H.B. No. 2610
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the collection of, appraisal of property for, and
1-3 election to limit certain taxes.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 33.47(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as
1-6 follows:
1-7 (c) In a suit to collect a tax, a tax receipt issued under
1-8 Section 31.075 of this code, or an electronic replica of the
1-9 receipt, that states that a tax has been paid is <constitutes>
1-10 prima facie evidence that the tax has been paid as stated by the
1-11 receipt or electronic replica.
1-12 SECTION 2. Section 41.45(d), Tax Code, is amended to read as
1-13 follows:
1-14 (d) An appraisal review board consisting of more than three
1-15 members may sit in panels of not fewer than three members to
1-16 conduct protest hearings. However, the determination of a protest
1-17 heard by a panel must be made by the board. If the recommendation
1-18 of a panel is not accepted by the board, the board may refer the
1-19 matter for rehearing to a panel composed of members who did not
1-20 hear the original hearing or, if there are not at least three
1-21 members who did not hear the original protest, the board may
1-22 determine the protest. Before determining a protest or conducting
1-23 a rehearing before a new panel or the board, the board shall
1-24 deliver notice of the hearing or meeting to determine the protest
2-1 in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter.
2-2 SECTION 3. Section 41.61(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as
2-3 follows:
2-4 (c) An appraisal review board may not issue a subpoena under
2-5 this section unless the board holds a hearing at which the board
2-6 determines that good cause exists for the issuance of the subpoena.
2-7 The appraisal review board before which a good cause hearing is
2-8 scheduled shall deliver written notice to the party being
2-9 subpoenaed and parties to the protest of the date, time, and place
2-10 of the hearing. The board shall deliver the notice not later than
2-11 the 5th day before the date of the good cause hearing. The party
2-12 being subpoenaed must have an opportunity to be heard at the good
2-13 cause hearing.
2-14 SECTION 4. (a) Section 26.08, Tax Code, as amended by
2-15 Chapters 347 and 728, Acts of the 73rd Legislature, 1993, is
2-16 amended to read as follows:
2-17 Sec. 26.08. Election to Limit School Taxes. (a) If the
2-18 governing body of a school district adopts a rate that exceeds the
2-19 sum of the district's effective maintenance rate, the rate of
2-20 $0.08, and the district's current debt rate <school district
2-21 rollback tax rate>, the registered <qualified> voters of the
2-22 district at an election held for that purpose must determine
2-23 whether <or not> to limit the tax rate the governing body may adopt
2-24 for the current year to the school district rollback tax rate.
2-25 When increased expenditure of money <funds> by a school district is
2-26 necessary to respond to a disaster, including <such as> a tornado,
2-27 hurricane, flood, or other calamity, but <(>not including a
3-1 drought, that<) which> has impacted a school district and the
3-2 governor has requested federal disaster assistance for the area in
3-3 which the school district is located, an election is not required
3-4 under this section to limit the <repeal a> tax rate the governing
3-5 body may adopt for <increase adopted> the year following the year
3-6 in which <next time the district adopts a tax rate after the date>
3-7 the disaster occurs.
3-8 (b) The governing body shall order that an <the> election be
3-9 held in the school district on a date not less than 30 or more than
3-10 90 days after the day on which it adopted the tax rate. Section
3-11 41.001, Election Code, <A state law requiring local elections to be
3-12 held on a specified date> does not apply to the election unless a
3-13 <specified> date specified by that section falls within the time
3-14 permitted by this section. At the election, the ballots shall be
3-15 prepared to permit voting for or against the proposition:
3-16 "Limiting <Reducing> the ad valorem tax rate in (name of school
3-17 district) for the current year from (the rate adopted) to (the
3-18 school district rollback tax rate)."
3-19 (c) If a majority of the votes cast <qualified voters voting
3-20 on the question> in the election favor the proposition, the
3-21 governing body may not adopt a tax rate for the school district for
3-22 the current year that exceeds <is> the school district rollback tax
3-23 rate calculated for that year using the following formula:
3-24 AND OPERATIONS RATE FOR TAX YEAR) + $0.08 + CURRENT DEBT RATEää
3-25 where:
3-26 (1) "tax year" denotes amounts used in calculating the
3-27 rollback tax rate in the year immediately preceding the year in
4-1 which the tax increase that initiated the referendum occurred
4-2 rather than the year in which the calculation occurs; and
4-3 (2) "enrollment adjustment" is computed by dividing
4-4 the current year's projected fall enrollment, as defined by the
4-5 Texas Education Agency, by last year's enrollment but may not be
4-6 less than 1.0<; otherwise the tax rate for the current year is the
4-7 one adopted by the governing body>.
