86R4438 CJC-F
By: Hefner H.B. No. 1188
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the appraisal of land for ad valorem tax purposes as
qualified open-space land following a transfer between family
members.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 23.54, Tax Code, is amended by adding
Subsection (e-1) to read as follows:
(e-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (e), land remains eligible
for appraisal under this subchapter after a change in ownership of
the land occurs if the change in ownership results from a transfer
of the land from the former owner to a person who is related to the
former owner within the second degree by affinity or third degree by
consanguinity, as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573,
Government Code. A person described by this subsection must notify
the appraisal office of the transfer in writing within 180 days of
the date of the transfer.
SECTION 2. Section 25.25, Tax Code, is amended by adding
Subsections (d-1), (d-2), and (d-3) and amending Subsections (e)
and (m) to read as follows:
(d-1) The appraisal review board, on motion of the chief
appraiser or of the property owner, may direct by written order
changes in the appraisal roll as provided by this subsection. The
board may order the appraised value of the owner's land in either of
the two preceding tax years to be changed to the value at which the
land would have been appraised under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, if:
(1) the chief appraiser or the property owner
demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the land was
appraised under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, for three of the five
preceding tax years;
(2) the land was determined to be ineligible for
appraisal under Subchapter D, Chapter 23, for the applicable tax
year or years for which the change in appraised value is sought
because the property owner failed to file a new application for
appraisal under that subchapter after a change in ownership of the
land occurred;
(3) the change in ownership was the result of a
transfer of the land from a person to whom the property owner is
related within the second degree by affinity or third degree by
consanguinity, as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573,
Government Code; and
(4) the land continued to be used in a manner that
otherwise qualified the land for appraisal under Subchapter D,
Chapter 23, during the applicable tax year.
(d-2) If an appraisal roll is changed under Subsection
(d-1), the property owner must pay to each affected taxing unit a
penalty equal to 10 percent of the difference between the amount of
tax imposed on the land and the amount of tax that would have been
imposed had the land been taxed at market value. Payment of the
penalty is secured by the lien that attaches to the land under
Section 32.01 and is subject to enforced collection under Chapter
33.
(d-3) An appraisal roll may not be changed under Subsection
(d-1) if:
(1) the land was the subject of a protest brought by
the property owner under Chapter 41, a hearing on the protest was
conducted in which the property owner offered evidence or argument,
and the appraisal review board made a determination of the protest
on the merits; or
(2) the appraised value of the land was established as
a result of a written agreement between the property owner or the
owner's agent and the appraisal district.
(e) If the chief appraiser and the property owner do not
agree to the correction before the 15th day after the date the
motion is filed, a party bringing a motion under Subsection (c),
[or] (d), or (d-1) is entitled on request to a hearing on and a
determination of the motion by the appraisal review board. A party
bringing a motion under this section must describe the error or
errors that the motion is seeking to correct under Subsection (c) or
(d) or state the grounds for the change in appraised value sought
under Subsection (d-1). Not later than 15 days before the date of
the hearing, the board shall deliver written notice of the date,
time, and place of the hearing to the chief appraiser, the property
owner, and the presiding officer of the governing body of each
taxing unit in which the property is located. The chief appraiser,
the property owner, and each taxing unit are entitled to present
evidence and argument at the hearing and to receive written notice
of the board's determination of the motion. The property owner is
entitled to elect to present the owner's evidence and argument
before, after, or between the cases presented by the chief
appraiser and each taxing unit. A property owner who files the
motion must comply with the payment requirements of Section 25.26
or forfeit the right to a final determination of the motion.
(m) The hearing on a motion under Subsection (c), [or] (d),
or (d-1) shall be conducted in the manner provided by Subchapter C,
Chapter 41.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2020.