Ad valorem taxation; bring forward section of law relating to determination of true value of property.
HB 1469 is a Mississippi property tax bill that brings forward Section 27-35-50 of the Mississippi Code for possible amendment. The section governs how assessors determine the “true value” of property for ad valorem taxation, including the valuation methods assessors may use, such as income capitalization, cost, and market data approaches. It also restates the general rule that property value should reflect what a willing buyer would pay and a willing seller would accept, rather than forced-sale value.
The bill preserves and restates special valuation rules for several property categories. Agricultural land continues to be assessed based on current use, with detailed rules on moving averages, capitalization rates, exclusions for government payments and crop insurance, and treatment of conservation program land, hunting and fishing leases, timber, livestock, poultry, and aquaculture. It also retains special appraisal methods for affordable rental housing, requiring valuation based on actual net operating income, and for ground leases at the Mississippi State Port at Gulfport, based on actual net ground rent. The act is set to take effect July 1, 2025.
HB 1469 does not appear to make substantive changes on its face; rather, it carries forward existing law in Section 27-35-50 for possible amendment. As a result, it preserves the statutory framework that county tax assessors and the Department of Revenue use to value property for ad valorem tax purposes, including current-use valuation for certain classes of property and specialized appraisal rules for agricultural land, affordable housing, and port ground leases. If later amended, this section could affect assessed values, tax burdens, and valuation procedures for landowners, farmers, affordable housing owners, and entities leasing property from the Mississippi State Port at Gulfport.
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes in the provided materials, the measure appears procedural and largely noncontroversial. The bill’s purpose is framed as bringing forward an existing code section for possible amendment, which suggests a maintenance or housekeeping action rather than a major policy shift. No opposition, amendments, or recorded vote patterns are available in the provided context.
There is no committee transcript or voting history provided, so no specific points of contention are documented. Potential areas that could draw attention, based on the text alone, include the agricultural valuation formulas, the treatment of affordable rental housing under income-based appraisal rules, and the special valuation method for Mississippi State Port at Gulfport ground leases. Those provisions affect distinct taxpayer groups and could become contentious if future amendments change assessment outcomes or tax liabilities.