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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the total |
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appraised value of the residence homestead of an eligible peace |
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officer who resides in a qualified high crime area. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 11, Tax Code, is amended by |
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adding Section 11.137 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 11.137. RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD OF ELIGIBLE PEACE OFFICER |
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RESIDING IN QUALIFIED HIGH CRIME AREA. (a) In this section: |
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(1) "Eligible peace officer" means an individual |
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listed under Article 2.12(1), (2), (3), or (4), Code of Criminal |
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Procedure, who is employed full-time as a peace officer by this |
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state or by a political subdivision of this state. |
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(2) "Qualified high crime area" means a census tract |
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delineated by the United States Bureau of the Census in the most |
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recent decennial census that is one of the 100 census tracts in this |
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state with the highest per capita rate of arrests made for offenses |
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under Title 5, Penal Code, as determined under Subsection (b). |
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(3) "Residence homestead" has the meaning assigned by |
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Section 11.13. |
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(b) Not later than September 1 of each year, the Department |
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of Public Safety shall perform an analysis of crime statistics for |
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the preceding tax year and identify the 100 census tracts in this |
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state with the highest number of per capita arrests made for |
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offenses under Title 5, Penal Code. The department shall publish a |
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list of the identified census tracts in the Texas Register. |
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(c) An eligible peace officer is entitled to an exemption |
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from ad valorem taxation of the total appraised value of the |
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officer's residence homestead if the residence homestead is located |
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in a qualified high crime area. |
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SECTION 2. Section 11.137, Tax Code, as added by this Act, |
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applies only to a tax year beginning on or after January 1, 2019. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2018, but only |
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if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 85th Legislature, |
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Regular Session, 2017, authorizing the legislature to exempt from |
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ad valorem taxation all or part of the market value of the residence |
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homestead of a peace officer who resides in a high crime area is |
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approved by the voters. If that constitutional amendment is not |
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approved by the voters, this Act has no effect. |