| 1 | 1 | | 87R1122 TJB-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Bernal H.J.R. No. 16 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A JOINT RESOLUTION |
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| 6 | 6 | | proposing a constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature |
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| 7 | 7 | | to limit the total amount of ad valorem taxes that a school district |
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| 8 | 8 | | may impose on the residence homestead of an individual and the |
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| 9 | 9 | | surviving spouse of the individual if the individual qualifies the |
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| 10 | 10 | | property as the individual's residence homestead for 15 consecutive |
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| 11 | 11 | | tax years and the school taxes on the property increase by at least |
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| 12 | 12 | | 120 percent during that period. |
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| 13 | 13 | | BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 14 | 14 | | SECTION 1. Article VIII, Texas Constitution, is amended by |
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| 15 | 15 | | adding Section 1-b-1 to read as follows: |
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| 16 | 16 | | Sec. 1-b-1. (a) The legislature by general law may limit |
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| 17 | 17 | | the total amount of ad valorem taxes imposed by a school district on |
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| 18 | 18 | | the residence homestead of an individual who qualifies the property |
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| 19 | 19 | | as the individual's residence homestead for the preceding 15 |
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| 20 | 20 | | consecutive tax years and for which the amount of taxes imposed for |
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| 21 | 21 | | general elementary and secondary public school purposes on the |
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| 22 | 22 | | property in that 15th tax year is at least 120 percent greater than |
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| 23 | 23 | | the amount of those taxes imposed on the property in the first of |
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| 24 | 24 | | those tax years, not including taxes imposed on the market value of |
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| 25 | 25 | | all improvements made to the property during that period. A law |
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| 26 | 26 | | enacted under this section may provide that the taxes imposed by the |
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| 27 | 27 | | school district on the residence homestead after that 15th tax year |
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| 28 | 28 | | may not exceed the amount of taxes imposed by a school district on |
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| 29 | 29 | | the property in that 15th tax year. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (b) A law enacted under this section may apply to an |
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| 31 | 31 | | increase in school taxes for a 15-year period that begins not |
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| 32 | 32 | | earlier than the 15th tax year preceding the tax year in which the |
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| 33 | 33 | | law takes effect. |
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| 34 | 34 | | (c) A law enacted under this section may provide that the |
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| 35 | 35 | | total amount of ad valorem taxes imposed by a school district on a |
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| 36 | 36 | | residence homestead may not be increased while the property remains |
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| 37 | 37 | | the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of an individual |
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| 38 | 38 | | who dies in a tax year in which the taxes on the property are subject |
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| 39 | 39 | | to the limitation authorized by Subsection (a) of this section. |
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| 40 | 40 | | (d) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) or (c) of this section, a |
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| 41 | 41 | | law enacted under this section may provide that school taxes on a |
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| 42 | 42 | | residence homestead subject to the limitation authorized by this |
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| 43 | 43 | | section may be increased to the extent the value of the residence |
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| 44 | 44 | | homestead is increased by an improvement made to the property, |
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| 45 | 45 | | other than: |
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| 46 | 46 | | (1) a repair; or |
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| 47 | 47 | | (2) an improvement made to comply with a governmental |
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| 48 | 48 | | requirement. |
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| 49 | 49 | | (e) A law enacted under this section may prescribe: |
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| 50 | 50 | | (1) additional eligibility requirements for the tax |
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| 51 | 51 | | limitation authorized by this section; and |
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| 52 | 52 | | (2) procedures for the administration of the |
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| 53 | 53 | | limitation. |
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| 54 | 54 | | SECTION 2. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be |
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| 55 | 55 | | submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 2, 2021. |
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| 56 | 56 | | The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the |
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| 57 | 57 | | proposition: "The constitutional amendment authorizing the |
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| 58 | 58 | | legislature to limit the total amount of ad valorem taxes that a |
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| 59 | 59 | | school district may impose on the residence homestead of an |
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| 60 | 60 | | individual and the surviving spouse of the individual if the |
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| 61 | 61 | | individual qualifies the property as the individual's residence |
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| 62 | 62 | | homestead for 15 consecutive tax years and the school taxes on the |
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| 63 | 63 | | property increase by at least 120 percent during that period." |
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