4-8 (d) For purposes of this section, local tax funds dedicated
4-9 to a junior college district under Section 45.105(e), Education
4-10 Code, shall be eliminated from the calculation of the tax rate
4-11 adopted by the governing body of the school district. However, the
4-12 funds dedicated to the junior college district are subject to
4-13 Section 26.085.
4-14 (e) If a school district is certified by the commissioner of
4-15 education under Section 42.251(c), Education Code, to have been
4-16 subject to a reduction in total revenue for the school year ending
4-17 on August 31 of the tax year:
4-18 (1) the district's effective maintenance and
4-19 operations rate for the tax year is calculated as provided by
4-20 Section 26.012, except that last year's levy is reduced by the
4-21 amount of taxes imposed in the preceding year, if any, to offset
4-22 the amount of the reduction certified by the commissioner; and
4-23 (2) the district's rollback tax rate for the tax year
4-24 calculated as provided by Section 26.04 or by Subsection (c), as
4-25 applicable, is increased by the tax rate that, if applied to the
4-26 current total value for the school district, would impose taxes in
4-27 an amount equal to the amount of the reduction certified by the
5-1 commissioner.
5-2 (f) In a school district that received distributions from an
5-3 equalization tax imposed under former Chapter 18, Education Code,
5-4 the effective rate of that tax as of the date of the county unit
5-5 system's abolition is added to the district's effective maintenance
5-6 and operations rate under Subsections (a) and (c) of this section
5-7 in the calculation of the district's rollback tax rate.
5-8 <(d) For purposes of this section, except as provided by
5-9 Subsection (e), the school district rollback tax rate of a school
5-10 district is the sum of:>
5-11 <(1) the tax rate that, applied to the current total
5-12 value for the district, would impose taxes in an amount that, when
5-13 added to the state funds to be distributed to the district under
5-14 Chapters 15 and 16, Education Code, for the school year beginning
5-15 in the current tax year, would provide the same amount of state
5-16 funds and local maintenance and operations taxes per student in
5-17 weighted average daily attendance for that school year that was
5-18 available to the district in the preceding year;>
5-19 <(2) the rate of $0.06; and>
5-20 <(3) the district's current debt rate.>
5-21 <(e) In the first year in which a school district that is
5-22 the product of the consolidation of two or more whole school
5-23 districts adopts a tax, the school district rollback tax rate for
5-24 the consolidated district is the sum of:>
5-25 <(1) the tax rate that, applied to the current total
5-26 value for the district, would impose taxes in an amount that, when
5-27 added to state funds to be distributed to the district under
6-1 Chapters 15 and 16, Education Code, for the school year beginning
6-2 in the current tax year, would provide the same amount of state
6-3 funds and local maintenance and operations taxes per student in
6-4 weighted average daily attendance for that school year that was
6-5 available to the component district in the preceding year for which
6-6 that amount was greater than for any other component district;>
6-7 <(2) the rate of $0.06; and>
6-8 <(3) the consolidated district's current debt rate.>
6-9 <(f) For purposes of Subsections (d) and (e), the amount of
6-10 state funds and local maintenance and operations taxes that was
6-11 available to a school district in the preceding year is the amount
6-12 of state funds distributed to the school district under Chapters 15
6-13 and 16, Education Code, for the preceding school year and the total
6-14 amount of local maintenance and operations taxes imposed by the
6-15 district in the preceding tax year.>
6-16 <(g) In this section, "weighted students in average daily
6-17 attendance" has the meaning assigned by Section 16.302, Education
6-18 Code.>
6-19 <(h) For purposes of this section, local tax funds dedicated
6-20 to a junior college district under Section 20.48(e), Education
6-21 Code, shall be eliminated from the calculation of the tax rate
6-22 adopted by the governing body of the school district. However, the
6-23 funds dedicated to the junior college district are subject to
6-24 Section 26.085 of this code.>
6-25 (b) This section prevails over the amendment of Section
6-26 26.08, Tax Code, provided by S.B. No. 1, Acts of the 74th
6-27 Legislature, Regular Session, 1995, regardless of the relative
7-1 dates of enactment.
7-2 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
7-3 SECTION 6. The importance of this legislation and the
7-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-6 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-7 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
7-8 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
7-9 passage, and it is so enacted.