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House Bill 3216 |
House Author: Otto |
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Effective: 9-1-11 |
Senate Sponsor: West |
Current law authorizes the electronic transmission of notices, property renditions, application forms, or completed applications between a chief appraiser and a property owner or the property owner's designee if the parties agree to communicate electronically. House Bill 3216 amends the Tax Code to include in that authorization the electronic transmission of documents between an appraisal district, an appraisal review board, or any combination of the chief appraiser, appraisal district, or appraisal review board and a property owner or the owner's designee. The bill authorizes the chief appraiser to determine the medium, format, content, and method to be used for an electronic communication if the comptroller of public accounts has not already done so.
The bill makes a requirement for the chief appraiser to enter into an agreement for electronic delivery of a notice of appraised value at the request of a property owner whose property is included in 25 or more accounts in the appraisal district's appraisal records applicable only if the appraisal district is located in a county with a population of more than 200,000.
The bill requires the chief appraiser to provide notice via certain means regarding the availability of agreement forms authorizing electronic communication and requires a property owner or a property owner's designee who enters into an agreement authorizing electronic communication that has not been rescinded to notify the appraisal district of a change in the e-mail address specified in the agreement before the first April 1 that occurs following the change. The bill provides that if notification is not received by the appraisal district before that date, any notices delivered under the agreement to the property owner or the property owner's designee are considered to be timely delivered until the required notification is received. The bill makes Government Code provisions relating to digital signatures applicable to an electronic signature included in any notice, rendition, application form, or completed application.
The bill prohibits a decision by the chief appraiser not to enter into an agreement, unless the chief appraiser is otherwise required by law to enter into an agreement, from being reviewed by the appraisal review board or from being the subject of a suit to compel, a taxpayer protest, a judicial appeal, or a complaint filed under the Property Taxation Professional Certification Act. The bill requires the chief appraiser, appraisal district, or appraisal review board, unless the chief appraiser and the property owner or the property owner's designee agree otherwise, to deliver a notice electronically in a manner that allows for confirmation of receipt by the property owner or the designee. The bill requires delivery by regular first class mail if confirmation of receipt is not received by the 30th day following the date the electronic notice is delivered.
The bill requires each appraisal district established for a county having a population of 500,000 or more to implement a system that allows a designation of a property tax agent to be signed and filed electronically. The bill requires an agent who electronically submits a designation of agent form, on the chief appraiser's request, to provide the chief appraiser certain information regarding the form and prohibits a person from knowingly falsifying such a form.