BLA Tax Rate and New Growth Forms

How to fill out and submit the DLS Gateway forms required for reporting sales, assessments, and value growth as part of the tax rate setting process.

This guide explains the tax rate forms that local assessors must submit to BLA using DLS Gateway. Additional guidance can be downloaded by clicking the links, and by contacting the Bureau of Local Assessment at the email address shown. 

Form Submission Tips

• Submit the BLA Tax Rate forms in this order: 
  1. Omitted & Revised Assessments
  2. LA13-A Amended New Growth
  3. LA-3 Sales (and LA-15 in an interim year)
  4. LA-4 Property Class Totals
  5. LA-13 New Growth Report
      
• If you do not see a Submit button on a Gateway form, you do not have the system rights to submit the form. Contact DLS Gateway Support for assistance.
• If you see a Submit button but it is not active, some other action has to occur before you can submit the form. Click the "Why are my buttons disabled?" link under the buttons to find out what has to happen before you submit.
• You must submit all forms (except the LA-15 if you are in a certification year.) The Omitted & Revised Assessment form and the LA-13A Amended Growth form both have a checkbox option for indicating that you have no data to report. You must still fill out and submit these forms annually.
• Gateway enforces all educational requirements for Board members and Assistant Assessors. Communities whose Boards of Assessors lack a majority of members qualified to classify property will see warnings on the tax rate forms that cannot be approved by DLS. Individual assessors who have not successfully completed Course 101 within 2 years of election or appointment will not be permitted to sign, save or submit any Gateway form.

Additional Resources

Guidelines for Omitted and Revised Assessments (IGR 2017-10, PDF)

Video: How to use the New Growth Verification tool

The LA-4 Assessment/Classification Form

• Remember to enter a parcel count as well as total value on the Exempt row
• Classified land parcel counts should be separated into "mixed use" and "100% classified land" counts
• Parcel counts and values for use codes 450-452 are reported on a row separate from other industrial properties
• If signing on behalf of the Board of Assessors, the Board's written authorization must be uploaded to the LA-4 form prior to submission

Additional Resources

Property Type Classification Codes booklet (PDF)

Growth Forms: LA-13A and LA-13

The LA-13A Amended Growth form must be submitted before the LA 13 New Growth form.

LA-13A Amended Growth

• The LA-13A form is used to report amended growth and all growth taken in the prior year that was subsequently permanently abated
• Audited Personal Property is entered directly into the DLS Gateway application. Instructions for completing the Audited Personal Property form can be found by clicking here: Audited Personal Property Instructions.  

LA-13 New Growth

• All communities must use Gateway's new LA-13 Upload option to populate Growth column C on the LA-13 New Growth form.
• BLA requires the use of its new, simplified Growth Template for FY 2024 submissions. The template used in prior years can be used for verification purposes, but you should not use it to upload growth data.
• Instructions for using the verification template can be downloaded using the link below.
• Please note that LA-13 Column B, "All Prior Year Abatement Values," must be the value abated, not the tax dollars abated. Entering tax dollars will require correction and re-submission, and might result in delayed new growth approval.

Additional Resources

New Growth Upload Template (FY 2024 and following)

Instructions for uploading growth data

BLA's New Growth Verification Template

Instructions for using the New Growth Verification Template

FY2024 Guidelines for determining annual levy limit increase for tax base growth (PDF)

Date published:	March 27, 2020
Last updated:	May 22, 2023