Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3322 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R2608 LHC-D
2	2	By: Metcalf H.B. No. 3322
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the selection and administration of an appraisal review
8	8	board in certain counties; authorizing a fee.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 6.052(f), Tax Code, is amended to read as
11	11	follows:
12	12	(f) The taxpayer liaison officer for an appraisal district
13	13	described by Section 6.41(d-1) is responsible for providing
14	14	clerical assistance to the local administrative district judge in
15	15	the selection of appraisal review board members, if
16	16	applicable. The officer shall deliver to the local administrative
17	17	district judge any applications to serve on the board that are
18	18	submitted to the officer and shall perform other duties as
19	19	requested by the local administrative district judge. The officer
20	20	may not influence the process for selecting appraisal review board
21	21	members.
22	22	SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 6, Tax Code, is amended by
23	23	adding Sections 6.4101 and 6.4102 to read as follows:
24	24	Sec. 6.4101. APPRAISAL REVIEW BOARD ELECTION AND PROCEDURES
25	25	IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) This section applies only to a county
26	26	that:
27	27	(1) has a population of more than 400,000; and
28	28	(2) is adjacent to a county with a population of more
29	29	than 3.3 million and no other counties with a population of more
30	30	than 300,000.
31	31	(b) An appraisal review board is established for an
32	32	appraisal district established in a county described by Subsection
33	33	(a). Section 6.41 does not apply to an appraisal review board
34	34	established under this section.
35	35	(c) The board consists of three members elected by the
36	36	voters of the county at the general election for state and county
37	37	officers. The members serve two-year terms beginning January 1 of
38	38	odd-numbered years.
39	39	(d) To be eligible to serve on the board, an individual must
40	40	be a resident of the county and must have resided in the county for
41	41	at least two years before the date of the individual's election or
42	42	appointment.
43	43	(e) A vacancy on the appraisal review board is filled by
44	44	appointment by resolution of a majority of the appraisal district
45	45	board of directors.
46	46	(f) For purposes of Chapter 87, Local Government Code,
47	47	grounds for removal of a member of an appraisal review board
48	48	include:
49	49	(1) a violation of Section 6.412, 6.413, 41.66(f), or
50	50	41.69;
51	51	(2) good cause relating to the attendance of members
52	52	at called meetings of the board as established by written policy
53	53	adopted by a majority of the appraisal district board of directors;
54	54	(3) evidence of repeated bias or misconduct; or
55	55	(4) failure to complete a course required by Section
56	56	5.041.
57	57	(g) Notwithstanding Section 6.42(a), the appraisal review
58	58	board by resolution shall select a chairman and a secretary from
59	59	among the board's members. The board is encouraged to select as
60	60	chairman a member of the board, if any, who has a background in law
61	61	and property appraisal.
62	62	Sec. 6.4102. BALLOT PROCEDURES FOR APPRAISAL REVIEW BOARD
63	63	MEMBER; FILING FEE. (a) This section applies only to an appraisal
64	64	review board member required to be elected under Section 6.4101.
65	65	(b) Except as provided by this section, Chapter 144,
66	66	Election Code, applies to a candidate for the office of member of
67	67	the appraisal review board of an appraisal district.
68	68	(c) An application for a place on the ballot must be filed
69	69	with the county judge of the county for which the appraisal district
70	70	is established and be accompanied by a filing fee of $250.
71	71	(d) A filing fee received under this section shall be
72	72	deposited in the county treasury to the credit of the county general
73	73	fund.
74	74	SECTION 3. Section 6.411(c-1), Tax Code, is amended to read
75	75	as follows:
76	76	(c-1) This section does not apply to communications with a
77	77	member of an appraisal review board by the chief appraiser or
78	78	another employee or a member of the board of directors of an
79	79	appraisal district or a property tax consultant or attorney
80	80	representing a party to a proceeding before the appraisal review
81	81	board:
82	82	(1) during a hearing on a protest or other proceeding
83	83	before the appraisal review board;
84	84	(2) that constitute social conversation;
85	85	(3) that are specifically limited to and involve
86	86	administrative, clerical, or logistical matters related to the
87	87	scheduling and operation of hearings, the processing of documents,
88	88	the issuance of orders, notices, and subpoenas, and the operation,
89	89	appointment, composition, or attendance at training of the
90	90	appraisal review board; or
91	91	(4) that are necessary and appropriate to enable the
92	92	board of directors of the appraisal district, or the appraisal
93	93	review board if elected under Section 6.4101, to determine whether
94	94	to appoint, reappoint, or remove a person as a member or the
95	95	chairman or secretary of the appraisal review board.
