Bill Text: TX HB969 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Relating to the deferral or abatement of the collection of ad valorem taxes on certain real property.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-02-27 - Referred to Ways & Means [HB969 Detail]

Download: Texas-2017-HB969-Introduced.html

---

85R2160 TJB-F
By: Metcalf H.B. No. 969

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the deferral or abatement of the collection of ad
valorem taxes on certain real property.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 6.035(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
(a) An individual is ineligible to serve on an appraisal
district board of directors and is disqualified from employment as
chief appraiser if the individual:
(1) is related within the second degree by
consanguinity or affinity, as determined under Chapter 573,
Government Code, to an individual who is engaged in the business of
appraising property for compensation for use in proceedings under
this title or of representing property owners for compensation in
proceedings under this title in the appraisal district; or
(2) owns property on which delinquent taxes have been
owed to a taxing unit for more than 60 days after the date the
individual knew or should have known of the delinquency unless:
(A) the delinquent taxes and any penalties and
interest are being paid under an installment payment agreement
under Section 33.02; or
(B) a suit to collect the delinquent taxes is
deferred or abated under Section 33.06, [or] 33.065, or 33.066.
SECTION 2. Section 6.412(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
(a) An individual is ineligible to serve on an appraisal
review board if the individual:
(1) is related within the second degree by
consanguinity or affinity, as determined under Chapter 573,
Government Code, to an individual who is engaged in the business of
appraising property for compensation for use in proceedings under
this title or of representing property owners for compensation in
proceedings under this title in the appraisal district for which
the appraisal review board is established;
(2) owns property on which delinquent taxes have been
owed to a taxing unit for more than 60 days after the date the
individual knew or should have known of the delinquency unless:
(A) the delinquent taxes and any penalties and
interest are being paid under an installment payment agreement
under Section 33.02; or
(B) a suit to collect the delinquent taxes is
deferred or abated under Section 33.06, [or] 33.065, or 33.066; or
(3) is related within the third degree by
consanguinity or within the second degree by affinity, as
determined under Chapter 573, Government Code, to a member of the
appraisal district's board of directors.
SECTION 3. Section 33.06(d), Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
(d) A tax lien remains on the property and interest
continues to accrue during the period collection of taxes is
deferred or abated under this section. The annual interest rate
during the deferral or abatement period is two [eight] percent
instead of the rate provided by Section 33.01. Interest and
penalties that accrued or that were incurred or imposed under
Section 33.01 or 33.07 before the date the individual files the
deferral affidavit under Subsection (b) or the date the judgment
abating the suit is entered, as applicable, are preserved. A
penalty under Section 33.01 is not incurred during a deferral or
abatement period. The additional penalty under Section 33.07 may
be imposed and collected only if the taxes for which collection is
deferred or abated remain delinquent on or after the 181st day after
the date the deferral or abatement period expires. A plea of
limitation, laches, or want of prosecution does not apply against
the taxing unit because of deferral or abatement of collection as
provided by this section.
SECTION 4. Section 33.065, Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 33.065. DEFERRED COLLECTION OF TAXES ON [APPRECIATING]
RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD BASED ON APPRECIATING VALUE OR OWNER EQUITY.
(a) An individual is entitled to defer collection of a tax or abate
a suit to collect a delinquent tax imposed on:
(1) the portion of the appraised value of property the
individual owns and occupies as the individual's residence
homestead that exceeds the sum of:
(A) [(1)] 105 percent of the appraised value of
the property for the preceding year; and
(B) [(2)] the market value of all new
improvements to the property; or
(2) property the individual owns and occupies as the
individual's residence homestead if the individual has an ownership
interest in the property on January 1 of the tax year for which the
tax is imposed equal to or greater than 10 percent of the market
value of the property for that tax year.
(b) An individual may not obtain a deferral or abatement
authorized by Subsection (a)(1) [under this section], and any
deferral or abatement previously received expires, if the taxes on
the portion of the appraised value of the property that does not
exceed the amount provided by Subsection (a)(1) [(a)] are
delinquent.
