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Regular Agenda Item 3. A.
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| Regular BOS Meeting |
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| Information |
| Request/Subject |
| Request to contract with the Law Firm or Helm, Livesay & Worthington, Ltd. to represent Gila County in tax court matters known as "Continental Energy Cases." |
| Background Information |
Taxpayers, which consisted of solar power companies, sought declaratory judgment that solar energy panels they leased and installed on their customers' property were not taxable. The Arizona Tax Court, Maricopa County, entered summary judgment in favor of Department of Revenue in part and in favor of taxpayers in part. Taxpayers and Department appealed. The Court of Appeals, Howe, J., affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded in part.
The Arizona Supreme Court ruled in March 2018, that the Arizona Department of Revenue is not authorized to value solar panels owned by Continental Energy and leased to residential and commercial property owners. It remanded the cases to the Tax Court for a determination as to whether A.R.S. Section 42-13054 authorizes county assessors to value the solar panels and, if so, whether section 42-1105(C)(2) requires a zero valuation.
This agenda item was on the Board of Supervisors' October 30th meeting agenda. Since Jeff Dalton, Deputy County Attorney, Civil Bureau Chief, was not able to attend the meeting to present the information, the Board tabled taking action on the item until the next Regular Meeting, which is November 13th. |
| Evaluation |
The Gila County Board of Supervisors previously authorized the Arizona Attorney General's Office to represent the County's interests in the previous litigation.
Various counties are coordinating their defense efforts regarding representation at Tax Court. The Law Firm of Helm, Livesay & Worthington, Ltd. represents several counties, including Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, and Coconino Counties. If Gila County joins the group, it would pay a prorated portion of the fee based on the amount of full cash value each county has in personal property values derived from solar energy equipment. Gila County's portion would be approximately 5 percent of the total fee. |
| Conclusion |
| The Gila County Attorney's Office believes that it is wise for the County to retain a tax expert to represent its interests in the Continental Energy cases and that it is wise to join other counties and retain the same law firm. The portion of legal fees the County would pay will be small. |
| Recommendation |
| The Gila County Attorney's Office recommends that the Gila County Board of Supervisors retain the Law Firm of Helm, Livesay & Worthington, Ltd. to represent Gila County in the Continental Energy cases. |
| Suggested Motion |
| Information/Discussion/Action to approve a Legal Representation Agreement with the Law Firm of Helm, Livesay & Worthington, Ltd. to represent Gila County in the Continental Energy cases. (Jeff Dalton) |
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