Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3137 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R11050 CJC-F
2	2	By: Hefner H.B. No. 3137
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the appraisal of land for ad valorem tax purposes as
8	8	qualified open-space land following a transfer between family
9	9	members.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 23.54, Tax Code, is amended by adding
12	12	Subsection (e-1) to read as follows:
13	13	(e-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (e), a person is not
14	14	required to file a new application for appraisal of land under this
15	15	subchapter because of a change in ownership of the land if the
16	16	change in ownership results from a transfer of the land from the
17	17	former owner to the person and the person is related to the former
18	18	owner within the second degree by affinity or third degree by
19	19	consanguinity, as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573,
20	20	Government Code. A person described by this subsection must notify
21	21	the appraisal office of the transfer in writing within 180 days of
22	22	the date of the transfer.
23	23	SECTION 2. Section 25.25, Tax Code, is amended by adding
24	24	Subsections (d-1), (d-2), and (d-3) and amending Subsections (e)
25	25	and (m) to read as follows:
26	26	(d-1) The appraisal review board, on motion of the chief
27	27	appraiser or of the property owner, may direct by written order
28	28	changes in the appraisal roll as provided by this subsection. The
29	29	board may order the appraised value of the owner's land in either of
30	30	the two preceding tax years to be changed to the value at which the
31	31	land would have been appraised under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, if:
32	32	(1) the chief appraiser or the property owner
33	33	demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the land was
34	34	appraised under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, for three of the five
35	35	preceding tax years;
36	36	(2) the land was determined to be ineligible for
37	37	appraisal under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, for the applicable tax
38	38	year or years for which the change in appraised value is sought
39	39	because the property owner failed to file a new application for
40	40	appraisal under that subchapter after a change in ownership of the
41	41	land occurred;
42	42	(3) the change in ownership was the result of a
43	43	transfer of the land from a person to whom the property owner is
44	44	related within the second degree by affinity or third degree by
45	45	consanguinity, as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573,
46	46	Government Code; and
47	47	(4) the land continued to be used in a manner that
48	48	otherwise qualified the land for appraisal under Subchapter D,
49	49	Chapter 23, during the applicable tax year.
50	50	(d-2) If an appraisal roll is changed under Subsection
51	51	(d-1), the property owner must pay to each affected taxing unit a
52	52	penalty equal to 10 percent of the difference between the amount of
53	53	tax imposed on the land and the amount of tax that would have been
54	54	imposed had the land been taxed at market value. Payment of the
55	55	penalty is secured by the lien that attaches to the land under
56	56	Section 32.01 and is subject to enforced collection under Chapter
57	57	33.
58	58	(d-3) An appraisal roll may not be changed under Subsection
59	59	(d-1) if:
60	60	(1) the land was the subject of a protest brought by
61	61	the property owner under Chapter 41, a hearing on the protest was
62	62	conducted in which the property owner offered evidence or argument,
63	63	and the appraisal review board made a determination of the protest
64	64	on the merits; or
65	65	(2) the appraised value of the land was established as
66	66	a result of a written agreement between the property owner or the
67	67	owner's agent and the appraisal district.
68	68	(e) If the chief appraiser and the property owner do not
69	69	agree to the correction before the 15th day after the date the
70	70	motion is filed, a party bringing a motion under Subsection (c),
71	71	[or] (d), or (d-1) is entitled on request to a hearing on and a
72	72	determination of the motion by the appraisal review board. A party
73	73	bringing a motion under this section must describe the error or
74	74	errors that the motion is seeking to correct under Subsection (c) or
75	75	(d) or state the grounds for the change in appraised value sought
76	76	under Subsection (d-1). Not later than 15 days before the date of
77	77	the hearing, the board shall deliver written notice of the date,
78	78	time, and place of the hearing to the chief appraiser, the property
79	79	owner, and the presiding officer of the governing body of each
80	80	taxing unit in which the property is located. The chief appraiser,
81	81	the property owner, and each taxing unit are entitled to present
82	82	evidence and argument at the hearing and to receive written notice
83	83	of the board's determination of the motion. A property owner who
84	84	files the motion must comply with the payment requirements of
85	85	Section 25.26 or forfeit the right to a final determination of the
86	86	motion.
87	87	(m) The hearing on a motion under Subsection (c), [or] (d),
88	88	or (d-1) shall be conducted in the manner provided by Subchapter C,
89	89	Chapter 41.
90	90	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2018.