Southern Pacific Transportation Co. v. State Board of Equalization

This is an action by Southern Pacific Transportation Company (Southern Pacific) to obtain a refund of property taxes it paid for the year 1977 predicated upon its claim that the State Board of Equalization (Board) illegally assessed its property. (Rev. & Tax. Code, §5140.) The Board was granted a summary judgment and Southern Pacific appeals. We will hold that the Board failed to give Southern Pacific fair notice of the method or methods, if any, by which it assessed the value of its property, sufficient to permit Southern Pacific to challenge the assessment in administrative proceedings before the Board. That conclusion compels the reversal of the summary judgment with directions to the trial court to remand the case to the Board for further proceedings.

Facts and Proceedings

On May 24,1977, the Board assessed the fair market value of the property of Southern Pacific for the year 1977, as unitary property,* in the amount of $715 million. The Board sent a notice of the assessment to Southern Pacific setting forth that amount, accompanied by a single page containing appraisal data prepared by the Board staff. The data included six methods of valuing the property, the…