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HomeEducation CodeCh. 6Art. 1§ 16081 School Tax Refund Adjustments

§ 16081 School Tax Refund Adjustments

Education Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 16081 School Tax Refund Adjustments

If a school district gets a tax refund because some property was found to be exempt and that exempt property is at least 1% of the district’s total value, the state will lower the district’s next‑year repayment and the amount taken from the State School Fund by the same amount it would have saved if the exempt property had never been counted in the first place.

Key Takeaways

  • •Refunds for exempt property that is 1% or more of the district’s value trigger a future repayment cut.
  • •The cut equals the amount the repayment would have been lower if the exempt property had never been counted.
  • •The reduction is applied to both the district’s annual repayment and the amount taken from the State School Fund for the next fiscal year.

Example

A district collected school taxes on a commercial building that later turned out to be owned by a nonprofit, so the building was exempt. The building’s value was $150,000 and the district’s total assessed value was $12,000,000 (1.25%). The district got a refund for the taxes paid on that building.

Because the exempt building made up more than 1% of the district’s total value, the Controller will cut the district’s repayment for the next fiscal year by the amount the repayment would have been lower if the building’s $150,000 had never been included in the original valuation.

How to Calculate

Reduction = (Exempt Property Assessed Value ÷ Total Assessed Valuation) × Annual Repayment

  1. Find the assessed value of the property that was declared exempt.
  2. Find the total assessed valuation of the school district for the year the taxes were levied.
  3. Divide the exempt value by the total valuation to get the percentage that should have been excluded.
  4. Multiply that percentage by the district’s annual repayment amount.
  5. Subtract the result from the repayment and from the amount deducted from the State School Fund for the next fiscal year.

The district’s total assessed valuation was $10,000,000. An exempt parcel was valued at $200,000 (2%). The district’s annual repayment to the state is $500,000.

Result: Reduction = (200,000 ÷ 10,000,000) × 500,000 = 0.02 × 500,000 = $10,000. The Controller will lower the repayment and the State School Fund deduction by $10,000 for the next fiscal year.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 16081 School Tax Refund Adjustments

Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, whenever in any fiscal year, pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 5096), Part 9, Division 1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, a refund is made or a judgment rendered, as the case may be, for the return of an amount collected as school district taxes levied during a previous year upon secured or unsecured personal property, because it was determined that such property was exempt from taxation, and such property so determined to be exempt equals 1 percent, or more, of the assessed valuation in the school district upon which school district taxes for such previous year were levied, the Controller shall reduce the annual repayment of the district and the amount deducted from the State School Fund apportionment of such district for the fiscal year next succeeding that in which such refund was made or judgment rendered, by that amount by which the annual repayment and deduction of the district would have been reduced for the fiscal year next succeeding that in which such taxes were levied had the assessed valuation upon which such annual repayment was computed not included an amount of assessed valuation equal to the amount of assessed valuation of the property so determined to be exempt. The amount of annual repayment and deduction, reduced as required by this section, shall be the amount deducted by the Controller for the purposes of Sections 16080, 16089 and 16090 for the fiscal year in which such reduction is made. (Repealed and added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 277, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 1997. Operative January 1, 1998.)

Last verified: January 10, 2026

Key Terms

refundexempt from taxationassessed valuationControllerState School Fund

Related Statutes

  • § 16080 Deduction For School Aid Repayment
  • § 16089 School Fund Deduction Notice
  • § 16090 County Tax For Withheld School Funds
  • § 15736 School Tax Refund Adjustments
  • § 16002.5 School District Bond Limits

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Education Code. Section 16081.
View Official Source