| 1 | 1 | | 84R6300 TJB-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Deshotel H.B. No. 1995 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the authority to modify an ad valorem tax abatement |
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| 8 | 8 | | agreement to extend the abatement period if a disaster prevents the |
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| 9 | 9 | | property owner from complying with the agreement. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Section 312.208, Tax Code, is amended by |
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| 12 | 12 | | amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c) to read as |
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| 13 | 13 | | follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (a) At any time before the expiration of an agreement made |
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| 15 | 15 | | under this subchapter, the agreement may be modified by the parties |
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| 16 | 16 | | to the agreement to include other provisions that could have been |
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| 17 | 17 | | included in the original agreement or to delete provisions that |
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| 18 | 18 | | were not necessary to the original agreement. The modification must |
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| 19 | 19 | | be made by the same procedure by which the original agreement was |
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| 20 | 20 | | approved and executed. Except as provided by Subsection (c), the |
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| 21 | 21 | | [The] original agreement may not be modified to extend beyond 10 |
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| 22 | 22 | | years from the date of the original agreement. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (c) The parties to an agreement made under this subchapter |
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| 24 | 24 | | may modify the agreement to extend the abatement period for a period |
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| 25 | 25 | | not to exceed 10 years from the date the modified agreement is |
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| 26 | 26 | | executed if: |
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| 27 | 27 | | (1) the area in which the property that is the subject |
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| 28 | 28 | | of the agreement is located is declared to be a disaster area by the |
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| 29 | 29 | | governor; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (2) the owner of the property sustains a casualty loss |
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| 31 | 31 | | to the property as a result of the disaster; and |
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| 32 | 32 | | (3) the casualty loss prevents the owner of the |
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| 33 | 33 | | property from complying with the original agreement. |
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| 34 | 34 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies to the |
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| 35 | 35 | | modification of an ad valorem tax abatement agreement regardless of |
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| 36 | 36 | | whether the disaster prompting the modification of the agreement |
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| 37 | 37 | | occurred before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 38 | 38 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 39 | 39 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 40 | 40 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 41 | 41 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 42 | 42 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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