BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 2539

By: Bettencourt

Ways & Means

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Under current state law, property owners located inside a tax increment reinvestment zone are not required to be provided notice when the municipality designating the reinvestment zone intends to issue a tax increment bond. S.B. 2539 seeks to address this issue and protect taxpayers by conditioning such a municipality's authority to adopt an ordinance to issue a tax increment bond on the municipality providing reasonable written notice to each property owner in the reinvestment zone of the date and time of the public hearing at which the municipality intends to adopt the ordinance. Additionally, the bill would condition that authority on the ordinance receiving an affirmative vote of at least a majority of the members of the municipality's governing body voting only on the question of the adoption.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 2539 amends the Tax Code to authorize a municipality designating a reinvestment zone to adopt an ordinance to issue a tax increment bond under applicable state law only if:

· the municipality provides reasonable written notice to each property owner in the reinvestment zone of the date and time of the public hearing at which the municipality intends to adopt the ordinance; and

· the ordinance receives an affirmative vote of at least a majority of the members of the governing body of the municipality voting only on the question of the adoption.

S.B. 2539 applies only to an ordinance adopted by a municipality on or after the bill's effective date and does not affect the validity of a bond or other obligation issued by a municipality under the Tax Increment Financing Act before the bill's effective date.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.