Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB2290 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	81R9093 JE-D
2	2	By: Gattis H.B. No. 2290
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the administration of appraisal districts.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Sections 5.12(d), (e), and (h), Tax Code, are
10	10	amended to read as follows:
11	11	(d) A request for a performance audit of an appraisal
12	12	district may not be made under Subsection [(b) or] (c) [of this
13	13	section] if according to each of the two most recently published
14	14	annual studies conducted by the comptroller under Section 5.10 [of
15	15	this code]:
16	16	(1) the overall median level of appraisal for all
17	17	property in the district for which the comptroller determines a
18	18	median level of appraisal is more than 0.90 and less than 1.10;
19	19	(2) the coefficient of dispersion around the overall
20	20	median level of appraisal of the properties used to determine the
21	21	overall median level of appraisal for all property in the district
22	22	for which the comptroller determines a median level of appraisal is
23	23	less than 0.15; and
24	24	(3) the difference between the highest and lowest
25	25	median levels of appraisal in the district for the classes of
26	26	property for which the comptroller determines a median level of
27	27	appraisal is less than 0.20.
28	28	(e) A request for a performance audit of an appraisal
29	29	district may not be made under Subsection [(b) or] (c) [of this
30	30	section]:
31	31	(1) during the two years immediately following the
32	32	publication of the second of two consecutive annual studies
33	33	according to which the comptroller is required to conduct an audit
34	34	of the district under Subsection (a) [of this section]; or
35	35	(2) during the year immediately following the date the
36	36	results of an audit of the district conducted by the comptroller
37	37	under Subsection (a) [of this section] are reported to the chief
38	38	appraiser of the district.
39	39	(h) In addition to the performance audits required by
40	40	Subsections (a) [, (b),] and (c) and the review of appraisal
41	41	standards required by Section 5.102, the comptroller may audit an
42	42	appraisal district to analyze the effectiveness and efficiency of
43	43	the policies, management, and operations of the appraisal district.
44	44	The results of the audit shall be delivered in a report that details
45	45	the comptroller's findings and recommendations for improvement to
46	46	the appraisal district's chief appraiser and board of directors and
47	47	the governing body of each taxing unit participating in the
48	48	appraisal district. The comptroller may require reimbursement by
49	49	the appraisal district for some or all of the costs of the audit,
50	50	not to exceed the actual costs associated with conducting the
51	51	audit.
52	52	SECTION 2. Sections 5.13(a) and (h), Tax Code, are amended
53	53	to read as follows:
54	54	(a) The comptroller shall complete an audit required by
55	55	Section 5.12(a) [of this code] within two years after the date of
56	56	the publication of the second of the two annual studies the results
57	57	of which required the audit to be conducted. The comptroller shall
58	58	complete an audit requested under Section 5.12(c) [5.12(b) or (c)
59	59	of this code] as soon as practicable after the request is made.
60	60	(h) At any time after the request for an audit is made, the
61	61	comptroller may discontinue the audit in whole or in part if
62	62	requested to do so by the taxpayers who requested the audit under
63	63	Section 5.12(c) [:
64	64	[(1) the governing bodies of a majority of the taxing
65	65	units participating in the district, if the audit was requested by a
66	66	majority of those units;
67	67	[(2) the governing bodies of a majority of the taxing
68	68	units entitled to vote on the appointment of appraisal district
69	69	directors, if the audit was requested by a majority of those units;
70	70	or
71	71	[(3) if the audit was requested under Section 5.12(c)
72	72	of this code, by the taxpayers who requested the audit].
73	73	SECTION 3. Section 6.03, Tax Code, is amended by amending
74	74	Subsections (a) and (l) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (m) to read
75	75	as follows:
76	76	(a) The appraisal district is governed by a board of five
77	77	directors. One director is elected from each of the four
78	78	commissioners precincts of the county for which the appraisal
79	79	district is established. The county assessor-collector is a
80	80	director by virtue of the person's office. The directors other than
81	81	the county assessor-collector are elected at the general election
82	82	for state and county officers and serve two-year terms beginning on
83	83	January 1 of odd-numbered years [Five directors are appointed by
84	84	the taxing units that participate in the district as provided by
85	85	this section. If the county assessor-collector is not appointed to
86	86	the board, the county assessor-collector serves as a nonvoting
87	87	director. The county assessor-collector is ineligible to serve if
88	88	the board enters into a contract under Section 6.05(b) or if the
89	89	commissioners court of the county enters into a contract under
90	90	Section 6.24(b)].
