| 1 | 1 | | By: Dunnam H.B. No. 2499 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the appropriation of money from the property tax relief |
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| 7 | 7 | | fund. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 403.109, Government Code, is amended to |
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| 10 | 10 | | read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 403.109. PROPERTY TAX RELIEF FUND. (a) The property |
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| 12 | 12 | | tax relief fund is a special fund in the state treasury outside the |
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| 13 | 13 | | general revenue fund. The fund is exempt from the application of |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sections 403.095 and 404.071. Interest and income from the deposit |
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| 15 | 15 | | and investment of money in the fund must be allocated monthly to the |
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| 16 | 16 | | fund. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (b) Until the state fiscal year beginning after the first |
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| 18 | 18 | | tax year in which the residence homestead exemption is increased to |
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| 19 | 19 | | $45,000 or the average school district maintenance and operations |
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| 20 | 20 | | tax rate is not more than $1.33 [$1.00] per $100 of taxable value, |
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| 21 | 21 | | money in the fund may be appropriated only for covering the cost of |
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| 22 | 22 | | increasing the residence homestead exemption or a purpose that will |
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| 23 | 23 | | result in a reduction of school district maintenance and operations |
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| 24 | 24 | | tax rates to rates that are less than the rates in effect for the |
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| 25 | 25 | | 2005 tax year. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (c) Beginning in the state fiscal year that begins after the |
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| 27 | 27 | | first tax year in which the residence homestead exemption is |
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| 28 | 28 | | increased to $45,000 or the average school district maintenance and |
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| 29 | 29 | | operations tax rate is not more than $1.33 [$1.00] per $100 of |
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| 30 | 30 | | taxable value, any money remaining in the fund after a sufficient |
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| 31 | 31 | | amount of money is appropriated in that state fiscal year to |
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| 32 | 32 | | maintain the cost of increasing the residence homestead exemption |
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| 33 | 33 | | or to maintain an average school district maintenance and |
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| 34 | 34 | | operations tax rate of $1.33 [$1.00] per $100 of taxable value may |
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| 35 | 35 | | be appropriated only as follows: |
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| 36 | 36 | | (1) two-thirds of the money appropriated from the fund |
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| 37 | 37 | | may be appropriated only for a purpose that will result in a further |
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| 38 | 38 | | increase in the residence homestead exemption or reduction of the |
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| 39 | 39 | | average school district maintenance and operations tax rate; and |
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| 40 | 40 | | (2) one-third of the money appropriated from the fund |
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| 41 | 41 | | may be appropriated only for the purpose of increasing the level of |
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| 42 | 42 | | equalization of school district enrichment tax effort to the extent |
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| 43 | 43 | | that limits reliance by school districts on local property tax |
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| 44 | 44 | | effort and decreases the enrichment tax rates of districts. |
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| 45 | 45 | | (d) To the extent to which maintenance and operations tax |
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| 46 | 46 | | rates are reduced using money appropriated from the fund, |
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| 47 | 47 | | reductions must be carried out so as not to increase disparity in |
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| 48 | 48 | | revenue yield between districts of varying property wealth per |
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| 49 | 49 | | weighted student. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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