HB982 - Relating to the authority of a taxing unit other than a school district, county, municipality, or junior college district to establish a limitation on the amount of ad valorem taxes that the taxing unit may impose on the residence homesteads of certain low-income individuals who are disabled or elderly and their surviving spouses.

      By: Wilson H.B. No. 982       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the authority of a taxing unit other than a school   district, county, municipality, or junior college district to   establish a limitation on the amount of ad valorem taxes that the   taxing unit may impose on the residence homesteads of certain   low-income individuals who are disabled or elderly 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 11.262 to read as follows:           Sec.   11.262.     LIMITATION OF TAX IMPOSED BY CERTAIN TAXING   UNITS ON HOMESTEADS OF LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DISABLED OR   ELDERLY.     (a)     In this section:                 (1)     "Eligible individual" means an individual whose   household income does not exceed 200 percent of the federal poverty   level.                 (2)     "Qualifying taxing unit" means a taxing unit other   than a school district, county, municipality, or junior college   district.                 (3)     "Residence homestead" has the meaning assigned by   Section 11.13.           (b)     This section applies only to a qualifying taxing unit   that establishes a limitation under Section 1-b(h-1), Article VIII,   Texas Constitution, on the total amount of taxes that may be imposed   by the taxing unit on the residence homestead of an eligible   individual who is disabled or is 65 years of age or older.           (c)     The tax officials shall appraise the residence   homestead of an eligible individual who is disabled or is 65 years   of age or older and calculate taxes on that residence homestead in   the same manner as other residence homesteads, but if the tax so   calculated exceeds the limitation provided by this section, the tax   imposed is the amount of the tax as limited by this section, except   as otherwise provided by this section.           (d)     A qualifying taxing unit may not increase the total   annual amount of ad valorem taxes the taxing unit imposes on the   residence homestead of an eligible individual who is disabled or is   65 years of age or older above the amount of the taxes the taxing   unit imposed on the residence homestead in the first tax year in   which the eligible individual qualified that residence homestead   for the exemption provided by Section 11.13(c) for an individual   who is disabled or is 65 years of age or older and was an eligible   individual.     If the eligible individual qualified that residence   homestead for the exemption after the beginning of that first year   and the residence homestead remains eligible for the exemption for   the next year, and if the taxes imposed by the taxing unit on the   residence homestead in the next year are less than the amount of   those taxes imposed in that first year, the taxing unit may not   subsequently increase the total annual amount of ad valorem taxes   it imposes on the residence homestead above the amount it imposed on   the residence homestead in the year immediately following the first   year for which the individual qualified that residence homestead   for the exemption and was an eligible individual.           (e)     If an eligible individual who is disabled or is 65 years   of age or older makes improvements to the individual's residence   homestead, other than repairs and other than improvements required   to comply with governmental requirements, the qualifying taxing   unit may increase the amount of taxes on the homestead in the first   year the value of the homestead is increased on the appraisal roll   because of the enhancement of value by the improvements.     The   amount of the tax increase is determined by applying the current tax   rate of the qualifying taxing unit to the difference between the   appraised value of the homestead with the improvements and the   appraised value the homestead would have had without the   improvements.     The limitation provided by this section then   applies to the increased amount of taxes on the residence homestead   until more improvements, if any, are made.           (f)     A limitation on tax increases provided by this section   expires if on January 1:                 (1)     none of the owners of the structure who qualify for   the exemption provided by Section 11.13(c) for an individual who is   disabled or is 65 years of age or older and who owned the structure   when the limitation first took effect are using the structure as a   residence homestead;                 (2)     none of the owners of the structure qualify for the   exemption provided by Section 11.13(c) for an individual who is   disabled or is 65 years of age or older; or                 (3)     none of the owners of the structure are eligible   individuals.           (g)     If the appraisal roll provides for taxation of appraised   value for a prior year because a residence homestead exemption for   an eligible individual who is disabled or is 65 years of age or   older was erroneously allowed or because an individual was   erroneously considered to be an eligible individual, the tax   assessor for the applicable county shall add, as back taxes due as   provided by Section 26.09(d), the positive difference, if any,   between the tax that should have been imposed for that year and the   tax that was imposed under the requirements of this section.           (h)     A limitation on tax increases provided by this section   does not expire because the owner of an interest in the structure   conveys the interest to a qualifying trust as defined by Section   11.13(j) if the owner or the owner's spouse is a trustor of the   trust and is entitled to occupy the structure.           (i)     Except as provided by Subsection (e), if an eligible   individual who receives a limitation on tax increases provided by   this section, including a surviving spouse who receives a   limitation under Subsection (k), subsequently qualifies a   different residence homestead in the same qualifying taxing unit   for an exemption under Section 11.13, the taxing unit may not impose   ad valorem taxes on the subsequently qualified homestead in a year   in an amount that exceeds the amount of taxes the taxing unit would   have imposed on the subsequently qualified homestead in the first   year in which the individual receives that exemption for the   subsequently qualified homestead had the limitation on tax   increases required by this section not been in effect, multiplied   by a fraction the numerator of which is the total amount of taxes   imposed on the former homestead by the taxing unit in the last year   in which the individual received that exemption for the former   homestead and the denominator of which is the total amount of taxes   that would have been imposed on the former homestead by the taxing   unit in the last year in which the individual received that   exemption for the former homestead had the limitation on tax   increases provided by this section not been in effect.           (j)     An eligible individual who receives a limitation on tax   increases under this section, including a surviving spouse who   receives a limitation under Subsection (k), and who subsequently   qualifies a different residence homestead for an exemption under   Section 11.13, or an agent of the individual, is entitled to receive   from the chief appraiser of the appraisal district in which the   former homestead was located a written certificate providing the   information necessary to determine whether the individual may   qualify for a limitation on the subsequently qualified homestead   under Subsection (i) and to calculate the amount of taxes the   qualifying taxing unit may impose on the subsequently qualified   homestead.           (k)     If an eligible individual who qualifies for a limitation   on tax increases under this section dies, the surviving spouse of   the individual is entitled to the limitation on taxes imposed by the   qualifying taxing unit on the residence homestead of the individual   if:                 (1)  the surviving spouse:                       (A)     is disabled or is 55 years of age or older   when the individual dies; and                       (B)  is an eligible individual; and                 (2)  the residence homestead of the individual:                       (A)     is the residence homestead of the surviving   spouse on the date that the individual dies; and                       (B)     remains the residence homestead of the   surviving spouse.           (l)     If an eligible individual who is 65 years of age or older   and qualifies for a limitation on tax increases for the elderly   under this section dies in the first year in which the individual   qualified for the limitation and the individual first qualified for   the limitation after the beginning of that year, except as provided   by Subsection (m), the amount to which the surviving spouse's taxes   are limited under Subsection (k) is the amount of taxes imposed by   the qualifying taxing unit on the residence homestead in that year   determined as if the individual qualifying for the exemption had   lived for the entire year.           (m)     If in the first tax year after the year in which an   eligible individual who is 65 years of age or older dies under the   circumstances described by Subsection (l), the amount of taxes   imposed by the qualifying taxing unit on the residence homestead of   the surviving spouse is less than the amount of taxes imposed by the   taxing unit in the preceding year as limited by Subsection (l), in a   subsequent tax year the surviving spouse's taxes imposed by the   taxing unit on that residence homestead are limited to the amount of   taxes imposed by the taxing unit in that first tax year after the   year in which the individual dies.           (n)     Notwithstanding Subsection (f), a limitation on tax   increases provided by this section does not expire if the owner of   the structure qualifies for an exemption under Section 11.13 under   the circumstances described by Section 11.135(a).           (o)     Notwithstanding Subsections (c) and (e), an improvement   to property that would otherwise constitute an improvement under   Subsection (e) is not treated as an improvement under that   subsection if the improvement is a replacement structure for a   structure that was rendered uninhabitable or unusable by a casualty   or by wind or water damage.     For purposes of appraising the   property in the tax year in which the structure would have   constituted an improvement under Subsection (e), the replacement   structure is considered to be an improvement under that subsection   only if:                 (1)     the square footage of the replacement structure   exceeds that of the replaced structure as that structure existed   before the casualty or damage occurred; or                 (2)     the exterior of the replacement structure is of   higher quality construction and composition than that of the   replaced structure.           (p)     An heir property owner who qualifies heir property as   the owner's residence homestead under this chapter is considered   the sole owner of the property for the purposes of this section.           (q)     The chief appraiser for an appraisal district in which a   qualifying taxing unit participates may require an individual to   provide any information that is reasonably necessary for the chief   appraiser to determine whether the individual is an eligible   individual for purposes of this section.            SECTION 2.  Sections 23.19(b) and (g), Tax Code, are amended   to read as follows:          (b)  If an appraisal district receives a written request for [Text truncated for display. 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