91	91	(a-1) To be eligible to serve on the board of directors, an
92	92	individual other than the [a] county assessor-collector [serving as
93	93	a nonvoting director] must:
94	94	(1) be a resident of the commissioners precinct from
95	95	which the office is elected; [district] and
96	96	(2) [must] have resided in the appraisal district for
97	97	at least two years immediately preceding the date the individual
98	98	takes office. [An individual who is otherwise eligible to serve on
99	99	the board is not ineligible because of membership on the governing
100	100	body of a taxing unit. An employee of a taxing unit that
101	101	participates in the district is not eligible to serve on the board
102	102	unless the individual is also a member of the governing body or an
103	103	elected official of a taxing unit that participates in the
104	104	district.]
105	105	(l) A [If a] vacancy [occurs] on the board of directors
106	106	other than a vacancy in the position held by the [a] county
107	107	assessor-collector is filled for the remainder of the unexpired
108	108	term by appointment by the commissioners court of the county for
109	109	which the appraisal district is established [serving as a nonvoting
110	110	director, each taxing unit that is entitled to vote by this section
111	111	may nominate by resolution adopted by its governing body a
112	112	candidate to fill the vacancy. The unit shall submit the name of
113	113	its nominee to the chief appraiser within 45 days after
114	114	notification from the board of directors of the existence of the
115	115	vacancy, and the chief appraiser shall prepare and deliver to the
116	116	board of directors within the next five days a list of the nominees.
117	117	The board of directors shall elect by majority vote of its members
118	118	one of the nominees to fill the vacancy].
119	119	(m) If as a result of a change in the boundaries of a
120	120	commissioners precinct an individual serving as a director no
121	121	longer resides in the precinct from which the office is elected, the
122	122	individual is not for that reason disqualified from office during
123	123	the remainder of the term of office being served at the time the
124	124	boundary change takes effect. If as a result of a change in the
125	125	boundaries of a commissioners precinct an individual elected as a
126	126	director before the boundary change to a term that begins after the
127	127	boundary change no longer resides in the precinct from which
128	128	elected, the individual is not for that reason disqualified from
129	129	serving the term to which elected.
130	130	SECTION 4. Section 6.036(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
131	131	follows:
132	132	(a) An individual is not eligible to be a candidate for the
133	133	office of appraisal district director [appointed to] or to serve on
134	134	the board of directors of an appraisal district if [the individual
135	135	or a business entity in which the individual has a substantial
136	136	interest is a party to a contract with]:
137	137	(1) the individual or a business entity in which the
138	138	individual has a substantial interest is a party to a contract with
139	139	the appraisal district; [or]
140	140	(2) the individual or a business entity in which the
141	141	individual has a substantial interest is a party to a contract with
142	142	a taxing unit that participates in the appraisal district, if the
143	143	contract relates to the performance of an activity governed by this
144	144	title; or
145	145	(3) the individual is an employee of a taxing unit.
146	146	SECTION 5. Sections 6.05(a) and (c), Tax Code, are amended
147	147	to read as follows:
148	148	(a) Each [Except as authorized by Subsection (b) of this
149	149	section, each] appraisal district shall establish an appraisal
150	150	office. The appraisal office must be located in the county for
151	151	which the district is established. An appraisal district may
152	152	establish branch appraisal offices outside the county for which the
153	153	district is established.
154	154	(c) The chief appraiser is the chief administrator of the
155	155	appraisal office. The chief appraiser is appointed by and serves at
156	156	the pleasure of the appraisal district board of directors. [If a
157	157	taxing unit performs the duties of the appraisal office pursuant to
158	158	a contract, the assessor for the unit is the chief appraiser.]
