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House Bill 2203 |
House Author: Otto |
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Effective: 6-17-11 |
Senate Sponsor: Williams |
House Bill 2203 amends the Government Code to require the pilot program developed by the State Office of Administrative Hearings for the consideration by the office, as an alternative to a judicial review, of a property owner's appeal of an appraisal review board order determining a protest regarding a property's appraised or market value to be implemented in Collin, Denton, Fort Bend, Montgomery, and Nueces Counties for a two-year period beginning with the property tax year that begins January 1, 2012. The bill also extends the period for the program as implemented in Bexar, Cameron, El Paso, Harris, Tarrant, and Travis Counties, which went into effect beginning with the 2010 tax year, from three years to four years.
The bill revises the process by which a property owner may appeal an appraisal review board order to the office under the pilot program by removing the requirement that the property owner file a $300 filing fee with the chief appraiser and instead requiring that the property owner file a $1,500 deposit. The bill also establishes a deadline specifically for filing such a deposit, which is refundable in part on a settlement between the property owner and the appraisal district, with the amount of the refund contingent on whether the parties settle before or after the appeal is heard.
The bill authorizes the determination of an administrative law judge assigned to hear an appeal brought under the pilot program to include an award of reasonable attorney's fees capped at a certain amount.