89R1820 DRS-D
By: Miles, et al. S.B. No. 489
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a requirement that a person provide or contribute to the
cost of child care for the person's employees in order to be
eligible to receive a limitation on the taxable value of the
person's property for school district maintenance and operations ad
valorem tax purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 403.612, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
follows:
(b) An agreement entered into under this section between the
governor, a school district, and an applicant pertaining to an
eligible project shall:
(1) specify the project to which the agreement
applies;
(2) specify the term of the agreement, which must:
(A) begin on the date the agreement is entered
into; and
(B) end on December 31 of the third tax year
following the end of the incentive period;
(3) specify the construction and incentive periods for
the project;
(4) specify the manner for determining the taxable
value for school district maintenance and operations ad valorem tax
purposes during the incentive period under Section 403.605 for the
eligible property subject to the agreement;
(5) specify the applicable jobs and investment
requirements prescribed by Section 403.604 and require the
applicant to comply with those requirements;
(6) require that the average annual wage paid to all
persons employed by the applicant in connection with the project
used to calculate total jobs exceed 110 percent of the average
annual wage for all jobs in the applicable industry sector during
the most recent four quarters for which data is available, as
computed by the Texas Workforce Commission, with the applicant's
average annual wage being equal to the quotient of:
(A) the applicant's total wages paid, other than
wages paid for construction jobs, as reported under Section
403.616(c)(4); and
(B) the applicant's number of total jobs as
reported under Section 403.616(c)(3);
(7) require the applicant to pay a penalty prescribed
by Section 403.614 if the applicant fails to comply with an
applicable jobs or wage requirement;
(8) require the applicant to offer and contribute to a
group health benefit plan for each employee of the applicant who is
employed in a full-time job;
(8-a) subject to Subsection (c-1), require the
applicant to provide as a benefit of employment for each employee of
the applicant who is employed in a full-time job at the site of the
project:
(A) child care provided by a licensed child-care
center:
(i) that is operated on-site by the
applicant; or
(ii) with which the applicant enters into a
contract; or
(B) payment of not less than 50 percent of the
employee's costs for child care;
(9) require the applicant, at the time the applicant
executes the agreement, to execute a performance bond in an amount
the comptroller determines to be reasonable and necessary to
protect the interests of the state and the district and conditioned
on the applicant's compliance with the terms of the agreement;
(10) authorize the governor or the district to
terminate the agreement as provided by Subsection (d); and
(11) incorporate each relevant provision of this
subchapter.
(c-1) This subsection applies to a term described by
Subsection (b)(8-a). The agreement must require the applicant to
provide the benefit described by that subsection to eligible
employees beginning on January 1 of the tax year following the first
year that a report submitted by the applicant under Section 403.616
shows that the number of required jobs created by the project at the
site of the project is 100 or more.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an agreement limiting the taxable value of property entered into
under Subchapter T, Chapter 403, Government Code, as added by
Chapter 377 (H.B. 5), Acts of the 88th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2023, on or after the effective date of this Act. An
agreement limiting the taxable value of property entered into under
that subchapter before the effective date of this Act is governed by
the law in effect on the date the agreement was entered into, and
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.