By Kubiak                                       H.B. No. 2172

      75R2639 JD-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to exempting from ad valorem taxation property used to

 1-3     provide transitional shelter or housing to homeless persons who are

 1-4     military veterans or the dependents or survivors of military

 1-5     veterans.

 1-6           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-7           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 11, Tax Code, is amended by

 1-8     adding Section 11.183 to read as follows:

 1-9           Sec. 11.183.  PROPERTY USED TO PROVIDE TRANSITIONAL SHELTER

1-10     OR  HOUSING FOR MILITARY VETERANS OR THEIR DEPENDENTS AND

1-11     SURVIVORS.  (a)  An  organization is entitled to an exemption from

1-12     taxation of a building or other structure that the organization

1-13     owns and uses exclusively to provide transitional shelter or

1-14     housing to homeless persons who are veterans of the armed forces of

1-15     the United States or the dependents or survivors of those veterans.

1-16           (b)  The exemption under Subsection (a) applies to land and

1-17     tangible personal property used in connection with the use of the

1-18     building or structure for a purpose authorized by Subsection (a) if

1-19     the use of the land or tangible personal property is reasonably

1-20     necessary to carry out that purpose.

1-21           (c)  To be eligible for an exemption under Subsection (a),

1-22     the organization must:

1-23                 (1)  be composed primarily of veterans of the armed

1-24     forces of the United States; or

 2-1                 (2)  meet the requirements for a charitable

 2-2     organization under Sections 11.18(e) and (f).

 2-3           SECTION 2.  Section 11.436(a), Tax Code, is amended to read

 2-4     as follows:

 2-5           (a)  An organization that acquires property that qualifies

 2-6     for an exemption under Section 11.181(a) or 11.183(a) may apply for

 2-7     the exemption for the year of acquisition not later than the 30th

 2-8     day after the date the organization acquires the property, and the

 2-9     deadline provided by Section 11.43(d) does not apply to the

2-10     application for that year.

2-11           SECTION 3.  Section 26.111(a), Tax Code, is amended to read

2-12     as follows:

2-13           (a)  If an organization acquires taxable property that

2-14     qualifies for and is granted an exemption under Section 11.181(a)

2-15     or 11.183(a) for the year in which the property was acquired, the

2-16     amount of tax due on the property for that year is calculated by

2-17     multiplying the amount of taxes imposed on the property for the

2-18     entire year as provided by Section 26.09 by a fraction, the

2-19     denominator of which is 365 and the numerator of which is the

2-20     number of days in that year before the date the charitable

2-21     organization acquired the property.

2-22           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect January 1, 1998.

2-23           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-24     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-25     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-26     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-27     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.