84R11765 SMH-F
By: Menéndez S.B. No. 1832
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the contents of a notice of appraised value sent to a
property owner by the chief appraiser of an appraisal district.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 25.19, Tax Code, is amended by amending
Subsections (b) and (i) and adding Subsection (b-3) to read as
follows:
(b) The chief appraiser shall separate real from personal
property and include in the notice for each:
(1) a list of the taxing units in which the property is
taxable;
(2) the appraised value of the property in the
preceding year;
(3) the taxable value of the property in the preceding
year for each taxing unit taxing the property;
(4) the tax rate adopted in the preceding year by each
taxing unit taxing the property;
(5) the appraised value of the property for the
current year and the kind and amount of each partial exemption, if
any, approved by each taxing unit taxing the property for the
current year;
(6) an estimate of the tax savings for the current year
resulting from each partial exemption calculated on the basis of
the tax rate adopted in the preceding year by each taxing unit
taxing the property;
(7) an estimate of the tax savings resulting from the
application of a limitation on taxes provided by Section 11.26 or
11.261, if applicable, in the current year calculated on the basis
of the tax rate adopted by the applicable taxing unit in the
preceding year;
(8) [(5) if the appraised value is greater than it
was in the preceding year, the amount of tax that would be imposed
on the property on the basis of the tax rate for the preceding year;
[(6)] in italic typeface, the following
statement: "The Texas Legislature does not set the amount of your
local taxes. Your property tax burden is decided by your locally
elected officials, and all inquiries concerning your taxes should
be directed to those officials";
(9) [(7)] a detailed explanation of the time and
procedure for protesting the value;
(10) in bold 12-point typeface on the front of the
notice, [(8)] the date and place the appraisal review board will
begin hearing protests and the deadlines for filing a notice of
protest as provided by Sections 41.44(a), (b), and (b-1); [and]
(11) [(9)] a statement [brief explanation] that the
[governing body of each taxing unit decides whether or not taxes on
the property will increase and the] appraisal district only
determines the value of the property; and
(12) an explanation of the method for estimating the
taxes that may be imposed by each taxing unit based on the value of
the property for the current year and the tax rate adopted in the
preceding year by each taxing unit taxing the property as shown in
the notice.
(b-3) The explanation required by Subsection (b)(12) must
describe in detail the method for applying the tax rate adopted in
the preceding year by each taxing unit taxing the property to the
appraised value of the property, less each applicable partial
exemption as shown in the notice. An example of the method for
applying the tax rate to the appraised value, less applicable
partial exemptions, must be included so that the property owner may
calculate a reasonable estimate of the amount of taxes that would be
imposed on the property by each taxing unit for the current year if
the taxing unit were to adopt the same tax rate as the unit adopted
in the preceding year.
(i) Delivery with a notice required by Subsection (a) or (g)
of a copy of the pamphlet published by the comptroller under Section
5.06 or a copy of the notice published by the chief appraiser under
Section 41.70 is sufficient to comply with the requirement that the
notice include the information specified by Subsection (b)(9)
[(b)(7)] or (g)(3), as applicable.
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
a notice of appraised value for a tax year beginning on or after the
effective date of this Act. A notice of appraised value for a tax
year beginning before the effective date of this Act is governed by
the law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act,
and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2016.