| 1 | 1 | | By: Springer S.B. No. 1890 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the elimination of school district maintenance and |
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| 7 | 7 | | operations ad valorem taxes and the creation of a joint interim |
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| 8 | 8 | | committee on the elimination of those taxes. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Chapter 26, Tax Code, is amended by adding |
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| 11 | 11 | | Section 26.035 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 26.035. PROHIBITION ON IMPOSITION OF MAINTENANCE AND |
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| 13 | 13 | | OPERATIONS TAX BY SCHOOL DISTRICT; AUTHORIZATION FOR ENRICHMENT |
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| 14 | 14 | | TAX. (a) Notwithstanding any other law and except as provided by |
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| 15 | 15 | | Subsection (b), beginning January 1, 2024, a school district may |
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| 16 | 16 | | not impose a tax for maintenance and operations purposes. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (b) Subsection (a) does not affect the authority of a school |
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| 18 | 18 | | district to impose an enrichment tax at a rate not to exceed $0.17 |
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| 19 | 19 | | per $100 of taxable value of property in the district for the |
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| 20 | 20 | | purpose of providing additional revenue to enrich the educational |
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| 21 | 21 | | opportunities of students enrolled in the district. The revenue |
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| 22 | 22 | | attributable to the tax authorized under this subsection is in |
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| 23 | 23 | | addition to any money the district receives from the state. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (c) A reference in this code, the Education Code, or any |
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| 25 | 25 | | other law to a school district's authority to impose a maintenance |
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| 26 | 26 | | tax or a maintenance and operations tax may not be construed in a |
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| 27 | 27 | | manner inconsistent with this section. |
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| 28 | 28 | | SECTION 2. (a) In this section, "committee" means the joint |
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| 29 | 29 | | interim committee on the reduction of school district maintenance |
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| 30 | 30 | | and operations ad valorem taxes on residence homesteads. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (b) The committee is composed of: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) the chair of the senate finance committee; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (2) the chair of the house ways and means committee; |
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| 34 | 34 | | (3) the author of this Act; |
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| 35 | 35 | | (4) the sponsor of this Act; and |
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| 36 | 36 | | (5) the comptroller or a person designated by the |
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| 37 | 37 | | comptroller. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (c) The comptroller or the person designated by the |
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| 39 | 39 | | comptroller serves as the chair of the committee. |
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| 40 | 40 | | (d) The committee shall convene at the call of the chair. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (e) The committee has all other powers and duties provided |
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| 42 | 42 | | to a special or select committee by the rules of the senate and |
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| 43 | 43 | | house of representatives, by Subchapter B, Chapter 301, Government |
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| 44 | 44 | | Code, and by policies of the senate and house committees on |
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| 45 | 45 | | administration. |
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| 46 | 46 | | (g) The committee shall consider and evaluate: |
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| 47 | 47 | | (1) the effectiveness of increasing the rate or |
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| 48 | 48 | | expanding the application of consumption taxes currently imposed by |
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| 49 | 49 | | the state and using the revenue attributable to the increase or |
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| 50 | 50 | | expansion to meet the state's constitutional duty to make suitable |
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| 51 | 51 | | provision for the support and maintenance of an efficient system of |
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| 52 | 52 | | public free schools in the state; |
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| 53 | 53 | | (2) the effectiveness of imposing consumption taxes |
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| 54 | 54 | | not currently imposed by the state and using the revenue |
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| 55 | 55 | | attributable to the imposition of those taxes to meet the state's |
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| 56 | 56 | | constitutional duty to make suitable provision for the support and |
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| 57 | 57 | | maintenance of an efficient system of public free schools in the |
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| 58 | 58 | | state; |
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| 59 | 59 | | (3) the ability of state-imposed consumption taxes to |
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| 60 | 60 | | adequately respond to annual changes in funding needs that are |
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| 61 | 61 | | unique to school districts in the state; and |
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| 62 | 62 | | (4) the effects of an increase in consumption taxes on |
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| 63 | 63 | | the residents of this state and businesses located in this state. |
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| 64 | 64 | | (h) Not later than November 1, 2024, the committee shall |
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| 65 | 65 | | provide to the legislature a written report: |
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| 66 | 66 | | (1) addressing the feasibility of using consumption |
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| 67 | 67 | | taxes for the support and maintenance of an efficient system of |
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| 68 | 68 | | public free schools in the state; |
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| 69 | 69 | | (2) proposing a comprehensive plan to use revenue |
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| 70 | 70 | | attributable to consumption taxes for the support and maintenance |
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| 71 | 71 | | of an efficient system of public free schools in the state; and |
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| 72 | 72 | | (3) proposing legislation necessary to implement the |
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| 73 | 73 | | comprehensive plan described by Subdivision (2) of this subsection. |
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| 74 | 74 | | (i) The proposals made in the report under Subsection (h) of |
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| 75 | 75 | | this section must allow for the imposition by a school district of |
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| 76 | 76 | | an ad valorem tax at a rate not to exceed $0.17 per $100 of taxable |
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| 77 | 77 | | value of property in the district for the purpose of enriching |
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| 78 | 78 | | educational opportunities for students enrolled in the district. |
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| 79 | 79 | | (j) The committee is abolished January 1, 2025. |
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| 80 | 80 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 81 | 81 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 82 | 82 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 83 | 83 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 84 | 84 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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