(a) Assessments made pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 501) or this article shall be treated like, and taxed at the same rate applicable to, property regularly assessed on the roll on which it is entered, unless the assessment relates to a prior year and then the tax rate of the prior year shall be applied, except that the tax rate for years prior to the 1981-82 fiscal year shall be divided by four.

(b) No assessment described in subdivision (a) shall be effective for any purpose, including its review, equalization and adjustment by the Board of Equalization, until the assessee has been notified thereof personally or by United States mail at his or her address as contained in the official records of the county assessor. For purposes of Section 532, the assessment shall be deemed made on the date on which it is entered on the roll pursuant to Section 533, if the assessee is notified of the assessment within 60 days after the statute of limitations or the placing of the escape assessment on the assessment roll. Otherwise the assessment shall be deemed made only on the date the assessee is so notified.

(c) The notice given by the assessor pursuant to this section shall include all of the following:

(1) The date the notice was mailed.

(2) Information regarding the assessee’s right to an informal review and the right to appeal the assessment, and except in a case in which paragraph (3) applies, that the appeal shall be filed within 60 days of the date of mailing printed on the notice or the postmarked date therefor, whichever is later. For the purposes of equalization proceedings, the assessment shall be considered an assessment made outside of the regular assessment period as provided in Section 1605.

(3) For counties in which the board of supervisors has adopted a resolution in accordance with subdivision (c) of Section 1605, and the County of Los Angeles, receipt by the assessee of a tax bill based on that assessment shall suffice as notice under this section if the tax bill advises the assessee of the right to appeal the assessment, and that the appeal shall be filed within 60 days of the date of mailing printed on the tax bill or the postmark therefor, whichever is later. For the purposes of equalization proceedings, the assessment shall be considered an assessment made outside of the regular assessment period as provided in Section 1605.

(4) A description of the requirements, procedures, and deadlines with respect to an application for the reduction of an assessment pursuant to Section 1605.

(d) (1) The notice given by the assessor under this section shall be on a form approved by the board.

(2) Giving of the notice required by Section 531.8 shall not satisfy the requirements of this section.

(Amended by Stats. 2005, Ch. 264, Sec. 7. Effective January 1, 2006.)