PHOENIX — A court ruling says an ownership change doesn't trigger a change in property tax classification.

Rather, the ruling says a taxation classification change must be based on changed physical use or activity involving the property.

The Court of Appeals issued the ruling Thursday in a case involving General Motors' former auto proving grounds in Mesa.

GM sold the property in 2006 to a company that planned to eventually redevelop it.

However, GM planned to continue using the proving ground for two more years and GM and the new owner sued when Maricopa County in 2007 dramatically raised the property's full cash value, arguing that the sale changed the property's use.

The Court of Appeals said that because the property's use hadn't changed, it didn't matter that it was sold.