Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB4509 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R11125 JD-D
2	2	By: Coleman H.B. No. 4509
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the exemption from ad valorem taxation of certain real
8	8	property owned by a nonprofit hospital or hospital system.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 11.1801, Tax Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Subsections (k) through (r) to read as follows:
12	12	(k) This subsection and Subsections (l)-(r) apply only in
13	13	connection with real property that is owned by a nonprofit hospital
14	14	or hospital system and consists of:
15	15	(1) unimproved land on which an improvement is
16	16	proposed to provide charity care and community benefits as required
17	17	by this section;
18	18	(2) land on which is located an improvement or
19	19	incomplete improvement that is under physical preparation within
20	20	the meaning of Section 11.18(n); or
21	21	(3) land and an improvement on the land that is not
22	22	currently used to provide charity care and community benefits as
23	23	required by this section but is intended to be used for that purpose
24	24	or to be converted or reconstructed for that purpose.
25	25	(l) Notwithstanding Section 11.43(c), a person claiming an
26	26	exemption under 11.18(d)(1) for property to which this section
27	27	applies must apply each year for the exemption. In applying for the
28	28	exemption, a person seeking the exemption shall present a request
29	29	to the commissioner of the Department of State Health Services
30	30	detailing, as applicable:
31	31	(1) the proposed use of the land, the improvement, or
32	32	the incomplete improvement; or
33	33	(2) the proposed use of the land or the improvement
34	34	after conversion or reconstruction.
35	35	(m) Following submission of the information required by
36	36	Subsection (l), the commissioner of the Department of State Health
37	37	Services shall determine if the land or improvement qualifies for
38	38	an exemption under Section 11.18(d)(1). As soon as practicable,
39	39	the commissioner shall send notice by regular mail to the chief
40	40	appraiser of the appraisal district for the county in which the
41	41	property is located that the person has applied for a determination
42	42	under this subsection. The commissioner shall issue a letter to the
43	43	person stating the commissioner's determination of whether the
44	44	land or improvement qualifies for the exemption and send a copy of
45	45	the letter by regular mail to the chief appraiser of the appraisal
46	46	district for the county in which the property is located.
47	47	(n) Not later than the 20th day after the date of receipt of
48	48	the letter issued by the commissioner of the Department of State
49	49	Health Services, the person seeking the exemption or the chief
50	50	appraiser may appeal the commissioner's determination to the
51	51	executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
52	52	The executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services
53	53	Commission shall consider the appeal as soon as practicable. The
54	54	person seeking the determination and the chief appraiser may
55	55	testify before the executive commissioner. The executive
56	56	commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission may remand
57	57	the matter to the commissioner of the Department of State Health
58	58	Services for a new determination or deny the appeal and affirm the
59	59	determination of the commissioner of the Department of State Health
60	60	Services. On issuance of a new determination, the commissioner of
61	61	the Department of State Health Services shall issue a letter to the
62	62	person seeking the determination and provide a copy to the chief
63	63	appraiser as provided by Subsection (m). A new determination of the
64	64	commissioner of the Department of State Health Services may be
65	65	appealed to the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
66	66	Services Commission in the manner provided by this subsection. A
67	67	proceeding under this subsection is not a contested case for
68	68	purposes of Chapter 2001, Government Code.
69	69	(o) The commissioner of the Department of State Health
70	70	Services may charge a person seeking a determination that the
71	71	property qualifies for the exemption a fee not to exceed the
72	72	commissioner's administrative costs for processing the
73	73	information, making the determination, and issuing the letter
74	74	required by this section.
75	75	(p) The executive commissioner of the Health and Human
76	76	Services Commission shall adopt rules to implement this section.
77	77	Rules adopted under this section must:
78	78	(1) establish specific standards for considering
79	79	applications for determinations; and
80	80	(2) be sufficiently specific to ensure that
81	81	determinations are equal and uniform.
82	82	(q) The commissioner of the Department of State Health
83	83	Services may not make a determination that property qualifies for
84	84	an exemption under Section 11.18(d)(1) unless the property meets
85	85	the standards established under rules adopted under Subsection (p).
86	86	(r) A person seeking an exemption under Section 11.18(d)(1)
87	87	shall provide to the chief appraiser a copy of the letter issued by
88	88	the commissioner of the Department of State Health Services under
89	89	Subsection (m) determining that the property qualifies for the
90	90	exemption. The chief appraiser shall accept a final determination
91	91	by the commissioner of the Department of State Health Services as
92	92	conclusive evidence that the property qualifies for the exemption.
93	93	SECTION 2. This Act applies only to an ad valorem tax year
94	94	that begins on or after the effective date of this Act.
95	95	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2010.