BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 3127

By: Ashby

Public Education

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The eligibility of a public school district to be taxed on its locally appraised value is based on a number of factors, one of which is the county appraisal district's compliance with the comptroller of public accounts methods and assistance program. However, some have raised concerns that the use of this particular factor is unfair to school districts as appraisal districts found to be noncompliant force school districts to receive lower revenue than entitlement would allow. H.B. 3127 seeks to curb the negative effects of noncompliant appraisal districts on school district revenue by removing the related eligibility requirement while also extending the timeframe in which school districts and property owners can protest the comptroller's findings.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 3127 amends the Government Code to revise the eligibility of a public school district to be taxed based on the district's local value for the year in which the comptroller of public accounts conducts the study to determine district property values and the following year by removing the requirement that the appraisal district that appraises property for the district was in compliance with the scoring requirement of the comptroller's most recent review of the appraisal district. The bill extends the deadline by which a district or a property owner whose tax liability on a studied property is $100,000 or more may file a petition with the comptroller for purposes of protesting the comptroller's findings from not later than the 40th day after the date on which the comptroller's findings are certified to the commissioner of education to not later than the 50th day after that date.

H.B. 3127 applies only as follows:

· to a study conducted for a tax year that begins on or after January 1, 2024; and

· to a protest of a finding under a study for which a petition is filed on or after January 1, 2024.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.