Are Kansas property tax directives issued before November 1992 still good authority?

Plain-English summary

This is the directive that drew a line under everything that came before it.

In 1992 the Kansas Legislature confirmed that "the Director of Property Valuation is authorized to adopt rules and regulations or appraiser directives prescribing standards for ad valorem taxation in this state (L. 1992, ch. 249, § 1)." The Director's first act under that authority was to clear the field.

The operative sentence: "Effective immediately, all prior directives, memoranda, and written or oral instructions issued by any Director of Property Valuation on appraisal processes are rescinded, except for directives issued pursuant to a PVD audit since January 1, 1991."

Note the sweep of what was cancelled. Not just numbered directives — also memoranda and, unusually, "written or oral instructions." Anything a prior Director had told counties about appraisal processes stopped being authority that day.

One carve-out survived: directives issued pursuant to a Division of Property Valuation audit on or after January 1, 1991.

Having cleared the ground, the Director rebuilt the same day: "On this date, I am issuing a series of directives that will be in force and effect until rescinded." That is why the numbered Kansas property tax directive series that counties and appraisers still work from starts at 92-001 — the whole 92-xxx block was issued together as the replacement body of guidance.

Finally, the directive set up the recordkeeping that makes the system auditable: "A master list of current directives will be maintained as official records of the Division of Property Valuation. The Division will annually promulgate a list of current directives, noting additions and rescissions."

What this means for you

Anyone researching older Kansas property tax guidance

Treat November 3, 1992 as a hard floor. If you find a Kansas property valuation directive, memorandum, or written instruction predating it, this directive rescinded it. Citing pre-1992 Division guidance as live authority is a mistake unless it falls in the PVD-audit exception.

Anyone relying on an oral instruction from the Division

The rescission expressly reached "written or oral instructions." A long-standing county practice that traces back to what someone at the Division said before 1992 has no standing on that basis alone.

Tax professionals and appraisers

Two practical points. First, the "until rescinded" language means directives persist indefinitely once issued — they do not lapse on their own, which is why the Division maintains a running current list and why so many 92-xxx directives were still being expressly superseded decades later (Directive 19-017 superseded 92-017; 19-023 superseded 92-004 and 92-023; 19-038 superseded 92-022). Check the current list rather than assuming age equals obsolescence.

Second, the annual list of current directives "noting additions and rescissions" is the Division's own promised mechanism for tracking this. That published list, not a memory of past practice, is the right source when you need to know whether a directive is still in force.

Property owners

This one does not affect your valuation directly. Its relevance is that if someone tells you your county's practice rests on longstanding Division guidance, guidance issued before November 1992 was rescinded and cannot be the source.

Common questions

Q: What exactly did this directive rescind?
A: "All prior directives, memoranda, and written or oral instructions issued by any Director of Property Valuation on appraisal processes."

Q: Was anything spared?
A: Yes, one category: "directives issued pursuant to a PVD audit since January 1, 1991."

Q: Did that leave Kansas counties with no guidance?
A: No. The Director issued a replacement series the same day — "on this date, I am issuing a series of directives that will be in force and effect until rescinded."

Q: Do Kansas property tax directives expire?
A: Not on their own. They remain "in force and effect until rescinded," which is why later directives expressly state which earlier ones they supersede.

Q: How do I know whether a directive is current?
A: Use the Division's list. It committed to maintaining a master list as official records and to "annually promulgate a list of current directives, noting additions and rescissions."

Q: Where did the Director's authority come from?
A: The directive cites L. 1992, ch. 249, § 1, authorizing the Director "to adopt rules and regulations or appraiser directives prescribing standards for ad valorem taxation in this state."

Q: Is 92-001 itself still in force?
A: Its operative effect was accomplished in 1992. It appears on the Division's directive list as part of the historical record; check that list for the current status of any directive.

Citations and references

Authority cited in the directive: L. 1992, ch. 249, § 1 — authorizing the Director of Property Valuation to adopt rules and regulations or appraiser directives prescribing standards for ad valorem taxation.

Scope of the rescission: all prior directives, memoranda, and written or oral instructions of any Director of Property Valuation on appraisal processes.

Exception preserved: directives issued pursuant to a PVD audit since January 1, 1991.

Recordkeeping commitment: a master list of current directives maintained as official records of the Division, with an annual promulgated list "noting additions and rescissions."

Source

• Landing page: Kansas Property Tax Directives
• Original PDF: PVD Directive 92-001

Original ruling text

STATE OF KANSAS

David C. Cunningham, Director
Robert B. Docking State Office Building (913) 296-2365
915 S.W. Harrison St. FAX (913) 296-2320
Topeka, Kansas 66612-1585

                                           Department of Revenue
                                      Division of Property Valuation


                                          DIRECTIVE #92-001

    TO:              All County Officials and Division of Property Valuation Staff

    SUBJECT: Rescission of Directives


    The Director of Property Valuation is authorized to adopt rules and regulations or
    appraiser directives prescribing standards for ad valorem taxation in this state (L.
    1992, ch. 249, § 1).

    Effective immediately, all prior directives, memoranda, and written or oral
    instructions issued by any Director of Property Valuation on appraisal processes are
    rescinded, except for directives issued pursuant to a PVD audit since January 1,
    1991. On this date, I am issuing a series of directives that will be in force and effect
    until rescinded. A master list of current directives will be maintained as official
    records of the Division of Property Valuation. The Division will annually
    promulgate a list of current directives, noting additions and rescissions.




    Approved: November 3, 1992
                                                         David C. Cunningham
                                                         Director of Property Valuation