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Friday, September 28, 2012

Challenging the Fee and Claiming a Refund from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association

You must pay your bill.  PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE DUE DATE.  You may have fewer than 30 days to pay.  If you are late, steep penalties and interest are compounded monthly.  Moreover, the fee is a lien on your property, and failure to pay can result in foreclosure.
We at the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association believe this fee is really an illegal tax under Proposition 13.  We plan to challenge the constitutionality of this tax in court.
Should we prevail, the court may order refunds.  To qualify for a refund you must have paid your bill and filed a “Petition for Redetermination” with the responsible agencies.
For convenience, we have posted the form below with the grounds for challenging the fee already filled in.  Page 2 contains instructions for completing the form.
When you pay your fee, we recommend that you write “under protest” on the notation line of your check.  Also, make a copy of the check so that you can enclose it with your Petition for Redetermination form, as proof of payment.
Although only one address appears at the bottom of the form, state law actually requires that you submit the form to three different addresses.  You must submit it WITHIN 30 DAYS OF THE DATE OF YOUR BILL to the three addresses below:
  1. Fire Prevention Petitions, P.O. Box 2254, Suisun City, CA 94585
  2. Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, P.O. Box 944246, Sacramento, CA 94244
  3. Board of Equalization, P.O. Box 942879, Sacramento, CA 94279
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