89R3892 MLH-F

By: Patterson H.B. No. 4090

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the total appraised value of the residence homesteads of certain disabled first responders and their surviving spouses.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 11, Tax Code, is amended by adding Section 11.1315 to read as follows:

Sec. 11.1315. RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD OF TOTALLY DISABLED FIRST RESPONDERS. (a) In this section:

(1) "First responder" means an individual listed under Section 615.003, Government Code.

(2) "Qualifying disabled first responder" means a first responder who:

(A) has a total and permanent disability as the result of an injury occurring in the line of duty; and

(B) provides a chief appraiser with the documentation prescribed by this section that demonstrates the disability and that the disability resulted from the injury.

(3) "Residence homestead" has the meaning assigned by Section 11.13.

(4) "Surviving spouse" means the individual who was married to a qualifying disabled first responder at the time of the qualifying disabled first responder's death.

(5) "Total and permanent disability" means an impairment to the mind or body that:

(A) renders a person unable to engage in a substantial gainful occupation; and

(B) is reasonably certain to continue throughout the person's life.

(b) Subject to Subsection (g), a qualifying disabled first responder is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the total appraised value of the qualifying disabled first responder's residence homestead.

(c) The surviving spouse of a qualifying disabled first responder who qualified for an exemption under Subsection (b) when the qualifying disabled first responder died is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the total appraised value of the same property to which the qualifying disabled first responder's exemption applied if:

(1) the surviving spouse has not remarried since the death of the qualifying disabled first responder; and

(2) the property:

(A) was the residence homestead of the surviving spouse when the qualifying disabled first responder died; and

(B) remains the residence homestead of the surviving spouse.

(d) If a surviving spouse who qualifies for an exemption under Subsection (c) subsequently qualifies a different property as the surviving spouse's residence homestead, the surviving spouse is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the subsequently qualified homestead in an amount equal to the dollar amount of the exemption from taxation of the former homestead under Subsection (c) in the last year in which the surviving spouse received an exemption under that subsection for that homestead if the surviving spouse has not remarried since the death of the qualifying disabled first responder. The surviving spouse is entitled to receive from the chief appraiser of the appraisal district in which the former residence homestead was located a written certificate providing the information necessary to determine the amount of the exemption to which the surviving spouse is entitled on the subsequently qualified homestead.

(e) A first responder who applies for an exemption from taxation under this section must provide to the chief appraiser the following:

(1) documentation from the United States Social Security Administration stating that the applicant is totally and permanently disabled;

(2) a signed statement from the organization that employed the applicant as a first responder at the time of the incident that caused the applicant's total and permanent disability certifying:

(A) the name and address of the organization;

(B) the name and title of the individual who signed the statement;

(C) the date and location of the incident;

(D) a description of the incident; and

(E) a statement that the incident:

(i) was the actual cause of the applicant's total and permanent disability; and

(ii) occurred in the absence of the applicant's wilful negligence;

(3) any documentation of the incident that caused the applicant's total and permanent disability that is in the possession of the organization that employed the applicant as a first responder; and

(4) a statement from a physician licensed by the Texas Medical Board certifying that:

(A) the applicant has a total and permanent disability that renders the applicant unable to engage in a substantial gainful occupation;

(B) the incident described by the organization under Subdivision (2) was the sole cause of the applicant's total and permanent disability; and

(C) the total and permanent disability is reasonably certain to continue throughout the applicant's life.

(f) If an applicant is ineligible to receive a medical status determination from the United States Social Security Administration due to the applicant's ineligibility for Social Security benefits or Medicare benefits, the applicant may, instead of the documentation required by Subsection (e)(1), provide to the chief appraiser:

(1) documentation from the United States Social Security Administration stating that the applicant is ineligible to receive a medical status determination; and

(2) a statement under Subsection (e)(4) from a second physician licensed by the Texas Medical Board who is professionally unrelated to the physician who provided the statement required by that subdivision.

(g) A qualifying disabled first responder may not receive an exemption under this section if the qualifying disabled first responder's total and permanent disability is the result of a heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture unless:

(1) the heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture took place not more than 24 hours after the qualifying disabled first responder performed stressful or strenuous physical activity that is not a routine duty of the qualifying disabled first responder; and

(2) the qualifying disabled first responder's treating cardiologist certifies within a reasonable degree of medical certainty that:

(A) the stressful or strenuous physical activity described in Subdivision (1) caused the heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture; and

(B) the heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture was not caused by a preexisting vascular disease or condition.

