Conclusiveness of judgment; changes in value; effect of revaluation program

54:51A-8. a. Conclusiveness of judgment; changes in value; effect of revaluation program. Where a judgment not subject to further appeal has been rendered by the Tax Court involving real property, the judgment shall be conclusive and binding upon the municipal assessor and the taxing district, parties to the proceeding, for the assessment year and for the two assessment years succeeding the assessment year covered by the final judgment, except as to changes in the value of the property occurring after the assessment date. The conclusive and binding effect of the judgment shall terminate with the tax year immediately preceding the year in which a program for a complete revaluation or complete reassessment of all real property within the district has been put into effect. If as of October 1 of the pretax year, the property in question has been the subject of an addition qualifying as an added assessment, a condominium or cooperative conversion, a subdivision or a zoning change, the conclusive and binding effect of such judgment shall terminate with said pretax year.

b. If the assessor increases the assessment or fails to reflect on the tax duplicate a county board of taxation or Tax Court judgment issued prior to the final preparation of the tax duplicate in either of the two years following the year for which the judgment of the Tax Court was rendered and if said judgment is a final judgment not subject to further appeal, the burden of proof is on the taxing district to establish that the assessor acted reasonably in increasing the assessment. If the Tax Court finds that the assessor did not act reasonably in increasing the assessment or failed to reflect said judgment on the tax duplicate, the Tax Court shall award to the taxpayer reasonable counsel fees, appraisal costs and other costs which shall be paid by the taxing district.

c. In the event that a taxpayer is successful in an appeal from an assessment on nonresidential real property, the respective taxing district shall refund any excess taxes paid, less any amount of taxes, interest, and penalties, which may be applied against delinquencies pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1983, c.137 (C.54:4-134), in substantially equal payment periods and substantially equal payment amounts within three years of the date of final judgment.

In the event that a taxpayer is successful in an appeal from an assessment on residential real property, the respective taxing district shall refund any excess taxes paid, less any amount of taxes, interest, and penalties, which may be applied against delinquencies pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1983, c.137 (C.54:4-134) within 60 days of the date of final judgment.

amended 1999, c.208, s.16; 2019, c.230, s.2.