Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB624 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Hinojosa, Bettencourt S.B. No. 624
2	2	(In the Senate - Filed February 18, 2015; February 23, 2015,
3	3	read first time and referred to Committee on Finance; April 9, 2015,
4	4	reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the
5	5	following vote: Yeas 12, Nays 0; April 9, 2015, sent to printer.)
6	6	Click here to see the committee vote
7	7	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 624 By: Hinojosa
8	8
9	9
10	10	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
11	11	AN ACT
12	12	relating to installment payments of ad valorem taxes.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Sections 31.031(a-1), (a-2), and (b), Tax Code,
15	15	are amended to read as follows:
16	16	(a-1) An individual to whom this section applies may pay a
17	17	taxing unit's taxes imposed on property that the person owns and
18	18	occupies as a residence homestead in four equal installments
19	19	without penalty or interest if the first installment is paid before
20	20	the delinquency date and is accompanied by notice to the taxing unit
21	21	that the person will pay the remaining taxes in three equal
22	22	installments. If the delinquency date is February 1, the [The]
23	23	second installment must be paid before April 1, the third
24	24	installment must be paid before June 1, and the fourth installment
25	25	must be paid before August 1. If the delinquency date is a date
26	26	other than February 1, the second installment must be paid before
27	27	the first day of the second month after the delinquency date, the
28	28	third installment must be paid before the first day of the fourth
29	29	month after the delinquency date, and the fourth installment must
30	30	be paid before the first day of the sixth month after the
31	31	delinquency date.
32	32	(a-2) Notwithstanding the deadline prescribed by Subsection
33	33	(a-1) for payment of the first installment, an individual to whom
34	34	this section applies may pay the taxes in four equal installments as
35	35	provided by Subsection (a-1) if the first installment is paid and
36	36	the required notice is provided before the first day of the first
37	37	month after the delinquency date [March 1].
38	38	(b) If the individual fails to make a payment, including the
39	39	first payment, before the applicable date provided by Subsection
40	40	(a-1), the unpaid installment [amount] is delinquent and incurs a
41	41	penalty of six percent and interest as provided by Section
42	42	33.01(c). The penalty provided by Section 33.01(a) does not apply
43	43	to the unpaid installment [amount].
44	44	SECTION 2. Sections 31.032(b) and (c), Tax Code, are
45	45	amended to read as follows:
46	46	(b) If, before the delinquency date, a person pays at least
47	47	one-fourth of a taxing unit's taxes imposed on property that the
48	48	person owns, accompanied by notice to the taxing unit that the
49	49	person will pay the remaining taxes in installments, the person may
50	50	pay the remaining taxes without penalty or interest in three equal
51	51	installments. If the delinquency date is February 1, the [The]
52	52	first installment must be paid before April 1, the second
53	53	installment must be paid before June 1, and the third installment
54	54	must be paid before August 1. If the delinquency date is a date
55	55	other than February 1, the first installment must be paid before the
56	56	first day of the second month after the delinquency date, the second
57	57	installment must be paid before the first day of the fourth month
58	58	after the delinquency date, and the third installment must be paid
59	59	before the first day of the sixth month after the delinquency date.
60	60	(c) If the person fails to make a payment before the
61	61	applicable date provided by Subsection (b), the unpaid installment
62	62	[amount] is delinquent and incurs a penalty of six percent and
63	63	interest as provided by Section 33.01(c).
64	64	SECTION 3. Sections 33.011(d) and (i), Tax Code, are
65	65	amended to read as follows:
66	66	(d) A request for a waiver of penalties and interest under
67	67	Subsection (a)(1) or (3), (b), (h), or (j) must be made before the
68	68	181st day after the delinquency date. A request for a waiver of
69	69	penalties and interest under Subsection (a)(2) must be made before
70	70	the first anniversary of the date the religious organization
71	71	acquires the property. A request for a waiver of penalties and
72	72	interest under Subsection (i) must be made before the 181st day
73	73	after the date the property owner making the request receives
74	74	notice of the delinquent tax that satisfies the requirements of
75	75	Section 33.04(c) [33.04(b)]. To be valid, a waiver of penalties or
76	76	interest under this section must be requested in writing. If a
77	77	written request for a waiver is not timely made, the governing body
78	78	of a taxing unit may not waive any penalties or interest under this
79	79	section.
80	80	(i) The governing body of a taxing unit may waive penalties
81	81	and interest on a delinquent tax that relates to a date preceding
82	82	the date on which the property owner acquired the property if:
83	83	(1) the property owner or another person liable for
84	84	the tax pays the tax not later than the 181st day after the date the
85	85	property owner receives notice of the delinquent tax that satisfies
86	86	the requirements of Section 33.04(c) [33.04(b)]; and
87	87	(2) the delinquency is the result of taxes imposed on:
88	88	(A) omitted property entered in the appraisal
89	89	records as provided by Section 25.21;
90	90	(B) erroneously exempted property or appraised
91	91	value added to the appraisal roll as provided by Section 11.43(i);
92	92	or
93	93	(C) property added to the appraisal roll under a
94	94	different account number or parcel when the property was owned by a
95	95	prior owner.