SECTION 2. Section 11.42(e), Tax Code, is amended to read as follows:

(e) A person who qualifies for an exemption under Section 11.131, 11.1315, or 11.35 after January 1 of a tax year may receive the exemption for the applicable portion of that tax year immediately on qualification for the exemption.

SECTION 3. Section 11.43(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) An exemption provided by Section 11.13, 11.131, 11.1315, 11.132, 11.133, 11.134, 11.17, 11.18, 11.182, 11.1827, 11.183, 11.19, 11.20, 11.21, 11.22, 11.23(a), (h), (j), (j-1), or (m), 11.231, 11.254, 11.27, 11.271, 11.29, 11.30, 11.31, 11.315, 11.35, or 11.36, once allowed, need not be claimed in subsequent years, and except as otherwise provided by Subsection (e), the exemption applies to the property until it changes ownership or the person's qualification for the exemption changes. However, except as provided by Subsection (r), the chief appraiser may require a person allowed one of the exemptions in a prior year to file a new application to confirm the person's current qualification for the exemption by delivering a written notice that a new application is required, accompanied by an appropriate application form, to the person previously allowed the exemption. If the person previously allowed the exemption is 65 years of age or older, the chief appraiser may not cancel the exemption due to the person's failure to file the new application unless the chief appraiser complies with the requirements of Subsection (q), if applicable.

SECTION 4. The heading to Section 11.439, Tax Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 11.439. LATE APPLICATIONS FOR DISABLED VETERANS AND QUALIFYING DISABLED FIRST RESPONDERS EXEMPTIONS.

SECTION 5. Section 11.439, Tax Code, is amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:

(a-1) The chief appraiser shall accept and approve or deny an application for an exemption under Section 11.1315 for the residence homestead of a qualifying disabled first responder but not the surviving spouse of the qualifying disabled first responder after the filing deadline provided by Section 11.43 if the application is filed not later than five years after the delinquency date for the taxes on the property.

SECTION 6. Section 26.10(c), Tax Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) If the appraisal roll shows that a residence homestead exemption under Section 11.131 or 11.1315 applicable to a property on January 1 of a year terminated during the year, the tax due against the residence homestead is calculated by multiplying the amount of the taxes that otherwise would be imposed on the residence homestead for the entire year had the individual not qualified for the residence homestead exemption [under Section 11.131] during the year by a fraction, the denominator of which is 365 and the numerator of which is the number of days that elapsed after the date the exemption terminated.

SECTION 7. Section 26.1125, Tax Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 26.1125. CALCULATION OF TAXES ON RESIDENCE HOMESTEAD OF 100 PERCENT OR TOTALLY DISABLED VETERAN OR QUALIFYING DISABLED FIRST RESPONDER. (a) If a person qualifies for an exemption under Section 11.131 or 11.1315 after the beginning of a tax year, the amount of the taxes on the residence homestead of the person for the tax year is calculated by multiplying the amount of the taxes that otherwise would be imposed on the residence homestead for the entire year had the person not qualified for the applicable exemption [under Section 11.131] by a fraction, the denominator of which is 365 and the numerator of which is the number of days that elapsed before the date the person qualified for the applicable exemption [under Section 11.131].

(b) If a person qualifies for an exemption under Section 11.131 or 11.1315 with respect to the property after the amount of the tax due on the property is calculated and the effect of the qualification is to reduce the amount of the tax due on the property, the assessor for each taxing unit shall recalculate the amount of the tax due on the property and correct the tax roll. If the tax bill has been mailed and the tax on the property has not been paid, the assessor shall mail a corrected tax bill to the person in whose name the property is listed on the tax roll or to the person's authorized agent. If the tax on the property has been paid, the tax collector for the taxing unit shall refund to the person who was the owner of the property on the date the tax was paid the amount by which the payment exceeded the tax due.

SECTION 8. Section 403.302(d-1), Government Code, is amended to read as follows:

(d-1) For purposes of Subsection (d), a residence homestead that receives an exemption under Section 11.131, 11.1315, 11.133, or 11.134, Tax Code, in the year that is the subject of the study is not considered to be taxable property.

SECTION 9. Section 11.1315, Tax Code, as added by this Act, applies only to ad valorem taxes imposed for a tax year that begins on or after January 1, 2026.

SECTION 10. It is the intent of the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, that the amendments made by this Act to Section 11.43(c), Government Code, be harmonized with another Act of the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted codes.

SECTION 11. This Act takes effect January 1, 2026, but only if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, authorizing the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homesteads of certain disabled first responders and their surviving spouses is approved by the voters. If that constitutional amendment is not approved by the voters, this Act has no effect.