By: Whitmire S.B. No. 1614 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT 1-1 relating to the granting, repeal, or reduction of local option 1-2 residence homestead exemptions. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Section 11.13, Tax Code, is amended by adding a 1-5 new Subsection (q) to read as follows: 1-6 (q) An exemption adopted as provided by Subsection (d) or 1-7 (n) of this section may be reduced or repealed only if approved by 1-8 a vote of both the governing body and the qualified voters of the 1-9 taxing unit before May 1 by the following procedures: 1-10 (1) The governing body of the taxing unit must hold a 1-11 public hearing on the proposed reduction or repeal. The public 1-12 hearing may not be held before the seventh day after the date the 1-13 notice of the public hearing on the proposed reduction or repeal is 1-14 given. The hearing must be on a weekday that is not a public 1-15 holiday. The hearing must be held inside the boundaries of the 1-16 unit in a publicly owned building or, if a suitable publicly owned 1-17 building is not available, in a suitable building to which the 1-18 public normally has access. At the hearing, the governing body 1-19 must afford adequate opportunity for proponents and opponents of 1-20 the exemption reduction or repeal to present their views. 1-21 (2) The notice of a public hearing may not be smaller 1-22 than one-quarter page of a standard-size or a tabloid-size 1-23 newspaper, and the headline on the notice must be in 18-point or 2-1 larger type. The notice must contain a statement in the following 2-2 form: 2-3 "NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON ('REDUCTION' OR 2-4 'REPEAL') OF HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION 2-5 "The (name of taxing unit) will hold a public 2-6 hearing on a proposal to ('reduce' or 'repeal') 2-7 optional residence homestead exemptions. All 2-8 homeowners receiving this exemption will suffer tax 2-9 increases as a direct result. This action will shift 2-10 the tax burden from other property owners to 2-11 homeowners. 2-12 "The public hearing will be held on (date and 2-13 time) at (meeting place). 2-14 "(Names of all members of the governing body, 2-15 showing how each voted on the proposal to consider the 2-16 tax increase or, if one or more were absent, indicating 2-17 the absences.)" 2-18 (3) The notice may be delivered by mail to each 2-19 property owner in the unit receiving such exemption according to 2-20 the most current appraisal roll, or it may be published in a 2-21 newspaper. If the notice is published in a newspaper, it may not 2-22 be in the part of the paper in which legal notices and classified 2-23 advertisements appear. 2-24 (4) At the public hearing the governing body shall 2-25 announce the date, time, and place of the meeting at which it will 3-1 vote on the proposed reduction or repeal. After the hearing it 3-2 shall give notice of the meeting at which it will vote on the 3-3 reduction or repeal, and the notice shall be in the same form as 3-4 prescribed in Subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection, except 3-5 that it must state the following: 3-6 "NOTICE OF VOTE ON ('REDUCTION' OR 'REPEAL') OF 3-7 HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION 3-8 "The (name of taxing unit) held a public hearing 3-9 on a proposal to ('reduce' or 'repeal') optional 3-10 residence homestead exemptions. All homeowners 3-11 receiving this exemption will suffer tax increases as a 3-12 direct result. This action will shift the tax burden 3-13 from other property owners to homeowners. 3-14 "The (governing body of the taxing unit) is 3-15 scheduled to vote on the ('reduction' or 'repeal') of 3-16 this homestead exemption on (date and time) at (meeting 3-17 place). 3-18 "(Names of all members of the governing body, 3-19 showing how each voted on the proposal to consider the 3-20 tax increase or, if one or more were absent, indicating 3-21 the absences.)" 3-22 (5) The meeting to vote on the exemption reduction or 3-23 repeal may not be earlier than the third day nor later than the 3-24 14th day after the date of the public hearing. The meeting must be 3-25 held inside the boundaries of the unit in a publicly owned building 4-1 or, if a suitable publicly owned building is not available, in a 4-2 suitable building to which the public normally has access. If the 4-3 governing body does not vote to reduce or repeal the exemption by 4-4 the 14th day, it must give a new notice under Subdivision (4) 4-5 before it may so vote. 4-6 (6) If the governing body votes to reduce or repeal 4-7 the exemption, the qualified voters of the taxing unit at an 4-8 election held for that purpose must approve that action. The 4-9 governing body shall order that the election be held in the taxing 4-10 unit on a date not less than 30 nor more than 90 days after the day 4-11 on which it voted to reduce or repeal the exemption. A state law 4-12 requiring local elections to be held on a specified date does not 4-13 apply to the election unless a specified date falls within the time 4-14 permitted by this subdivision. At the election, the ballots shall 4-15 be prepared to permit voting for or against the proposition: 4-16 "('Reducing' or 'Repealing') the optional residence homestead 4-17 exemption and increasing taxes on homeowners." 4-18 (7) If a majority of the qualified voters voting on 4-19 the question in the election favor the proposition, the optional 4-20 residence homestead exemption is reduced or repealed accordingly, 4-21 beginning with the current tax year. Such reduction or repeal 4-22 shall remain in effect until a subsequent adoption, increase, 4-23 reduction, or repeal of the exemption as provided by Subsection (d) 4-24 or (n) of this section or by this subsection. 4-25 SECTION 2. SEVERABILITY. If any provision of this Act or 5-1 its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the 5-2 invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this 5-3 Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or 5-4 application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are 5-5 declared to be severable. 5-6 SECTION 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act becomes effective 5-7 September 1, 1995. 5-8 SECTION 4. EMERGENCY. The importance of this legislation 5-9 and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 5-10 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 5-11 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 5-12 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.