A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to exempt Commercial burial property from property taxes.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 105‑278.2 reads as rewritten:
"§ 105‑278.2.  Burial property.
(a)	Commercial Property. – Real property set apart for burial purposes owned and held for purposes of (i) sale or rental or (ii) sale of burial rights therein is exempted from taxation. If property set apart for burial purposes under this subsection no longer qualifies as burial property, the tax exemption is forfeited. Property set apart for burial purposes under this subsection no longer qualifies when that property is sold, conveyed, leased, encumbered, or disposed of for a purpose other than burial purposes. The taxpayer must notify the Department within 14 days of the forfeiture. A taxpayer that forfeits the tax exemption under this subsection is liable for all past taxes avoided on the forfeited property plus interest at the rate established under G.S. 105‑241.21, computed from the date the taxes would have been due if the exemption had not been allowed. The past taxes and interest are due 30 days after the date the exemption is forfeited; a taxpayer that fails to pay the past taxes and interest by the due date is subject to the penalties provided in G.S. 105‑236.
(b)	Other Property. – Real property not held for the purposes listed in subsection (a) of this section that is set apart for burial purposes is exempted from taxation. A county cannot deny the exemption provided under this subsection to a taxpayer that lacks a survey or plat detailing the exempt property.

	
(c)	Terms. – For purposes of this section, the term "burial" includes entombment, and the term "real property" includes any of the following on the burial property:
(1)	Land.
(2)	Tombs, vaults, monuments, or mausoleums.
(3)	Buildings, structures, improvements, or permanent fixtures."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 105‑282.1 reads as rewritten:
"§ 105‑282.1.  Applications for property tax exemption or exclusion; annual review of property exempted or excluded from property tax.
(a)	Application. – Every owner of property claiming exemption or exclusion from property taxes under the provisions of this Subchapter has the burden of establishing that the property is entitled to it. If the property for which the exemption or exclusion is claimed is appraised by the Department of Revenue, the application shall be filed with the Department. Otherwise, the application shall be filed with the assessor of the county in which the property is situated. An application must contain a complete and accurate statement of the facts that entitle the property to the exemption or exclusion and must indicate the municipality, if any, in which the property is located. Each application filed with the Department of Revenue or an assessor shall be submitted on a form approved by the Department. Application forms shall be made available by the assessor and the Department, as appropriate.
Except as provided below, an owner claiming an exemption or exclusion from property taxes must file an application for the exemption or exclusion annually during the listing period.
(1)	No application required. – Owners of the following exempt or excluded property do not need to file an application for the exemption or exclusion to be entitled to receive it:
a.	Property exempt from taxation under G.S. 105‑278.1 or G.S. 105‑278.2(b).
…
(2)	Single application required. – An owner of one or more of the following properties eligible for a property tax benefit must file an application for the benefit to receive it. Once the application has been approved, the owner does not need to file an application in subsequent years unless new or additional property is acquired or improvements are added or removed, necessitating a change in the valuation of the property, or there is a change in the use of the property or the qualifications or eligibility of the taxpayer necessitating a review of the benefit.
a.	Property exempted from taxation under G.S. 105‑278.2(a), 105‑278.3, 105‑278.4, 105‑278.5, 105‑278.6, 105‑278.7, or 105‑278.8.
…."
SECTION 3.  This act is effective for taxes imposed for taxable years beginning on or after July 1, 2020.