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1-7 (n) of this section may be reduced or repealed only if approved by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.