(a) Affidavits for the tribal housing exemption shall be filed on or before February 15 of each year with the assessor. Affidavits of claimants shall be accompanied by:
(1) The documents required by subdivision (c) of Section 237.
(2) A description of the property for which the exemption is claimed, including the entire project property and the portion for which exemption is claimed. If the property includes units which do not qualify for the exemption, the description must list the qualifying and nonqualifying units.
(3) An annual affidavit by the claimant that the property for which exemption is claimed meets the income and rental requirements for the exemption and listing the number of occupants in each unit for which the exemption is claimed and the income and rental limits applicable for each household. Annual tenant affidavits verifying household size and income should be on file with the claimant for each exempt unit.
(b) Once the exemption has been granted in a particular county to a particular tribe or tribally designated housing entity, documents establishing that the tribe is federally recognized and that the housing entity has been designated by the tribe need not be resubmitted for additional years or additional properties of that tribe or tribally designated housing entity in the same county.
(c) Once the exemption has been granted for a particular property, it is not necessary to resubmit documents establishing that there is a legally binding restriction on the use of that property in succeeding years for as long as the legally binding restriction is in effect.
(d) Upon any indication that a tribal housing exemption has been incorrectly allowed, the assessor shall make a redetermination of eligibility for the tribal housing exemption. If the assessor determines that the property or any portion thereof is no longer eligible for the exemption, he or she shall immediately cancel the exemption on so much of the property as is no longer eligible for exemption.
(e) If a tribal housing exemption has been incorrectly allowed, an escape assessment as allowed by Article 4 (commencing with Section 531) of Chapter 3 in the amount of the exemption with interest as provided in Section 506 shall be made, together with a penalty for failure to notify the assessor, where applicable, in the amount of 10 percent of the assessment.
(Added by Stats. 2002, Ch. 775, Sec. 16. Effective January 1, 2003.)