By Hochberg H.B. No. 2075
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the public notice required to be provided by a school
1-3 district before adopting a proposed budget and tax rate.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 44.004, Education Code, is amended to
1-6 read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 44.004. NOTICE OF BUDGET AND TAX RATE MEETING; BUDGET
1-8 ADOPTION. (a) When the budget has been prepared under Section
1-9 44.002, the president shall call a meeting of the board of trustees
1-10 for[, stating that] the purpose of adopting [the meeting is the
1-11 adoption of] a budget for the succeeding fiscal year.
1-12 (b) The president shall provide for the publication of
1-13 notice of the budget and proposed tax rate meeting in a daily,
1-14 weekly, or biweekly newspaper published in the district. If no
1-15 daily, weekly, or biweekly newspaper is published in the district,
1-16 the president shall provide for the publication of notice in at
1-17 least one newspaper of general circulation in the county in which
1-18 the district's central administrative office is located. [Notice
1-19 published under this subsection is in addition to notice required
1-20 by other law.] Notice under this subsection shall be published not
1-21 earlier than the 30th day or later than the 10th day before the
1-22 date of the hearing. [A district may include the notice required
1-23 under this subsection in a notice required under Section 26.06, Tax
1-24 Code.]
2-1 (c) The notice of public meeting to discuss and adopt the
2-2 budget and the proposed tax rate may not be smaller than
2-3 one-quarter page of a standard-size or a tabloid-size newspaper,
2-4 and the headline on the notice must be in 18-point or larger type.
2-5 Subject to Subsection (d), the notice must:
2-6 (1) contain a statement in the following form:
2-7 "NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING TO DISCUSS BUDGET
2-8 AND PROPOSED TAX RATE
2-9 "The (name of school district) will hold a public meeting at
2-10 (time, date, year) in (name of room, building, physical location,
2-11 city, state). The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the school
2-12 district's budget that will determine the tax rate that will be
2-13 adopted. Public participation in the discussion is invited." The
2-14 statement of the purpose of the meeting must be in bold type. In
2-15 reduced type, the notice must state: "The tax rate that is
2-16 ultimately adopted at this meeting or at a separate meeting at a
2-17 later date may not exceed the proposed rate shown below without
2-18 publication of a revised notice containing the same information and
2-19 comparisons set out below.";
2-20 (2) contain a section entitled "Comparison of Proposed
2-21 Rates with Preceding Year's Adopted Rates," which must:
2-22 (A) show in rows the tax rates described by
2-23 Subparagraphs (i)-(iii), expressed as amounts per $100 valuation of
2-24 property, for columns entitled "Maintenance & Operations Tax Rate,"
2-25 "Interest & Sinking Fund Tax Rate," and "Total Tax Rate," which is
2-26 the sum of the "Maintenance & Operations Tax Rate" and the
2-27 "Interest & Sinking Fund Tax Rate":
3-1 (i) the school district's "Adopted Tax
3-2 Rate for the Preceding Year";
3-3 (ii) the "Tax Rate Required to Maintain
3-4 the Same Level of Maintenance & Operations Revenue and Pay Debt
3-5 Service," which:
3-6 (a) in the case of the
3-7 "Maintenance & Operations Tax Rate," is the tax rate that, when
3-8 applied to the current taxable value for the district as certified
3-9 by the chief appraiser under Section 26.01, Tax Code, would impose
3-10 taxes in an amount that, when added to state funds to be
3-11 distributed to the district under Chapter 42, would provide the
3-12 same amount of maintenance and operations taxes and state funds
3-13 distributed under Chapter 42 per student in average daily
3-14 attendance for the applicable school year that was available to the
3-15 district in the preceding school year; and
3-16 (b) in the case of the
3-17 "Interest & Sinking Fund Tax Rate," is the tax rate that, when
3-18 applied to the current taxable value for the district as certified
3-19 by the chief appraiser under Section 26.01, Tax Code, and when
3-20 multiplied by the district's anticipated collection rate, would
3-21 impose taxes in an amount that, when added to state funds to be
3-22 distributed to the district under Chapter 46 and any excess taxes
3-23 collected to service the district's debt during the preceding year
3-24 but not used for that purpose during that year, would provide the
3-25 amount required to service the district's debt; and
3-26 (iii) the "Proposed Tax Rate";
3-27 (B) contain fourth and fifth columns aligned
4-1 with the columns required by Paragraph (A) that show, for each row
4-2 required by Paragraph (A):
4-3 (i) the "Local Revenue per Student," which
4-4 is computed by multiplying the district's total taxable value of
4-5 property, as certified by the chief appraiser for the applicable
4-6 school year under Section 26.01, Tax Code, by the "Total Tax Rate,"
4-7 and dividing the product by the number of students in average daily
4-8 attendance in the district for the applicable school year; and
4-9 (ii) the "State Revenue per Student,"
4-10 which is computed by determining the amount of state aid received
4-11 or to be received by the district under Chapters 42, 43, and 46 and
4-12 dividing that amount by the number of students in average daily
4-13 attendance in the district for the applicable school year; and
4-14 (C) contain an asterisk after each calculation
4-15 for an "Interest & Sinking Fund Tax Rate" and a footnote to the
4-16 section that says "The Interest & Sinking Fund Tax Revenue is used
4-17 to pay for bonded indebtedness on construction, equipment, or both.
