State v. MADISON COUNTY BD. OF SUP'RSState v. MADISON COUNTY BD. OF SUP'RS
Glenn Gates Taylor, Thomas A. Cook, Ridgeland, G. Dewey Hembree, Canton, J. Max Kilpatrick, attorneys for appellees.
EN BANC.
COBB, Presiding Justice, for the Court.
¶ 1. On June 15, 2001, Madison County, acting by and through its Board of Supervisors (the Board), filed in the Madison County Circuit Court a Complaint for Declaratory Judgment and Determination of Rights, naming Herring Appraisal & Computer Services, Inc. (Herring) as the only defendant. Madison County asked for a declaration that it had acted in good faith and that its contract with Herring for reappraisal services was valid. The trial court heard arguments on June 18, 2001, and entered a declaratory judgment that the contract was valid. Three days later, the trial court vacated its previous judgment and set the case for a full hearing, finding that certain issues were not known to the court at the time the judgment was entered. On July 3, the State of Mississippi, by and through the Attorney General and the State Auditor, filed a motion to intervene. A full hearing was held on July 6, 2001.
¶ 2. The trial court determined that Madison County had authority to enter into a contract for appraisal services with Herring without advertising for bids and that the contract between Madison County and Herring was valid. It is from this declaratory judgment and order that the State of Mississippi appeals to this Court, assigning as error the determination that: (1) contracting for appraisal services did not require advertisement for bids and (2) the contract with Herring was a personal service contract.
¶ 3. Because we hold that Madison County was required to advertise for bids and the contract was a not personal service contract, we reverse and remand.
FACTS
¶ 4. In 1980, the Legislature amended several statutes and enacted others in response to public debate over the equalization of property taxes in the state. One of these statutes was
¶ 5. As part of the process for statewide reappraisal, the Commission adopted rules governing the maintenance and updates of appraisals. In August of 1997, the Commission instituted changes to its rule 6, entitled “Standards of Acceptance,” to set forth standards used by the Commission in determining the acceptability of the real and personal property tax rolls for a county. As a result of these changes, all Mississippi counties were required to reappraise property throughout the county, beginning in 1998. A four-year update
¶ 6. Rule 6 further stated that if an assessor or board of supervisors preferred to use a contractor to comply with the new rules, then the board or the tax assessor must take full responsibility to ensure that the contractor is complying with all standards and minimum requirements of the Commission.1
¶ 7. In February of 1998, the Commission informed the Madison County Board of Supervisors (the Board) that Madison County‘s real property tax rolls were not in compliance with the Commission‘s rule 6 guidelines. The Commission required that Madison County submit a plan for achieving compliance within ninety days. As an incentive to become compliant, the Commission advised that Madison County would lose one mill of assessment funds (approx. $500,000) and the withholding of the county‘s homestead reimbursement monies (approx. $1,500,000), if it failed to comply. On April 22, 1998, Madison County, through its Tax Assessor, Gerald Barber, submitted a plan to bring Madison County into compliance by June 2001, which the Commission approved as required under
¶ 8. Subsequent audits were performed to evaluate how well Madison County was implementing the agreed upon plan, and the audits indicated problems with the reappraisals.2 In light of these audits, the Commission entered an order dated October 4, 2000, which held that Madison County‘s Class I and Class II properties3 were not in compliance with the Commission‘s Rule 6 and ordered a new plan to be implemented for Madison County to come into compliance by July 2002.
¶ 9. In light of this new plan, Madison County decided to consider firms outside of its own resources to do the reappraisal work and contacted the Commission for a list of companies that perform reappraisal work in Mississippi. The Commission asserts that the purpose of this list, although provided when requested, was not a list of appraisers that it recommended, but a list of appraisers to whom information needed to be sent whenever changes to state property manuals were made. Many of the contractors on this list had not been certified by the Commission under its certification program. In the proceedings below, the trial court found that the Board requested that the Commission provide the Board with a list of firms that provide reappraisal services. The Commission provided that list, and Herring was one of the firms on the list.
¶ 10. In October and November of 2000, Madison County negotiated with Herring to perform the remainder of the appraisal work, for an initial figure of $500,000. On November 28, 2000, the Tax Assessor and Herring met to further expound on how much work would need to be done and discuss the cost in a little more detail. The price was approximately $745,000 at
¶ 11. On December 5, 2000, the Tax Assessor, concerned with the substantial increase in cost from the beginning estimates, made a counter-offer to Herring for $776,825 and added some detail into the terms. On December 8, 2000, during a phone call with Herring, the Tax Assessor discovered that the Board had already approved the $900,000 proposal, so he prepared a contract with the $900,000 price and finalized the deal. This contract was let to Herring without seeking any proposals or bids from other contractors. The Board did not require Herring to post a bond until July 6, 2001, the date of the circuit court hearing. Herring was not a licensed appraiser.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
¶ 12. In Aikerson v. State, 274 So. 2d 124, 127 (Miss. 1973), this Court said: “It is a general rule in construing statutes this Court will not only interpret the words used, but will consider the purpose and policy which the legislature had in view of enacting the law. The Court will then give effect to the intent of the legislature. State Highway Comm‘n v. Coahoma County, 203 Miss. 629, 32 So. 2d 555, 37 So. 2d 287 (1947).”
