88R7805 CJC-F
By: Hefner H.B. No. 2398
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to late applications for the appraisal of land for ad
valorem tax purposes as qualified open-space land following the
death of the owner of the land.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 23.541, Tax Code, is amended by adding
Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsection (b) to read as follows:
(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the chief appraiser
shall accept and approve or deny an application for appraisal under
this subchapter after the deadline for filing the application has
passed if:
(1) the land that is the subject of the application was
appraised under this subchapter in the preceding tax year;
(2) the former owner of the land described by
Subdivision (1) died during the preceding tax year; and
(3) the application is filed not later than the
delinquency date for the taxes on the land for the year for which
the application is filed by:
(A) the surviving spouse or a surviving child of
the former owner;
(B) the executor or administrator of the estate
of the former owner; or
(C) the trustee of a trust created by the former
owner or the surviving spouse or a surviving child of the trustor of
such a trust who is acting as a beneficiary under the trust.
(b) If appraisal under this subchapter is approved when the
application is filed late, the owner is liable for a penalty of 10
percent of the difference between the amount of tax imposed on the
property and the amount that would be imposed if the property were
taxed at market value. The penalty prescribed by this subsection
does not apply to a late application filed under Subsection (a-1).
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies
beginning with the 2023 tax year.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.