A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require the counties to accept electronic listing of property for property tax purposes.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 105‑304(a1) reads as rewritten:
"(a1)	Electronic Listing. – The county assessor must publish the information for electronic listing of personal property authorized under G.S. 105‑311, including the timetable and procedures for electronic listing of personal property, in the notice required by G.S. 105‑296(c)."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 105‑311 reads as rewritten:
"§ 105‑311.  Listing and signing affirmation; use of agents, mail, and electronic listing.
(a)	Except as otherwise provided in this section, the person whose duty it is to list property for taxation shall file the completed abstract with the assessor for purposes of listing and shall sign the affirmation required by G.S. 105‑310 to be annexed to the completed abstract on which the property is listed. A return must be filed with the assessor on a form prescribed by the North Carolina Department of Revenue.
(1)	In the case of an individual taxpayer who is unable to list his property, a guardian, authorized agent, or other person having knowledge of and charged with the care of the person and property of the taxpayer shall return the completed abstract for purposes of listing and shall sign the required affirmation in the name of the taxpayer, noting thereon the capacity in which he signs.
(2)	In the case of a corporation, partnership, or unincorporated association, a person specified in sub‑subdivision a., b., or c. below, shall return the completed abstract to the assessor for purposes of listing the taxpayer's property and shall sign the required affirmation in the name of the taxpayer, noting thereon the capacity in which he signs, and no other agent shall be permitted to sign the affirmation required on such a taxpayer's abstract:
a.	A principal officer of the taxpayer.
b.	A full‑time employee of the taxpayer who has been officially empowered by a principal officer of the taxpayer in his behalf to list the taxpayer's property for taxation in the county and to sign the affirmation annexed to the abstract or abstracts on which its property is listed.
c.	An authorized agent of the taxpayer.
	 
(b)	Abstracts may be submitted in person, by mail, or electronically.
(1)	In no event shall an abstract submitted by mail be accepted unless the affirmation on the abstract is signed by the individual prescribed in subsection (a) of this section.  For the purpose of this Subchapter, abstracts submitted by mail are considered filed as of the date shown on the postmark affixed by the United States Postal Service. If no date is shown on the postmark, or if the postmark is not affixed by the United States Postal Service, the abstract is considered filed when received in the office of the assessor.
(2)	An electronic listing may be signed electronically in accordance with the Electronic Commerce Act, Article 11A of Chapter 66 of the General Statutes. Electronically submitted abstracts must be submitted by a method approved by the Department. The Department may from time to time publish requirements for electronic submission. Abstracts submitted by electronic listing are considered filed when received in the office of the assessor as denoted by timestamps applied by the receiving equipment or programs.
(c)	In any dispute arising under this Subchapter, the burden of proof is on the taxpayer to show that the abstract was timely filed."
SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective January 1, 2012.