76R14212 JD-D                           
         By Craddick                                           H.B. No. 1218
         Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1218:
         By Craddick                                       C.S.H.B. No. 1218
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the exemption from ad valorem taxation of certain
 1-3     tangible personal property held only temporarily for assembling,
 1-4     manufacturing, processing, or other commercial purposes.
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 11, Tax Code, is amended by
 1-7     adding Section 11.252 to read as follows:
 1-8           Sec. 11.252.  TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY IN TRANSIT.  (a)  In
 1-9     this section, "goods-in-transit" means property that is exempt from
1-10     taxation under Section 1-n, Article VIII, Texas Constitution.
1-11           (b)  A person is entitled to an exemption from taxation of
1-12     the appraised value of that portion of the person's property that
1-13     consists of goods-in-transit.
1-14           (c)  The exemption provided by Subsection (b) is subtracted
1-15     from the market value of the property determined under Section
1-16     23.12 to determine the taxable value of the property.
1-17           (d)  Except as provided by Subsections (f) and (g), the chief
1-18     appraiser shall determine the appraised value of goods-in-transit
1-19     under this subsection.  The chief appraiser shall determine the
1-20     percentage of the market value of inventory or property owned by
1-21     the property owner in the preceding calendar year that was
1-22     contributed by goods-in-transit.  For the first year to which the
1-23     exemption applies to a taxing unit, the chief appraiser shall
1-24     determine that percentage as if the exemption applied to the
 2-1     preceding year.  The chief appraiser shall apply that percentage to
 2-2     the market value of the property owner's inventory or property for
 2-3     the current year to determine the appraised value of
 2-4     goods-in-transit for the current year.
 2-5           (e)  In determining the market value of goods-in-transit that
 2-6     in the preceding year were assembled, manufactured, repaired,
 2-7     maintained, processed, or fabricated in this state or used by the
 2-8     person who acquired or imported the property in the repair or
 2-9     maintenance of aircraft operated by a certificated air carrier, the
2-10     chief appraiser shall exclude the cost of equipment, machinery, or
2-11     materials that entered into and became component parts of the
2-12     goods-in-transit but were not themselves goods-in-transit or that
2-13     were not transported to another location in this state or out of
2-14     this state before the expiration of 270 days after the date they
2-15     were brought into this state by the property owner or acquired by
2-16     the property owner in this state.  For component parts held in
2-17     bulk, the chief appraiser may use the average length of time a
2-18     component part was held by the owner of the component parts during
2-19     the preceding year at a location in this state that was not owned
2-20     or under the control of the owner of the component parts in
2-21     determining whether the component parts were transported to another
2-22     location in this state or out of this state before the expiration
2-23     of 270 days.
2-24           (f)  If the property owner was not engaged in transporting
2-25     goods-in-transit to other locations in this state or out of this
2-26     state for the entire preceding year, the chief appraiser shall
2-27     calculate the percentage of the market value described in
 3-1     Subsection (d) for the portion of the year in which the property
 3-2     owner was engaged in transporting goods-in-transit to another
 3-3     location in this state or out of this state.
 3-4           (g)  If the property owner or the chief appraiser
 3-5     demonstrates that the method provided by Subsection (d)
 3-6     significantly understates or overstates the market value of the
 3-7     property qualified for an exemption under Subsection (b) in the
 3-8     current year, the chief appraiser shall determine the market value
 3-9     of the goods-in-transit to be exempt by determining, according to
3-10     the property owner's records and any other available information,
3-11     the market value of those goods-in-transit owned by the property
3-12     owner on January 1 of the current year, excluding the cost of
3-13     equipment, machinery, or materials that entered into and became
3-14     component parts of the goods-in-transit but were not themselves
3-15     goods-in-transit or that were not transported to another location
3-16     in this state or out of this state before the expiration of 270
3-17     days after the date they were brought into this state by the
3-18     property owner or acquired by the property owner in this state.
3-19           (h)  The chief appraiser by written notice delivered to a
3-20     property owner who claims an exemption under this section may
3-21     require the property owner to provide copies of property records to
3-22     determine the amount and value of goods-in-transit and whether the
3-23     location in this state where the goods-in-transit were detained for
3-24     assembling, storing, manufacturing, processing, or fabricating
3-25     purposes was not owned or under the control of the owner of the
3-26     goods-in-transit.  If the property owner fails to deliver the
3-27     information requested in the notice before the 31st day after the
 4-1     date the notice is delivered to the property owner, the property
 4-2     owner forfeits the right to claim or receive the exemption for that
 4-3     year.
 4-4           (i)  For the purposes of Section 1-n, Article VIII, Texas
 4-5     Constitution, "petroleum products" means liquid and gaseous
 4-6     materials that are the immediate derivatives of the refining of oil
 4-7     or natural gas.
 4-8           (j)  Property that meets the requirements of Section 1-n(a),
 4-9     Article VIII, Texas Constitution, constitutes goods-in-transit
4-10     regardless of whether the person who owns the property on January 1
4-11     is the person who transports it to another location in this state
4-12     or out of this state.
4-13           SECTION 2.  Section 11.437(a), Tax Code, is amended to read
4-14     as follows:
4-15           (a)  A person who operates a warehouse used primarily for the
4-16     storage of cotton for transportation to another location in this
4-17     state or outside of this state may apply for an exemption under
4-18     Section 11.251 or 11.252 for cotton stored in the warehouse on
4-19     behalf of all the owners of the cotton.  An exemption granted under
4-20     this section applies to all cotton stored in the warehouse that is
4-21     eligible to be exempt under Section 11.251 or 11.252.  Cotton that
4-22     is stored in a warehouse covered by an exemption granted under this
4-23     section and that is transported to another location in this state
4-24     or outside of this state is presumed to have been transported to
4-25     another location in this state or outside of this state within the
4-26     time permitted by Section 1-j or 1-n, Article VIII, [Section 1-j,
4-27     of the] Texas Constitution, for cotton to qualify for an exemption
 5-1     under that section.
 5-2           SECTION 3.  Section 22.01(e), Tax Code, is amended to read as
 5-3     follows:
 5-4           (e)  Notwithstanding Subsections (a) and (b), a person is not
 5-5     required to render for taxation cotton that:
 5-6                 (1)  the person manages and controls as a fiduciary;
 5-7                 (2)  is stored in a warehouse for which an exemption
 5-8     for cotton has been granted under Section 11.437 [11.436]; and
 5-9                 (3)  the person intends to transport to another
5-10     location in this state or outside of this [the] state within the
5-11     time permitted by Section 1-j or 1-n, Article VIII, [Section 1-j,
5-12     of the] Texas Constitution, for cotton to qualify for an exemption
5-13     under that section.
5-14           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect January 1, 2001, and
5-15     applies only to taxes imposed for a tax year beginning on or after
5-16     that date, but only if the constitutional amendment proposed by the
5-17     76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999, to exempt from ad valorem
5-18     taxation tangible personal property held at certain locations only
5-19     temporarily for assembling, manufacturing, processing, or other
5-20     commercial purposes, takes effect.  If that amendment is not
5-21     approved by the voters, this Act has no effect.
5-22           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the
5-23     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-24     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-25     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-26     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.