Every assessee of any taxable property assessed by the San Luis Obispo County assessor, or any person liable for the taxes thereon, whose property was damaged or destroyed without his or her fault, may apply for reassessment of that property as provided in this chapter. The assessor may initiate the reassessment where the assessor determines that within the preceding twelve months taxable property located in the county was damaged or destroyed. To be eligible for reassessment, the damage or destruction to the property shall have been caused by any of the following:

(a) A major misfortune or calamity, in an area or region subsequently proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of disaster, if that property was damaged or destroyed by the major misfortune or calamity that caused the Governor to proclaim the area or region to be in a state of disaster. As used in this subsection, “damage” includes a diminution in the value of property as a result of restricted access to the property where that restricted access was caused by the major misfortune or calamity;

(b) A misfortune or calamity;

(c) A misfortune or calamity that, with respect to a possessory interest in land owned by the state or federal government, has caused the permit or other right to enter upon the land to be suspended or restricted. As used in this subsection, “misfortune or calamity” includes a drought condition such as existed in this state in 1976 and 1977.

The application for reassessment must be filed within twelve months of the misfortune or calamity, by delivering to the assessor a written application requesting reassessment showing the condition and value, if any, of the property immediately after the damage or destruction, and the dollar amount of the damage. The application shall be executed under penalty of perjury, or if executed outside the state of California, verified by affidavit. (Ord. 3026 § 1 (part), 2004)