Rhode Island § 44-23-5 - Estate and Transfer Taxes — Enforcement and Collection

§ 44-23-5. Appraisal of estate.

(a) If any statement filed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter is considered to be an erroneous or incomplete statement of the property, real, tangible personal, intangible personal, or of any part of the property, of the decedent, the tax administrator shall give notice to the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary, or trustee filing the statement, to appear before the tax administrator for the purpose of examination of and concerning the statement, and concerning all matters appertaining to the estate and the value of the estate of the decedent; and if the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary, or trustee fails to appear after due notice, or if after appearance and examination of the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary, or trustee the tax administrator still considers the statement to be an erroneous or incomplete statement, or if the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary, or trustee refuses or neglects to answer the questions propounded in reference to the statement, the tax administrator may appraise the estate. The tax administrator shall give notice by mail to the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary, or trustee and to all persons known to have a claim or interest in the estate or property to be appraised, of the time and place of the appraisal, and the tax administrator or his or her authorized agent shall at that time and place appraise the estate or property at its full and fair cash value as prescribed in this section; and for that purpose the tax administrator is authorized to issue subpoenas and to compel the attendance of witnesses and to take the evidence of the witnesses under oath if necessary, concerning the estate or property and the value of the estate, and the witnesses shall receive the same fees as those now paid to witnesses subpoenaed to attend the superior court. From the appraisal and other proof relating to the estate or property, the tax administrator determines the full and fair cash value of the estate or property upon which all taxes imposed by chapter 22 of this title are computed and the amount of taxes to which it is liable. If no appraisal is made as provided in this section, the tax administrator may determine the value of the property upon which all the taxes are computed and the amount of taxes to which it is liable.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of §  44-23-5(a), all farmland, as such term is defined in § 44-27-2, included as part of an estate for purposes of this section and utilized by the executor, administrator, heir-at-law, beneficiary or trustee as farmland, shall be appraised at its use value according to applicable federal and state law and not at its full and fair cash value.