Aircraft

General Information

The California Constitution (Section Xlll, Article 1) provides that tangible personal property is taxable unless it is otherwise exempted by law. Privately owned aircraft are subject to annual assessment.

To assist the Assessor, an Aircraft Property Statement (Form BOE-577) is mailed to the owner registered with the Federal Aviation Administration. Liability for Aircraft property taxes is to the owner as of lien date - January 1. The statement needs to be returned by the due date. Failure to return the Statement by the specified due date, will result on a 10% penalty which is added to the original assessable value, (RTC 5367). Some of the most important information needed on the formal statement includes:

• Airframe hours, motor hours since last overhaul, etc.
• General condition of aircraft.
• Addition of non-factory avionics.

Aircraft will be assessed in the County and at the location where the plane is habitually situated when not in flight, (RTC # 5362).

Airport Reports

Section (5366) requires airport owners or operators to file a formal statement reporting aircraft located at their airports. The information needed on this statement includes the following:

• Owner’s name and address
• Make and Model
• Registration number (N-number)

Valuation

The Assessor uses Caliornia State Board guidelines to value aircraft. Valuation of aircraft is mainly obtained from Blue Book information and if required, by review and analysis of comparable sales. If there is any condition that merits a review, it should be noted on the Aircraft Statement.

If you need more information please contact the Assessor’s Personal Property and Audit division at (442) 265-8805 (8am to 5pm), or visit us at 940 W. Main Street Suite 115 El Centro CA 92240 (8am to 5pm).