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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to eligibility for the exemption from ad valorem taxation |
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of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of certain first |
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responders. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 11.134(a)(1), Tax Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(1) "First responder" means: |
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(A) an individual listed under Section 615.003, |
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Government Code; |
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(B) an individual listed under Article 2.122(a), |
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Code of Criminal Procedure; |
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(C) a Customs and Border Protection Officer or |
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Border Patrol Agent of the United States Customs and Border |
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Protection; or |
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(D) an immigration enforcement agent or |
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deportation officer of the Department of Homeland Security. |
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SECTION 2. Section 11.134(b), Tax Code, is amended to read |
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as follows: |
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(b) The surviving spouse of a first responder who is killed |
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or fatally injured in the line of duty is entitled to an exemption |
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from taxation of the total appraised value of the surviving |
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spouse's residence homestead if the surviving spouse has not |
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remarried since the death of the first responder and: |
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(1) in the case of the surviving spouse of a first |
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responder described by Subsection (a)(1)(A), is an eligible |
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survivor for purposes of Chapter 615, Government Code, as |
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determined by the Employees Retirement System of Texas under that |
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chapter; or [and] |
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(2) in the case of the surviving spouse of a first |
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responder described by Subsection (a)(1)(B), (C), or (D), was a |
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resident of this state at the time of the first responder's death |
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[has not remarried since the death of the first responder]. |
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SECTION 3. Section 11.134, Tax Code, as amended by this Act, |
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applies only to a tax year beginning on or after January 1, 2020. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect January 1, 2020. |