Assessment Act- Sections 13 to 17- Have No Power or consequences
Most Taxpayers ignore BC Assessment’s Information Requests at least until April 30th- the annual Appeal Board cutoff date. Currently there are no penalties or consequences, for anyone, that doesn’t comply with information requests. You may be “committing an offence,” but NOTHING will happen.
All industry insiders know that BC Assessment will never enter your property or seize your records without your consent and there’s no punishment for not complying. Once tried in the 1990’s, it created such serious political blowback, BC Assessment has never tried again.
These are the relevant sections of the current Assessment Act. Found at - http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96020_01
Part 2 — Inspections and Returns
Definition
13.1 In this Part, "authorized person" means any of the following:
(a)the assessor;
(b)an appraiser;
(c)any other employee of the assessment authority who is authorized by the assessment authority.
Inspections and assessment powers
14 An authorized person may, for any purposes relating to assessment, enter into or on and inspect land and improvements.
Return of information
15 (1)[Repealed 2007-13-9.]
(2)Before or after the completion of the assessment roll, an authorized person may, by notice served personally or sent by mail, require a person who owns, occupies or disposes of property to provide to the authorized person, within 21 days or a longer period specified in the notice, information for any purpose related to the administration of this Act.
(3)A person who does not provide information as required by notice under subsection (2) commits an offence.
(4)An authorized person is not bound by the information provided, but may, if the authorized person has reason to doubt its accuracy, assess the property in the manner and for the amount the authorized person believes to be correct.
Power to examine property and accounts
16 (1)An authorized person may enter on any premises and may examine any property
(a)to determine an assessment of land and improvements, in respect of which the authorized person thinks a person may be liable to assessment, or
(b)to confirm an assessment.
(2)An authorized person must be given access to, and may examine and take copies of and extracts from, the books, accounts, vouchers, documents and appraisals of the person referred to in subsection (1), who must, on request, furnish every facility and assistance required for the entry and examination.
(3)An authorized person, a member of a review panel, a member of the board or any other person who has custody or control of information or records obtained or created under this Act must not disclose the information or records to any other person except
(a)in the course of administering this Act or performing functions under it,
(b)in proceedings before a review panel, the board or a court of law,
(c)in accordance with subsection (4), or
(d)in accordance with a regulation under subsection (6).
(4)An authorized person may disclose to the agent of a property owner confidential information relating to the property if the disclosure has been authorized in the prescribed form by the owner or, if a form has not been prescribed for the property class, authorized in writing by the owner.
(5)An agent must not use information disclosed under subsection (4) except for the purposes authorized by the owner in the form or writing referred to in that subsection.
(6)The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations respecting the disclosure of information obtained or created under this Act, including, without limitation, information respecting the declared value, financing and physical characteristics of property.
Assessor to be advised of sales, etc.
17 (1)If land of the Crown or treaty lands have been leased, granted or sold, the minister of the relevant ministry, or the representative designated by the treaty first nation by notice in writing to the assessment authority, as the case may be, must immediately advise the assessor of the assessment area in which the land is located, the name and address of the lessee, grantee or purchaser, the legal description, consideration and other details of the transfer.
(2)All public officers and officers and employees of Crown corporations and agencies, and individuals occupying similar positions with a treaty first nation or a public institution of a treaty first nation, must, on the written request of an authorized person, provide without fee all information as may be requested to complete assessments under this Act.