159	159	SECTION 6. Section 6.051(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
160	160	follows:
161	161	(a) The board of directors of an appraisal district may:
162	162	(1) purchase or lease real property and may construct
163	163	improvements as necessary to establish and operate the appraisal
164	164	office or a branch appraisal office;
165	165	(2) acquire or convey real property; and
166	166	(3) construct or renovate a building or other
167	167	improvement.
168	168	SECTION 7. Sections 6.06(a), (b), (e), and (i), Tax Code,
169	169	are amended to read as follows:
170	170	(a) Each year the chief appraiser shall prepare a proposed
171	171	budget for the operations of the district for the following tax year
172	172	[and shall submit copies to each taxing unit participating in the
173	173	district and to the district board of directors before June 15].
174	174	The chief appraiser [He] shall include in the budget a list showing
175	175	each proposed position, the proposed salary for the position, all
176	176	benefits proposed for the position, each proposed capital
177	177	expenditure, and an estimate of the amount of the budget that will
178	178	be allocated to each taxing unit. [Each taxing unit entitled to
179	179	vote on the appointment of board members shall maintain a copy of
180	180	the proposed budget for public inspection at its principal
181	181	administrative office.]
182	182	(b) The board of directors shall hold a public hearing to
183	183	consider the budget. The secretary of the board shall deliver to
184	184	the presiding officer of the governing body of each taxing unit
185	185	participating in the district not later than the 10th day before the
186	186	date of the hearing a written notice of the date, time, and place
187	187	fixed for the hearing. The board shall complete its hearings, make
188	188	any amendments to the proposed budget it desires, and finally
189	189	approve a budget before September 15. [If governing bodies of a
190	190	majority of the taxing units entitled to vote on the appointment of
191	191	board members adopt resolutions disapproving a budget and file them
192	192	with the secretary of the board within 30 days after its adoption,
193	193	the budget does not take effect, and the board shall adopt a new
194	194	budget within 30 days of the disapproval.]
195	195	(e) Each [Unless the governing body of a unit and the chief
196	196	appraiser agree to a different method of payment, each] taxing unit
197	197	shall pay its allocation in four equal payments to be made at the
198	198	end of each calendar quarter, and the first payment shall be made
199	199	before January 1 of the year in which the budget takes effect. A
200	200	payment is delinquent if not paid on the date it is due. A
201	201	delinquent payment incurs a penalty of 5 percent of the amount of
202	202	the payment and accrues interest at an annual rate of 10 percent.
203	203	If the budget is amended, any change in the amount of a unit's
204	204	allocation is apportioned among the payments remaining.
205	205	(i) The fiscal year of an appraisal district is the calendar
206	206	year [unless the governing bodies of three-fourths of the taxing
207	207	units entitled to vote on the appointment of board members adopt
208	208	resolutions proposing a different fiscal year and file them with
209	209	the secretary of the board not more than 12 and not less than eight
210	210	months before the first day of the fiscal year proposed by the
211	211	resolutions. If the fiscal year of an appraisal district is changed
212	212	under this subsection, the chief appraiser shall prepare a proposed
213	213	budget for the fiscal year as provided by Subsection (a) of this
214	214	section before the 15th day of the seventh month preceding the first
215	215	day of the fiscal year established by the change, and the board of
216	216	directors shall adopt a budget for the fiscal year as provided by
217	217	Subsection (b) of this section before the 15th day of the fourth
218	218	month preceding the first day of the fiscal year established by the
219	219	change. Unless the appraisal district adopts a different method of
220	220	allocation under Section 6.061 of this code, the allocation of the
221	221	budget to each taxing unit shall be calculated as provided by
222	222	Subsection (d) of this section using the amount of property taxes
223	223	imposed by each participating taxing unit in the most recent tax
224	224	year preceding the fiscal year established by the change for which
225	225	the necessary information is available. Each taxing unit shall pay
226	226	its allocation as provided by Subsection (e) of this section,
227	227	except that the first payment shall be made before the first day of
228	228	the fiscal year established by the change and subsequent payments
229	229	shall be made quarterly. In the year in which a change in the fiscal
230	230	year occurs, the budget that takes effect on January 1 of that year
231	231	may be amended as necessary as provided by Subsection (c) of this
232	232	section in order to accomplish the change in fiscal years].