ANALYSIS
I. Whether the trial court erred in determining that the Board was not required to advertise for bids when contracting for reappraisal services.
¶ 13. Determination of the issues now before us turns on the application and interpretation of three statutes pertaining to contracts for land appraisal entered into by the Madison County Board of Supervisors and Herring Appraisal and Computer Services, Inc. The first is
¶ 14. The State argues that the contract between Madison County and Herring is illegal and void due to the failure of the Board to publish notice and receive bids pursuant to the requirements of
The board of supervisors of any county in this state is hereby authorized in its discretion, to have the cultivatable, uncultivatable, or timbered lands of any owner, or of the entire county or any part thereof, surveyed and the acreage thereof determined and the value of the lands and of any timber, buildings or
improvements thereon appraised by a competent person or persons, to be selected by the board of supervisors, the cost thereof to be paid from the general county fund. The board of supervisors of any county is hereby authorized to have the lots and blocks or other tracts in the municipalities of the county surveyed and the area determined, and the valuation thereof and of any buildings, structures, or other improvements thereon, appraised for the purpose of taxation in the same manner and at the same time that lands outside of municipalities are surveyed and appraised. In case a survey and appraisal is ordered, at least thirty (30) days’ notice by publication shall be given and competitive bids received for the work.
(emphasis added).
¶ 15. The State cites Lewis v. Mass Appraisal Services, Inc., 396 So. 2d 35 (Miss. 1981),4 asserting that
¶ 16. Alternatively, the State argues that even if the Board was not required to follow the mandates of
¶ 17. Madison County responds that, in this particular situation,
No county shall expend funds for the reappraisal of property unless the
plans for reappraisal or the contract for reappraisal is in conformity with the then existing rules and regulations of the state tax commission and has been approved by the state tax commission. Such reappraisal may be accomplished by (a) contracting with private firms for performance of the work; (b) hiring private consultants to perform certain functions of the work along with overseeing the balance of the work which shall be performed by county employees trained by the consultant; or (c) employing, schooling and training county employees to perform all of the work under the supervision of the tax assessor. All contracts made pursuant to item (a) above shall require that the contractor furnish a payment and performance bond in an amount not less than one hundred percent (100%) of the contract price, which bond shall be conditioned, in part, to guarantee successful completion of the contract and may be conditioned upon payment of the cost of defense of any suits which may be brought against the county, the board of supervisors or the assessor arising out of such reappraisal for a period of one (1) year after completion thereof.
(emphasis added).
¶ 18. Madison County contends that it had the authority to enter into the contract with Herring pursuant to
¶ 19. Because this case involves interpretation of statutes with very little case law to guide us, we look to the rules of statutory construction, and based on those rules we find Madison County‘s arguments unconvincing. The most fundamental rule of statutory construction is the plain meaning rule, which provides that if a statute is not ambiguous, then this Court must apply the statute according to its terms. City of Natchez v. Sullivan, 612 So. 2d 1087, 1089 (Miss. 1992). Another related rule is the doctrine of in pari materia, which provides that if a statute is ambiguous, then this Court must resolve the ambiguity by applying the statute consistently with other statutes dealing with the same or similar subject matter. James v. State, 731 So. 2d 1135, 1138 (Miss. 1999).
¶ 20. When the county board of supervisors orders an appraisal of real property for taxation purposes,
¶ 21. These statutes unquestionably pertain to the same subject matter and
¶ 22. A third rule of statutory construction is that a specific statute controls over a general statute. Miss. Gaming Comm‘n v. Imperial Palace of Miss., Inc., 751 So. 2d 1025, 1028 (Miss. 1999); Lenoir v. Madison County, 641 So. 2d 1124, 1127 (Miss. 1994); Townsend v. Estate of Gilbert, 616 So. 2d 333, 335 (Miss. 1993); Benoit v. United Cos. Mortg. of Miss., Inc., 504 So. 2d 196, 198 (Miss. 1987). This rule applies only when statutes are irreconcilably inconsistent. Miss. Gaming Comm‘n v. Imperial Palace of Miss., Inc., 751 So. 2d at 1028 (citations omitted). We find that the subject statutes are not irreconcilably inconsistent.
¶ 23. In the instant case,
¶ 24. Based on our analysis of the applicable statutes, we hold that Madison County was required to comply with the advertising-for-bids provisions of
II. Whether the trial court erred in determining that the contract was valid as a personal service contract.
¶ 25.
The board of supervisors of each county may, in its discretion, contract with certain professionals when the board determines that such professional services are necessary and in the best interest of the county ...
A professional within the meaning of this section shall be limited to:
(f) Appraisers, licensed by the Mississippi Real Estate Commission or as otherwise provided by law;
(emphasis added).
¶ 26. The State points out that this statute clearly causes the contract at hand to be invalid, as neither Herring nor his employees are licensed as the statute requires.
¶ 27. Madison County points to
¶ 28. We do not agree.
CONCLUSION
¶ 29. We hold that
¶ 30. REVERSED AND REMANDED.
SMITH, C.J., WALLER, P.J., EASLEY, CARLSON, GRAVES, DICKINSON AND RANDOLPH, JJ., CONCUR. DIAZ, J., NOT PARTICIPATING.