assessed against the property and the taxes that would have been assessed against the property had it not been exempt under ORS 307.540 to 307.548 for each of the years, not to exceed the last 10 years, during which the property was exempt from taxation under ORS 307.540 to 307.548.
G. Notwithstanding subsection (F) of this section, if at the time of presentation or discovery, the property is no longer exempt, additional taxes may be collected as provided in subsection (F) of this section, except that the number of years for which the additional taxes shall be collected shall be reduced by one year for each year that has elapsed since the year the property was last granted exemption, beginning with the oldest year for which additional taxes are due.
H. The assessment and tax rolls shall show potential additional tax liability for each property granted exemption under ORS 307.540 to 307.548 because the property is being held for future development of low-income housing.
I. Additional taxes collected under this section shall be deemed to have been imposed in the year to which the additional taxes relate. (Ord. 2069 § 1 (Exh. A), 2022)