Acquisition of jurisdiction by superior court in ad valorem property tax litigation; payment and distribution of property taxes; excess payments; underpayments.

(b) Ad valorem taxes due under this Code section shall be paid to the tax collector or tax commissioner of the county where the property is located. If the property is located within any municipality, the portion of the payment due the municipality shall be paid to the officer designated by the municipality to collect ad valorem taxes.

(c) All taxes paid to the county tax collector or tax commissioner under this Code section shall be distributed to the state, county, county schools, and any other applicable taxing districts in the same proportion as the millage rate for each bears to the total millage rate applicable to the property for the current year. If the total millage rate has not been determined for the current year, the distribution shall be made on the basis of the millage rates established for the immediately preceding year.

(d) Any payment made by the taxpayer in accordance with this Code section which is in excess of his or her finally determined tax liability shall be refunded to the taxpayer. If the amount finally determined to be the tax liability of the taxpayer exceeds the amount paid under this Code section, the taxpayer shall be liable for the amount of the difference between the amount of tax paid and the amount of tax owed. The amount of difference shall be subject to the interest provided under subsection (g) of Code Section 48-5-311. History. Ga. L. 1976, p. 1154, §§ 1-4; Code 1933, § 91A-1029, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 309, § 2; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1857, § 12; Ga. L. 2014, p. 672, § 2/HB 755. Law reviews. For article, “Procedure and Problems in Georgia Ad Valorem Tax Appeals,” see 26 Ga. St. B.J. 98 (1990). JUDICIAL DECISIONS What taxes must be paid to satisfy jurisdictional requirement. — Statute supersedes the rule that a taxpayer need only tender the amount of taxes admitted to be due as the taxes become due. North By N.W. Civic Ass'n v. Cates, 241 Ga. 39, 243 S.E.2d 32, 1978 Ga. LEXIS 876, cert. denied, 439 U.S. 838, 99 S. Ct. 123, 58 L. Ed. 2d 134, 1978 U.S. LEXIS 2766 (1978). Penalties and interest became part of the “ad valorem taxes assessed against the property” such that tender of the past due principal only was insufficient to vest jurisdiction in the superior court for purposes of an ad valorem property tax appeal. Bannister v. Douglas County Bd. of Tax Assessors, 219 Ga. App. 68, 464 S.E.2d 29, 1995 Ga. App. LEXIS 943 (1995). Trial court order dismissing the taxpayers’ appeal of the 2006 ad valorem valuation of certain real property was vacated and the case was remanded to the trial court to determine if the taxpayers had paid a sufficient amount of the 2005 taxes to cure the jurisdictional defect under O.C.G.A. § 48-5-29(a), or whether the defect could no longer be cured. Lake Erma, LLC v. Henry County Bd. of Tax Assessors, 298 Ga. App. 733, 681 S.E.2d 188, 2009 Ga. App. LEXIS 746 (2009), cert. denied, No. S09C1880, 2010 Ga. LEXIS 25 (Ga. Jan. 12, 2010). Cure of jurisdictional defect before motion to dismiss is filed. — When a jurisdictional defect, a failure to pay taxes based on the previous year’s assessment prior to filing suit, is cured by the time the defendants’ motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction is filed, the trial court has jurisdiction. Allright Parking of Ga., Inc. v. Joint City-County Bd. of Tax Assessors, 244 Ga. 378, 260 S.E.2d 315, 1979 Ga. LEXIS 1245 (1979). Statute does not apply to a complaint filed as a “class return” by taxpayers for the limited purpose of requiring the county board of tax assessors to enter into class arbitration with the taxpayers. A decision in the case will not determine tax liability, taxability of property, valuation of property, or uniformity of assessments for ad valorem property taxes. It merely determines whether the taxpayers may have class arbitration. Callaway v. Carswell, 240 Ga. 579, 242 S.E.2d 103, 1978 Ga. LEXIS 715 (1978). Failure to comply with O.C.G.A. § 48-5-29(a). — Trial court did not err in dismissing for lack of jurisdiction the taxpayers’ action seeking an interlocutory injunction to prohibit a county tax commissioner from collecting upon tax fi. fas. issued against their personal property based on their failure to pay ad valorem property taxes because the taxpayers were required to comply with O.C.G.A. § 48-5-29(a), but the taxpayers did not pay all of their taxes; the taxpayers could not circumvent the requirement of § 48-5-29(a) by characterizing their complaint as a constitutional “due process” action rather than one arising under the Revenue Code because the complaint was squarely aimed at challenging their ad valorem property tax assessments. Coffman Grading Co. v. Forsyth County, 303 Ga. App. 836, 695 S.E.2d 310, 2010 Ga. App. LEXIS 415 (2010). Although the trial court correctly held that taxpayers had to pay certain taxes pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 48-5-29(a), the court erred in failing to hold an evidentiary hearing to determine the amount taxpayers owed; because the taxpayers challenged the ad valorem taxes on the property for the years 2004 through 2008, the last year for which taxes were finally determined to be due was 2003, and in order for the trial court to entertain the action, the taxpayers had to pay an amount equal to the 2003 ad valorem taxes on the property for each of the challenged years, less the value of property already seized. Coffman Grading Co. v. Forsyth County, 303 Ga. App. 836, 695 S.E.2d 310, 2010 Ga. App. LEXIS 415 (2010). O.C.G.A. § 48-5-29(d) provides for a refund with interest. Clayton County Bd. of Tax Assessors v. City of Atlanta, 299 Ga. App. 233, 682 S.E.2d 328, 2009 Ga. App. LEXIS 863 (2009). Procedure pending appeal. — If, under O.C.G.A. § 48-2-18, a utility had both subsection (c) and subsection (d) appeals proceeding simultaneously, and a local appeal was still pending when the subsection (c) appeal was concluded, the provisions for the payment of taxes during the pendency of an appeal would apply. Telecom*USA, Inc. v. Collins, 260 Ga. 362, 393 S.E.2d 235, 1990 Ga. LEXIS 268 (1990). RESEARCH REFERENCES C.J.S. 84 C.J.S., Taxation, § 888 et seq. 85 C.J.S., Taxation, § 1204 et seq.