Property Tax Certification

Exam Application Process All designation tracks, with the exception of Support Staff, are required to take a comprehensive certification exam in order to achieve admission into their individual designation. All comprehensive certification exams will be held in March of the fiscal year. All exam announcements will be mailed in early December to the elected officials of each county by the Center for Governmental Services at Auburn University. All applications for admission to candidacy to a designation must be signed by the appropriate official responsible for the administration of that program (eg. Tax Assessor/Collector, Revenue Commissioner, Property Tax Division Director). Property Tax Exam Applications must be returned to the Center for Governmental Services by the end of January on a date set by the Joint Education Advisory Committee and the Center for Governmental Services. In February, the Joint Education Advisory Committee’s “Candidacy Review Committee” will review all exam applications and give approval to those qualified applicants. It will also approve all applications for the three-year experience requirement at this time. It will be the responsibility of the Department of Revenue to send notification to all applicants as to their status of approval. At the time of confirmation of approval to candidacy, the Center for Governmental Services will also mail to each candidate a study guide for their individual designation. Requirements to Apply for Certification The certification examination for Alabama Certified Appraiser of Real Property, Alabama Certified Appraiser of Personal Property, Alabama Certified Mapper, and Alabama Certified Tax Administrator is administered annually in March. A minimum of three years experience in the field of designation choice is required while the official job title of candidates for designation will not be considered in determining eligibility for candidacy. Effective March 2002, all candidates taking the comprehensive exam, who have not previously taken the exam, must meet the three year experience requirement. Effective March 2003, all candidates must meet the three-year experience requirement in order to take the comprehensive exam. Exam Applications must be signed by the Immediate Supervisor and the Elected Official. Candidates for a designation must be found by the Department of Revenue to have three years of qualifying experience, as of the application closing date, to include the performance of the full range of responsibilities in the discipline for which they are seeking designation. Successful completion of the minimum hours of approved coursework is required for each individual designation track. “Approved coursework” is defined as classroom attendance with a proctored exam. Admission approval by the “Candidacy Review Committee” is required. Successful completion of a comprehensive examination for the designation track is also required. Unsuccessful candidates must wait one year and successfully complete an additional course, which is selected by the Department of Revenue and Center for Governmental Services, before re-examination. Requirements for Recertification Upon completion of all requirements and certification has been achieved, in order to remain in good standing, individuals must meet recertification requirements. Courses taken prior to the award of the ACA, ACTA, and ACM designation may not be used to meet the recertification requirements. Thirty hours of approved courses must be completed every three years to maintain certification. If a tested course is taken, the examination for that course must be passed in order for any credit to apply. Continuing education course hours for recertification must be obtained by March 31 of the third year. Courses taken prior to the award of the individual designation may not be used to meet the recertification requirements. Credit toward recertification hours will generally not be given if a course is taken a second time. However, credit may be given if: (a) the course is determined by the JEAC to have undergone substantial revision; or (b) the course is sponsored by an Appraisal Foundation member organization, and the sponsoring organization allows credit towards their certification when courses are taken a second time. Of the thirty hours required for recertification, fifteen hours credit is allowed for courses and workshops offered by the JEAC, AAAO, AATA, or other approved associations in which there is no examination, also called untested credit. The remaining fifteen hours credit must be from courses and workshops approved by the JEAC in which an examination is given. Participants may carry over no more than a total of thirty hours of coursework to the next three-year period. Fifteen of these hours must be tested. Hours eligible for rollover may not be extended to future certification periods.