4-18 The bonds, and the tax rate necessary to pay those bonds, were
4-19 approved by the voters of this district in (an election or
4-20 elections) held (dates of election or elections).";
4-21 (3) contain a section entitled "Comparison of
4-22 Proposed Levy with Last Year's Levy on Average Residence
4-23 Homestead," which must:
4-24 (A) show in rows the information described by
4-25 Subparagraphs (i)-(iv), rounded to the nearest dollar, for columns
4-26 entitled "Preceding Tax Year" and "Current Tax Year":
4-27 (i) "Average Appraised Value of Residence
5-1 Homesteads," determined using the same group of residences for each
5-2 year;
5-3 (ii) "Average Taxable Value of Residence
5-4 Homesteads, after Homestead Exemptions," determined using the same
5-5 group of residences for each year;
5-6 (iii) "Last Year's Rate Versus Proposed
5-7 Rate per $100 of Property Value"; and
5-8 (iv) "Taxes Imposed on Average Residence
5-9 Homestead," determined using the same group of residences for each
5-10 year; and
5-11 (B) contain the following information:
5-12 "Increase (Decrease) in Taxes" expressed in dollars and cents,
5-13 which is computed by subtracting the "Taxes Imposed on Average
5-14 Residence Homestead" for the preceding tax year from the "Taxes
5-15 Imposed on Average Residence Homestead" for the current tax year;
5-16 (4) contain the following statement in bold print:
5-17 "Under state law, the dollar amount of school taxes imposed on the
5-18 residence homestead of a person 65 years of age or older or of the
5-19 surviving spouse of such a person, if the surviving spouse was 55
5-20 years of age or older when the person died, may not be increased
5-21 above the amount paid in the first year after the person turned 65,
5-22 regardless of changes in tax rate.";
5-23 (5) contain the following statement in bold print:
5-24 "Notice of Rollback Rate: The highest tax rate the district can
5-25 adopt before requiring voter approval at an election is (the school
5-26 district rollback rate determined under Section 26.08, Tax Code).
5-27 This election will be automatically held if the district adopts a
6-1 rate in excess of the rollback rate of (the school district
6-2 rollback rate)."; and
6-3 (6) contain a section entitled "Fund Balances," which
6-4 must include:
6-5 (A) the estimated total fund balances that are
6-6 not encumbered by a corresponding debt obligation and that will be
6-7 left in the district's property tax accounts at the end of the
6-8 fiscal year; or
6-9 (B) the estimated fund balances in the following
6-10 categories that cumulatively equal the amount described by
6-11 Paragraph (A):
6-12 (i) fund balances to be spent in the
6-13 budget for the next fiscal year;
6-14 (ii) fund balances designated by the board
6-15 of trustees at a public meeting to be set aside for construction,
6-16 cash flow, or other specified purposes; and
6-17 (iii) other nondesignated fund balances.
6-18 (d) The comptroller by rule shall prescribe the language and
6-19 format to be used in the part of the notice required by Subsection
6-20 (c). A notice under Subsection (c) is not valid if it does not
6-21 substantially conform to the language and format prescribed by the
6-22 comptroller under this subsection.
6-23 (e) The board of trustees, at the meeting called for that
6-24 purpose, shall adopt a budget to cover all expenditures for the
6-25 school district for the next succeeding fiscal year. Any taxpayer
6-26 of the district may be present and participate in the meeting
6-27 [hearing].
7-1 (f) [(d)] The budget must be adopted before the adoption of
7-2 the tax rate for the tax year in which the fiscal year covered by
7-3 the budget begins.
7-4 SECTION 2. Section 26.05(d), Tax Code, is amended to read as
7-5 follows:
7-6 (d) The governing body may not adopt a tax rate that if
7-7 applied to the total taxable value would impose an amount of taxes
7-8 that exceeds last year's levy until it has held a public hearing on
7-9 the proposed tax rate and:
7-10 (1) if the taxing unit is not a school district, has
7-11 otherwise complied with Section 26.06; or
7-12 (2) if the taxing unit is a school district, has
7-13 complied with Section 44.004, Education Code.
7-14 SECTION 3. Section 26.06, Tax Code, is amended by adding
7-15 Subsection (g) to read as follows:
7-16 (g) This section does not apply to a school district. A
7-17 school district shall provide notice of a public meeting on a tax
7-18 increase as required by Section 44.004, Education Code.
7-19 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
7-20 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
7-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.