96	96	SECTION 4. Section 33.02, Tax Code, is amended by amending
97	97	Subsections (a) and (b-1) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (f) to
98	98	read as follows:
99	99	(a) The collector for a taxing unit may enter into an
100	100	agreement with a person delinquent in the payment of the tax for
101	101	payment of the tax, penalties, and interest in installments. The
102	102	collector for a taxing unit shall, on request by a person delinquent
103	103	in the payment of the tax on a residence homestead for which the
104	104	property owner has been granted an exemption under Section 11.13,
105	105	enter into an agreement with the person for payment of the tax,
106	106	penalties, and interest in installments if the person has not
107	107	entered into an installment agreement with the collector for the
108	108	taxing unit under this section in the preceding 24 months.
109	109	(a-1) An installment agreement under this section:
110	110	(1) must be in writing;
111	111	(2) must provide for payments to be made in [equal]
112	112	monthly installments;
113	113	(3) must extend for a period of at least 12 months if
114	114	the property that is the subject of the agreement is a residence
115	115	homestead for which the person entering into the agreement has been
116	116	granted an exemption under Section 11.13; and
117	117	(4) may not extend for a period of more than 36 months.
118	118	(b-1) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, a
119	119	penalty does not accrue as provided by Section 33.01(a) on the
120	120	unpaid balance during the period of the agreement if the property
121	121	that is the subject of the agreement is a residence homestead for
122	122	which the property owner has been granted an exemption under
123	123	Section 11.13. If the property owner fails to make a payment as
124	124	required by the agreement, a penalty accrues as provided by Section
125	125	33.01(a) on the unpaid balance as if the owner had not entered into
126	126	the agreement.
127	127	(f) The collector for a taxing unit must deliver a notice of
128	128	default to a person who is in breach of an installment agreement
129	129	under this section and to any other owner of an interest in the
130	130	property subject to the agreement whose name appears on the
131	131	delinquent tax roll before the collector may seize and sell the
132	132	property or file a suit to collect a delinquent tax subject to the
133	133	agreement.
134	134	SECTION 5. Section 33.04, Tax Code, as amended by Chapters
135	135	935 (H.B. 1597) and 967 (H.B. 1913), Acts of the 83rd Legislature,
136	136	Regular Session, 2013, is amended to read as follows:
137	137	Sec. 33.04. NOTICE OF DELINQUENCY. (a) At least once each
138	138	year the collector for a taxing unit shall deliver a notice of
139	139	delinquency to each person whose name appears on the current
140	140	delinquent tax roll. However, the notice need not be delivered if:
141	141	(1) a bill for the tax was not mailed under Section
142	142	31.01(f); or
143	143	(2) the collector does not know and by exercising
144	144	reasonable diligence cannot determine the delinquent taxpayer's
145	145	name and address.
146	146	(b) A notice of delinquency under this section must contain
147	147	the following statement in capital letters: "IF THE PROPERTY
148	148	DESCRIBED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS YOUR RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD, YOU SHOULD
149	149	CONTACT THE TAX COLLECTOR FOR (NAME OF TAXING UNIT) REGARDING A
150	150	RIGHT YOU MAY HAVE TO ENTER INTO AN INSTALLMENT AGREEMENT DIRECTLY
151	151	WITH THE TAX COLLECTOR FOR (NAME OF TAXING UNIT) FOR THE PAYMENT OF
152	152	THESE TAXES."
153	153	(c) [(b)] If the delinquency is the result of taxes imposed
154	154	on property described by Section 33.011(i), the first page of the
155	155	notice of delinquency must include, in 14-point boldfaced type or
156	156	14-point uppercase letters, a statement that reads substantially as
157	157	follows: "THE TAXES ON THIS PROPERTY ARE DELINQUENT. THE PROPERTY
158	158	IS SUBJECT TO A LIEN FOR THE DELINQUENT TAXES. IF THE DELINQUENT
159	159	TAXES ARE NOT PAID, THE LIEN MAY BE FORECLOSED [ON]."
160	160	[(c) The collector for a taxing unit must deliver a notice
161	161	of delinquency to a person who is in breach of an installment
162	162	agreement under Section 33.02 and to any other owner of an interest
163	163	in the property subject to the agreement whose name appears on the
164	164	delinquent tax roll before the collector may seize and sell the
165	165	property or file a suit to collect a delinquent tax subject to the
166	166	agreement.]
167	167	SECTION 6. Sections 31.031(d) and 31.032(e), Tax Code, are
168	168	repealed.
169	169	SECTION 7. (a) The changes in law made by this Act to
170	170	Sections 31.031, 31.032, and 33.02, Tax Code, apply only to an
171	171	installment agreement for the payment of ad valorem taxes entered
172	172	into on or after the effective date of this Act. An installment
173	173	agreement for the payment of ad valorem taxes entered into before
174	174	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on
175	175	the date the agreement was entered into, and the former law is
176	176	continued in effect for that purpose.
177	177	(b) The change in law made by this Act to Section 33.04, Tax
178	178	Code, applies only to a notice of delinquency delivered on or after
179	179	the effective date of this Act. A notice of delinquency delivered
180	180	before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
181	181	effect on the date the notice was delivered, and the former law is
182	182	continued in effect for that purpose.
183	183	SECTION 8. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
184	184	over another Act of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015,
185	185	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
186	186	codes.
187	187	SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
188	188	* * * * *