233	233	SECTION 8. Sections 6.061(a) and (e), Tax Code, are amended
234	234	to read as follows:
235	235	(a) The board of directors of an appraisal district, by
236	236	resolution adopted and delivered to each taxing unit participating
237	237	in the district after June 15 and before August 15, may prescribe a
238	238	different method of allocating the costs of operating the district
239	239	[unless the governing body of any taxing unit that participates in
240	240	the district adopts a resolution opposing the different method, and
241	241	files it with the board of directors before September 1. If a board
242	242	proposal is rejected, the board shall notify, in writing, each
243	243	taxing unit participating in the district before September 15].
244	244	(e) A change in allocation of district costs made as
245	245	provided by this section remains in effect until changed in a manner
246	246	provided by this section or rescinded by resolution of the board of
247	247	directors [a majority of the governing bodies that are entitled to
248	248	vote on appointment of board members under Section 6.03 of this
249	249	code].
250	250	SECTION 9. Section 6.062(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as
251	251	follows:
252	252	(c) The notice must state that the appraisal district is
253	253	supported solely by payments from the local taxing units served by
254	254	the appraisal district. The notice must also contain the following
255	255	statement: "If approved by the appraisal district board of
256	256	directors at the public hearing, this proposed budget will take
257	257	effect automatically [unless disapproved by the governing bodies of
258	258	the county, school districts, cities, and towns served by the
259	259	appraisal district. A copy of the proposed budget is available for
260	260	public inspection in the office of each of those governing
261	261	bodies]."
262	262	SECTION 10. Section 6.063(b), Tax Code, is amended to read
263	263	as follows:
264	264	(b) The report of the audit is a public record. A [copy of
265	265	the report shall be delivered to the presiding officer of the
266	266	governing body of each taxing unit eligible to vote on the
267	267	appointment of district directors, and a] reasonable number of
268	268	copies shall be available for inspection at the appraisal office.
269	269	SECTION 11. Section 52.092(d), Election Code, is amended
270	270	to read as follows:
271	271	(d) District offices of the state government shall be listed
272	272	in the following order:
273	273	(1) member, State Board of Education;
274	274	(2) state senator;
275	275	(3) state representative;
276	276	(4) chief justice, court of appeals;
277	277	(5) justice, court of appeals;
278	278	(6) district judge;
279	279	(7) criminal district judge;
280	280	(8) family district judge;
281	281	(9) district attorney;
282	282	(10) criminal district attorney;
283	283	(11) appraisal district director.
284	284	SECTION 12. Section 172.024, Election Code, is amended by
285	285	adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
286	286	(c) For the office of appraisal district director, the
287	287	filing fee for a candidate for nomination in the general primary
288	288	election is $250.
289	289	SECTION 13. The following provisions of the Tax Code are
290	290	repealed:
291	291	(1) Section 5.12(b);
292	292	(2) Sections 6.03(c), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i),
293	293	(j), and (k);
294	294	(3) Section 6.031;
295	295	(4) Section 6.033;
296	296	(5) Section 6.034;
297	297	(6) Section 6.037;
298	298	(7) Section 6.05(b);
299	299	(8) Sections 6.061(b) and (d); and
300	300	(9) Section 6.10.
301	301	SECTION 14. (a) Appraisal district directors shall be
302	302	elected as provided by Section 6.03, Tax Code, as amended by this
303	303	Act, beginning with the primary and general elections conducted in
304	304	2010. Members then elected take office January 1, 2011.
305	305	(b) The change in the manner of selection of appraisal
306	306	district directors made by this Act does not affect the selection of
307	307	directors who serve on the board before January 1, 2011.
308	308	(c) The term of an appraisal district director serving on
309	309	December 31, 2010, expires on January 1, 2011.
310	310	SECTION 15. (a) Except as otherwise provided by this
311	311	section, this Act takes effect January 1, 2011.
312	312	(b) This section and Section 14 of this Act take effect
313	313	September 1, 2009.