81R10607 SMH-D
By: Olivo H.B. No. 4697
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to an exemption of a portion of the appraised value of the
residence homestead of an elderly person from ad valorem taxation
by a fresh water supply district.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 11.13, Tax Code, is amended by adding
Subsection (s) to read as follows:
(s) In addition to the other exemptions provided by this
section, an individual who is 65 or older is entitled to an
exemption from ad valorem taxation by a fresh water supply district
established under Chapter 53, Water Code, of $100,000 of the
appraised value of the individual's residence homestead.
SECTION 2. Section 11.42(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
(c) An exemption authorized by Section 11.13(c), [or] (d),
or (s) is effective as of January 1 of the tax year in which the
person qualifies for the exemption and applies to the entire tax
year.
SECTION 3. Sections 11.43(k), (l), and (m), Tax Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(k) A person who qualifies for an exemption authorized by
Section 11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) must apply for the exemption no
later than the first anniversary of the date the person qualified
for the exemption.
(l) The form for an application under Section 11.13 must
include a space for the applicant to state the applicant's date of
birth. Failure to provide the date of birth does not affect the
applicant's eligibility for an exemption under that section, other
than an exemption under Section 11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) for an
individual 65 years of age or older.
(m) Notwithstanding Subsections (a) and (k), a person who
receives an exemption under Section 11.13, other than an exemption
under Section 11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) for an individual 65 years
of age or older, in a tax year is entitled to receive an exemption
under Section 11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) for an individual 65 years
of age or older in the next tax year on the same property without
applying for the exemption if the person becomes 65 years of age in
that next year as shown by:
(1) information in the records of the appraisal
district that was provided to the appraisal district by the
individual in an application for an exemption under Section 11.13
on the property or in correspondence relating to the property; or
(2) the information provided by the Texas Department
of Public Safety to the appraisal district under Section 521.049,
Transportation Code.
SECTION 4. Section 26.112, Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 26.112. CALCULATION OF TAXES ON RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD OF
ELDERLY OR DISABLED PERSON. (a) Except as provided by Section
26.10(b), if at any time during a tax year property is owned by an
individual who qualifies for an exemption under Section 11.13(c),
[or] (d), or (s), the amount of the tax due on the property for the
tax year is calculated as if the person qualified for the exemption
on January 1 and continued to qualify for the exemption for the
remainder of the tax year.
(b) If a person qualifies for an exemption under Section
11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) with respect to the property after the
amount of the tax due on the property is calculated and the effect
of the qualification is to reduce the amount of the tax due on the
property, the assessor for each taxing unit shall recalculate the
amount of the tax due on the property and correct the tax roll. If
the tax bill has been mailed and the tax on the property has not been
paid, the assessor shall mail a corrected tax bill to the person in
whose name the property is listed on the tax roll or to the person's
authorized agent. If the tax on the property has been paid, the tax
collector for the taxing unit shall refund to the person who paid
the tax the amount by which the payment exceeded the tax due.
SECTION 5. Section 33.01(d), Tax Code, is amended to read as
follows:
(d) In lieu of the penalty imposed under Subsection (a), a
delinquent tax incurs a penalty of 50 percent of the amount of the
tax without regard to the number of months the tax has been
delinquent if the tax is delinquent because the property owner
received an exemption under:
(1) Section 11.13 and the chief appraiser subsequently
cancels the exemption because the residence was not the principal
residence of the property owner and the property owner received an
exemption for two or more additional residence homesteads for the
tax year in which the tax was imposed;
(2) Section 11.13(c), [or] (d), or (s) for a person who
is 65 years of age or older and the chief appraiser subsequently
cancels the exemption because the property owner was younger than
65 years of age; or
(3) Section 11.13(q) and the chief appraiser
subsequently cancels the exemption because the property owner was
younger than 55 years of age when the property owner's spouse died.
SECTION 6. This Act applies only to ad valorem taxes imposed
for a tax year beginning on or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect January 1, 2010, but only
if the constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to
exempt a portion of the assessed value of the residence homestead of
an elderly person from ad valorem taxation by a fresh water supply
district is approved by the voters. If that amendment is not
approved by the voters, this Act has no effect.