Railroad property; statement by railroad company not conclusive; taxable value; distribution; valuation per mile; how determined
The returns of railroad companies or corporations shall not be held to be conclusive as to the taxable value of the property, but the Property Tax Administrator shall, from all the information which he or she is able to obtain, including records of the Public Service Commission or other regulatory body, find the taxable value of all such property, including tangible property and franchises, and shall assess such property on the same basis as other property is required to be assessed. The taxable value of the railroad companies allocated to the state shall be distributed as follows:
(1) Five percent shall be distributed to all taxing subdivisions where the railroad company has investment in general office buildings or machine and repair facilities proportionate to the company's investment in general office buildings and machine and repair facilities in the state; and
(2) The balance shall be distributed to all taxing subdivisions including cities and villages based on a formula in which fifty percent of the valuation is based on miles of main track and sidetrack and fifty percent of the valuation is based on density factor on miles of main track and sidetrack. The value per mile of sidetrack shall equal the value of the line divided by the following quantity: The number of miles of sidetrack plus two times the number of miles of main track. The value per mile of main track shall equal twice the value per mile of sidetrack as computed in this section. For purposes of Chapter 77, article 6, the reference to sidetrack shall include all track not properly designated as main track and shall include, but not be limited to, passing track, yard track, and track within terminals. Main track shall be defined as that track over which regularly scheduled railroad operations are conducted. Density factor shall be determined by ton-miles traveled over a route, measured by the number of tons of revenue freight moved one mile.