1-1  By:  Montford                                         S.B. No. 1654
    1-2        (In the Senate - Filed April 18, 1995; April 18, 1995, read
    1-3  first time and referred to Committee on Finance; April 20, 1995,
    1-4  reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 10, Nays 0;
    1-5  April 20, 1995, sent to printer.)
    1-6                         A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-7                                AN ACT
    1-8  relating to the exemption from ad valorem taxation of real property
    1-9  owned by certain organizations chartered by the Congress of the
   1-10  Republic of Texas.
   1-11        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
   1-12        SECTION 1.  Section 11.23, Tax Code, is amended by adding
   1-13  Subsection (l) to read as follows:
   1-14        (l)  Organization Chartered by Congress of the Republic of
   1-15  Texas.  An organization chartered by the Congress of the Republic
   1-16  of Texas that has been in continuous existence since the date it
   1-17  was chartered is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the real
   1-18  property owned by the organization if:
   1-19              (1)  the organization is organized to perform and does
   1-20  perform charitable, benevolent, or public service activities; and
   1-21              (2)  the property is used primarily for the charitable,
   1-22  benevolent, or public service activities of the organization and
   1-23  not for the primary purpose of producing a profit.
   1-24        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect January 1, 1996, but only
   1-25  if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 74th Legislature,
   1-26  Regular Session, 1995, relating to the exemption from ad valorem
   1-27  taxation of certain property owned by certain organizations
   1-28  chartered by the Congress of the Republic of Texas is approved by
   1-29  the voters.  If that amendment is not approved by the voters, this
   1-30  Act has no effect.
   1-31        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   1-32  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   1-33  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   1-34  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   1-35  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
   1-36                               * * * * *