Public Utility Appeal Process

The Kansas utility property tax filings are required to be made on or before March 20. Appraisals are completed as soon as possible and a notice of the Unit Value is sent to the companies by electronic mail. The process of valuation, appeal conference, certification and distribution to the counties must be completed by June 1.

If there is objection to the "noticed" Unit Value, the Company may request an informal conference (a conference not subject to court procedure) for the purpose of providing documented evidence as to the opinion of the unit value. If the objection is a clerical error or error of omission by the company or the state, it may be corrected without a conference but such errors must be noted prior to certification to the county clerk.

Requests for conferences must be made in writing within 15 days of the date of the "noticed" Unit Value and any documentation or written evidence to be presented at the conference must be received by the Division no less than two days prior to the conference. A conference may be scheduled by contacting the Manager of the State Appraised Property Bureau.

Notification of the date and time for the conferences is made by electronic mail. Conferences are meant to be brief and to the point and are promptly followed by a formal finding of the Director in the form of a "new" notice conveying the reaffirmation of the original Unit Value or an amended Unit Value. This second "notice" is not subject to an informal conference.

Companies have thirty days from receipt of the "Unit Value" notice (original or amended) to file a notice of appeal with the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals (BOTA). Failure to request an informal conference does not bar the utility from filing a notice of appeal with BOTA. The BOTA sets a time and place for a de novo hearing. Such hearings are conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Kansas administrative procedures act. Utility companies requesting such hearings may be required to obtain Kansas counsel.

The Board of Tax Appeals may be contacted:
On the web at - https://www.kansas.gov/bota/
By telephone at - 785-296-2388
By fax at - 785-296-6690
By Email: bota.maildesk@ks.gov

By mail at:
Kansas Board of Tax Appeals
Eisenhower State Office Building
700 S.W. Harrison St. , Suite 1022
Topeka, KS 66603