(c) To obtain a deferral, an individual must file with the
chief appraiser for the appraisal district in which the property is
located a valid [an] affidavit stating the facts required to be
established by Subsection (a)(1) or (2), as applicable [(a)]. If
the chief appraiser determines that the affidavit is valid, the
[The] chief appraiser shall notify each taxing unit participating
in the district of the filing. After receiving the notice that a
valid [an] affidavit has been [is] filed under this subsection, a
taxing unit may not file suit to collect delinquent taxes on the
property for which collection is deferred until the earlier of the
date the deferral expires as provided by Subsection (g), if
applicable, or the date the individual no longer owns and occupies
the property as a residence homestead.
(d) To obtain an abatement, the individual must file in the
court in which the delinquent tax suit is pending an affidavit
stating the facts required to be established by Subsection (a)(1)
or (2), as applicable [(a)]. If the taxing unit that filed the suit
does not file a controverting affidavit or if, after a hearing, the
court finds the individual is entitled to the deferral, the court
shall abate the suit until the earlier of the date the abatement
expires as provided by Subsection (g), if applicable, or the date
the individual no longer owns and occupies the property as the
individual's residence homestead. The clerk of the court shall
deliver a copy of the judgment abating the suit to the chief
appraiser of each appraisal district that appraises the property.
(e) A deferral or abatement authorized by Subsection (a)(1)
[under this section] applies only to ad valorem taxes imposed
beginning with the tax year following the first tax year the
individual entitled to the deferral or abatement qualifies the
property for an exemption under Section 11.13. For purposes of this
subsection, the owner of a residence homestead that is qualified
for an exemption under Section 11.13 on January 1, 1998, is
considered to have qualified the property for the first time in the
1997 tax year.
(f) If the collection of delinquent taxes on [the] property
was deferred under Subsection (a)(1) in a prior tax year and the sum
of the amounts described by Subsections (a)(1)(A) and (B) [(a)(1)
and (2)] exceeds the appraised value of the property for the current
tax year, the amount of taxes the collection of which may be
deferred is reduced by the amount calculated by multiplying the
taxing unit's tax rate for the current year by the amount by which
that sum exceeds the appraised value of the property.
(g) A deferral or abatement authorized by Subsection (a)(2)
and obtained by an individual expires on the first January 1 on
which the individual no longer has the ownership interest in the
property prescribed by that subdivision. An individual who obtains
a deferral or abatement authorized by Subsection (a)(2) must file
annually with the chief appraiser that received the affidavit for
the deferral or the court that received the affidavit for the
abatement, as applicable, a valid affidavit demonstrating that the
individual has the ownership interest in the property prescribed by
that subdivision on January 1 of the current tax year or stating
that the individual does not meet that requirement on that date.
(h) A tax lien remains on the property and interest
continues to accrue during the period collection of delinquent
taxes is deferred or abated under this section. Except as provided
by Subsection (i), the [The] annual interest rate during the
deferral or abatement period is eight percent instead of the rate
provided by Section 33.01. Interest and penalties that accrued or
that were incurred or imposed under Section 33.01 or 33.07 before
the date the individual files the deferral affidavit under
Subsection (c) or the date the judgment abating the suit is entered,
as applicable, are preserved. A penalty is not incurred on the
delinquent taxes for which collection is deferred or abated during
a deferral or abatement period. The additional penalty under
Section 33.07 may be imposed and collected only if the delinquent
taxes for which collection is deferred or abated remain delinquent
on or after the 91st day after the date the deferral or abatement
period expires. A plea of limitation, laches, or want of
prosecution does not apply against the taxing unit because of
deferral or abatement of collection as provided by this section.
(i) The annual interest rate during the deferral or
abatement period is two percent instead of the rate provided by
Subsection (h) for each tax year for which the individual has an
ownership interest in the property on January 1 of the tax year that
is equal to or greater than 50 percent of the market value of the
property for that tax year. To receive the interest rate prescribed
by this subsection for a tax year, an individual must file with the
chief appraiser that received the affidavit for the deferral or the
court that received the affidavit for the abatement, as applicable,
a valid affidavit stating the facts required to demonstrate that
the individual is entitled to the interest rate provided by this
subsection for that tax year.
(j) A chief appraiser or court may prescribe the contents
of, and the manner and time for filing, an affidavit required by
Subsection (g) or (i). If the chief appraiser or court, as
applicable, determines that the affidavit is valid, the chief
appraiser or court shall notify each taxing unit participating in
the district of the filing of an affidavit under those subsections.