96	96	SECTION 4. Section 6.412(d), Tax Code, is amended to read as
97	97	follows:
98	98	(d) A person is ineligible to serve on the appraisal review
99	99	board of an appraisal district established for a county described
100	100	by Section 6.41(d-1) if the person:
101	101	(1) is a former member of the board of directors,
102	102	former officer, or former employee of the appraisal district;
103	103	(2) served as a member of the governing body or officer
104	104	of a taxing unit for which the appraisal district appraises
105	105	property, until the fourth anniversary of the date the person
106	106	ceased to be a member or officer;
107	107	(3) appeared before the appraisal review board for
108	108	compensation during the two-year period preceding the date the
109	109	person is elected or appointed; or
110	110	(4) served for all or part of three previous terms as a
111	111	board member or auxiliary board member on the appraisal review
112	112	board.
113	113	SECTION 5. Section 6.413(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
114	114	follows:
115	115	(a) An individual is not eligible to be elected or appointed
116	116	to or to serve on the appraisal review board established for an
117	117	appraisal district if the individual or a business entity in which
118	118	the individual has a substantial interest is a party to a contract
119	119	with the appraisal district or with a taxing unit that participates
120	120	in the appraisal district.
121	121	SECTION 6. Section 6.414, Tax Code, is amended by adding
122	122	Subsection (h) to read as follows:
123	123	(h) This subsection applies only to an appraisal review
124	124	board elected under Section 6.4101. Notwithstanding Subsections
125	125	(a) and (b), the appraisal review board by resolution of a majority
126	126	of the members may provide for a number of auxiliary appraisal
127	127	review board members that the board considers appropriate to hear
128	128	taxpayer protests before the appraisal review board and to assist
129	129	the board in performing its duties. The appraisal review board
130	130	shall prepare a list of names of potential auxiliary board members
131	131	who meet the qualifications for appointment as an auxiliary board
132	132	member and submit the list to the commissioners court of the county
133	133	in which the appraisal district is established. An auxiliary board
134	134	member is appointed by the commissioners court of the county in
135	135	which the appraisal district is established from the list of
136	136	potential members provided by the appraisal review board and is
137	137	subject to the same eligibility requirements and restrictions as a
138	138	board member under Sections 6.41, 6.411, 6.412, and 6.413. An
139	139	auxiliary board member is appointed for a two-year term. A vacancy
140	140	among the auxiliary board members is filled in the same manner as
141	141	the original appointment to the appraisal review board.
142	142	SECTION 7. Section 41.66(g), Tax Code, is amended to read as
143	143	follows:
144	144	(g) At the beginning of a hearing on a protest, each member
145	145	of the appraisal review board hearing the protest must sign an
146	146	affidavit stating that the board member has not communicated with
147	147	another person in violation of Subsection (f). If a board member
148	148	has communicated with another person in violation of Subsection
149	149	(f), the member must be recused from the proceeding and may not
150	150	hear, deliberate on, or vote on the determination of the protest.
151	151	The board of directors of the appraisal district shall adopt and
152	152	implement a policy concerning the temporary replacement of an
153	153	appraisal review board member who has communicated with another
154	154	person in violation of Subsection (f), except that an appraisal
155	155	review board elected under Section 6.4101 shall adopt and implement
156	156	its own policy instead of the board of directors of the appraisal
157	157	district.
158	158	SECTION 8. (a) Appraisal review board members shall be
159	159	elected under Section 6.4101, Tax Code, as added by this Act,
160	160	beginning with the general election conducted in 2022. Members
161	161	then elected take office January 1, 2023.
162	162	(b) The change in the manner of selection of appraisal
163	163	review board members made by Section 6.4101, Tax Code, as added by
164	164	this Act, does not affect the selection of members who serve on the
165	165	board before January 1, 2023.
166	166	(c) The term of an appraisal review board member in an
167	167	appraisal district established for a county described by Section
168	168	6.4101, Tax Code, as added by this Act, serving on December 31,
169	169	2022, expires on January 1, 2023.
170	170	(d) Auxiliary members may be appointed under Section
171	171	6.414(h), Tax Code, as added by this Act, by a commissioners court
172	172	on or after January 1, 2023.
173	173	(e) The change in the manner of selection of auxiliary
174	174	members made by Section 6.414(h), Tax Code, as added by this Act,
175	175	does not affect the selection of auxiliary members who serve before
176	176	January 1, 2023.
177	177	(f) The term of an auxiliary member in an appraisal district
178	178	established for a county described by Section 6.4101, Tax Code, as
179	179	added by this Act, serving on December 31, 2022, expires on January
180	180	1, 2023.
181	181	SECTION 9. (a) Except as otherwise provided by this
182	182	section, this Act takes effect January 1, 2023.
183	183	(b) This section, Section 6.4102, Tax Code, as added by this
184	184	Act, and Section 8 of this Act take effect January 1, 2022.