SRC-DBM S.B. 1515 76(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   S.B. 1515
By: Ogden
Finance
4/6/1999
As Filed


DIGEST 

Currently in many communities across Texas, the only facility large enough
for community events is often the meeting halls of  charitable fraternal
organizations;  the lodge or council hall is the social hub for these
communities.  Many of these charitable fraternal organizations are having
trouble keeping their halls open because of property tax increases.
Instead of focusing on their charitable purposes, the fraternal
organization members are spending inordinate amounts of time raising money
to pay property taxes for their halls.  S.B. 1515 would exempt real
property owned by fraternal organizations from taxation under certain
conditions, including the requirement that a fraternal organization who
seeks to take the exemption have as an objective of the organization the
duty to perform charitable, benevolent, fraternal, or public service
activities.   

PURPOSE

As proposed, S.B. 1515 exempts real property owned by fraternal
organizations from ad valorem taxation. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 11.23, Tax Code, by adding Subsection (1), as
follows: 

(1)  Fraternal Organizations.  Provides that a fraternal organization is
entitled to an exemption from taxation of the real property owned by the
organization under certain conditions.  Requires a fraternal organization
under Subsection (a) to have the duty to perform charitable, benevolent,
fraternal, or public service activities as an objective.  Requires the
property of the fraternal organization entitled to the exemption to be used
primarily for the charitable, benevolent, fraternal, or public service
activities of the organization, and not for the primary purpose of
producing profit.  

SECTION 2.  Provides that this Act takes effect January 1, 2000, but only
if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 76th Legislature, Regular
Session, 1999, relating to ad valorem taxation of certain property owned by
certain fraternal organizations which were chartered by the Congress of the
Republic of  Texas or were organized by the voters.  Provides that if that
amendment is not approved by the voters, this Act has no effect. 

SECTION 3.Emergency clause.