(k) [(h)] Each year the chief appraiser for each appraisal
district shall publicize in a manner reasonably designed to notify
all residents of the county for which the appraisal district is
established of the provisions of this section and, specifically,
the method by which an eligible person may obtain a deferral.
(l) [(i)] In this section:
(1) "New improvement" means an improvement to a
residence homestead that is made after the appraisal of the
property for the preceding year and that increases the market value
of the property. The term does not include ordinary maintenance of
an existing structure or the grounds or another feature of the
property.
(2) "Residence homestead" has the meaning assigned
that term by Section 11.13.
(m) For the purposes of this section, an individual's
ownership interest in property for a tax year is equal to the
difference between the market value of the property for that tax
year and the total outstanding debt secured by liens attached to the
property on January 1 of that tax year.
SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 33, Tax Code, is amended by
adding Section 33.066 to read as follows:
Sec. 33.066. DEFERRED COLLECTION OF TAXES ON HISTORIC
FAMILY PROPERTY. (a) In this section, "historic family property"
means real property owned continuously for at least the preceding
100 years by one or more individuals who are members of the same
family. For purposes of this subsection, individuals are considered
to be members of the same family if they are related within the
third degree by consanguinity or affinity, as determined under
Chapter 573, Government Code, at the time the property is
transferred from one to the other.
(b) An individual is entitled to defer collection of a tax
or abate a suit to collect a delinquent tax imposed on a historic
family property if the individual:
(1) owns the property; and
(2) has an ownership interest in the property on
January 1 of the tax year for which the tax is imposed equal to or
greater than 50 percent of the market value of the property for that
tax year.
(c) To obtain a deferral, an individual must file with the
chief appraiser for the appraisal district in which the property is
located a valid affidavit stating the facts required to be
established by Subsection (b). If the chief appraiser determines
that the affidavit is valid, the chief appraiser shall notify each
taxing unit participating in the district of the filing. After
receiving the notice that a valid affidavit has been filed under
this subsection, a taxing unit may not file suit to collect
delinquent taxes on the property for which collection is deferred
until the date the individual no longer owns the property.
(d) To obtain an abatement, the individual must file in the
court in which the delinquent tax suit is pending an affidavit
stating the facts required to be established by Subsection (b). If
the taxing unit that filed the suit does not file a controverting
affidavit or if, after a hearing, the court finds the individual is
entitled to the deferral, the court shall abate the suit until the
date the individual no longer owns the property. The clerk of the
court shall deliver a copy of the judgment abating the suit to the
chief appraiser of each appraisal district that appraises the
property.
(e) A deferral or abatement authorized by Subsection (b) and
obtained by an individual expires on the first January 1 on which
the individual no longer meets the ownership requirements
prescribed by that subsection. An individual who obtains a deferral
or abatement authorized by Subsection (b) must file annually with
the chief appraiser that received the affidavit for the deferral or
the court that received the affidavit for the abatement, as
applicable, a valid affidavit demonstrating that the individual
meets the ownership requirements prescribed by that subsection on
January 1 of the current tax year or stating that the individual
does not meet those requirements on that date.
(f) A tax lien remains on the property and interest
continues to accrue during the period collection of delinquent
taxes is deferred or abated under this section. The annual interest
rate during the deferral or abatement period is eight percent
instead of the rate provided by Section 33.01. Interest and
penalties that accrued or that were incurred or imposed under
Section 33.01 or 33.07 before the date the individual files the
deferral affidavit under Subsection (c) or the date the judgment
abating the suit is entered, as applicable, are preserved. A
penalty is not incurred on the delinquent taxes for which
collection is deferred or abated during a deferral or abatement
period. The additional penalty under Section 33.07 may be imposed
and collected only if the delinquent taxes for which collection is
deferred or abated remain delinquent on or after the 91st day after
the date the deferral or abatement period expires. A plea of
limitation, laches, or want of prosecution does not apply against
the taxing unit because of deferral or abatement of collection as
provided by this section.
(g) Each year the chief appraiser for each appraisal
district shall publicize in a manner reasonably designed to notify
all residents of the county for which the appraisal district is
established of the provisions of this section and, specifically,
the method by which an eligible person may obtain a deferral.
(h) For the purposes of this section, an individual's
ownership interest in property for a tax year is equal to the
difference between the market value of the property for that tax
year and the total outstanding debt secured by liens attached to the
property on January 1 of that tax year.
