Enrolled Bill Summary

            Property tax law requires that if a taxing unit proposes a tax rate that, applied to the preceding year's tax base, yields a tax levy greater than the preceding year's levy on the same property, the taxing unit must give notice to taxpayers and hold a public hearing on the matter. House Bill 954 amends the Tax Code to make the notice and hearing contingent instead on whether the proposed tax rate exceeds the lower of the rollback tax rate or 103 percent of the effective tax rate. A taxing unit whose tax rate is set by law or by the electorate must reduce its tax rate to the lower of those levels and may not adopt a higher rate except by compliance with the hearing requirement. The act makes changes to related notice provisions and adds a supplemental Internet hearing notice requirement for taxing units that have a website and are required to hold a tax rate hearing. The Internet provision takes effect January 1, 2001. The remainder of the act takes effect January 1, 2000.