The Fayetteville School District on Monday asked for a rehearing from the Arkansas Supreme Court following an unsuccessful appeal in a dispute over property taxes paid to the district by the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
The court on Feb. 4 affirmed a circuit court's earlier ruling that Washington County should refund UA $28,205.03 in taxes the university paid under protest on 11 parcels in 2011, 2012, and 2013.
The school district had joined Washington County in the appeal of the earlier ruling. The district receives roughly 80 percent of the property tax dollars collected from UA, Washington County Assessor Russell Hill has said.
The petition states that the court "allowed to fall by the wayside" the importance of whether UA-owned property is used for public purposes. It also states that the court failed to clarify whether other UA property may be taxed, as the court stated that the ruling applies to the "narrow issue" of specific parcels listed in the case yet also remarked about state-owned property being immune from ad valorem taxation.
Not participating in the Feb. 4 opinion were Chief Justice Howard Brill, a UA law professor, and Associate Justice Courtney Goodson, who is married to John Goodson, a member of the UA System's board of trustees.
Metro on 02/23/2016