SECTION 6. Section 403.302(d), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) For the purposes of this section, "taxable value" means
the market value of all taxable property less:
(1) the total dollar amount of any residence homestead
exemptions lawfully granted under Section 11.13(b) or (c), Tax
Code, in the year that is the subject of the study for each school
district;
(2) one-half of the total dollar amount of any
residence homestead exemptions granted under Section 11.13(n), Tax
Code, in the year that is the subject of the study for each school
district;
(3) the total dollar amount of any exemptions granted
before May 31, 1993, within a reinvestment zone under agreements
authorized by Chapter 312, Tax Code;
(4) subject to Subsection (e), the total dollar amount
of any captured appraised value of property that:
(A) is within a reinvestment zone created on or
before May 31, 1999, or is proposed to be included within the
boundaries of a reinvestment zone as the boundaries of the zone and
the proposed portion of tax increment paid into the tax increment
fund by a school district are described in a written notification
provided by the municipality or the board of directors of the zone
to the governing bodies of the other taxing units in the manner
provided by former Section 311.003(e), Tax Code, before May 31,
1999, and within the boundaries of the zone as those boundaries
existed on September 1, 1999, including subsequent improvements to
the property regardless of when made;
(B) generates taxes paid into a tax increment
fund created under Chapter 311, Tax Code, under a reinvestment zone
financing plan approved under Section 311.011(d), Tax Code, on or
before September 1, 1999; and
(C) is eligible for tax increment financing under
Chapter 311, Tax Code;
(5) the total dollar amount of any captured appraised
value of property that:
(A) is within a reinvestment zone:
(i) created on or before December 31, 2008,
by a municipality with a population of less than 18,000; and
(ii) the project plan for which includes
the alteration, remodeling, repair, or reconstruction of a
structure that is included on the National Register of Historic
Places and requires that a portion of the tax increment of the zone
be used for the improvement or construction of related facilities
or for affordable housing;
(B) generates school district taxes that are paid
into a tax increment fund created under Chapter 311, Tax Code; and
(C) is eligible for tax increment financing under
Chapter 311, Tax Code;
(6) the total dollar amount of any exemptions granted
under Section 11.251 or 11.253, Tax Code;
(7) the difference between the comptroller's estimate
of the market value and the productivity value of land that
qualifies for appraisal on the basis of its productive capacity,
except that the productivity value estimated by the comptroller may
not exceed the fair market value of the land;
(8) the portion of the appraised value of residence
homesteads of individuals who receive a tax limitation under
Section 11.26, Tax Code, on which school district taxes are not
imposed in the year that is the subject of the study, calculated as
if the residence homesteads were appraised at the full value
required by law;
(9) a portion of the market value of property not
otherwise fully taxable by the district at market value because of:
(A) action required by statute or the
constitution of this state, other than Section 11.311, Tax Code,
that, if the tax rate adopted by the district is applied to it,
produces an amount equal to the difference between the tax that the
district would have imposed on the property if the property were
fully taxable at market value and the tax that the district is
actually authorized to impose on the property, if this subsection
does not otherwise require that portion to be deducted; or
(B) action taken by the district under Subchapter
B or C, Chapter 313, Tax Code, before the expiration of the
subchapter;
(10) the market value of all tangible personal
property, other than manufactured homes, owned by a family or
individual and not held or used for the production of income;
(11) the appraised value of property the collection of
delinquent taxes on which is deferred under Section 33.06,
33.065(a)(2), or 33.066, Tax Code;
(12) the portion of the appraised value of property
the collection of delinquent taxes on which is deferred under
Section 33.065(a)(1) [33.065], Tax Code; and
(13) the amount by which the market value of a
residence homestead to which Section 23.23, Tax Code, applies
exceeds the appraised value of that property as calculated under
that section.
SECTION 7. Section 33.06(d), Tax Code, as amended by this
Act, and Section 33.065(i), Tax Code, as added by this Act, apply
only to interest that accrues during a deferral or abatement period
on or after the effective date of this Act, regardless of whether
the deferral or abatement period began before that date or begins on
or after that date. Interest that accrued during a deferral or
abatement period before the effective date of this Act is governed
by the law in effect when the interest accrued, and that law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect January 1, 2018.