Bill Text: TX HB299 | 2017 | 85th Legislature 1st Special Session | Introduced

Bill Title: Relating to the selection and administration of an appraisal review board; authorizing a fee.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-07-25 - Referred to Ways & Means [HB299 Detail]

Download: Texas-2017-HB299-Introduced.html
  85S10374 CJC-D
 
  By: Metcalf H.B. No. 299
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the selection and administration of an appraisal review
  board; authorizing a fee.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 5.103(b), Tax Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         (b)  The model hearing procedures shall address:
               (1)  the statutory duties of an appraisal review board;
               (2)  the process for conducting a hearing;
               (3)  the scheduling of hearings;
               (4)  the postponement of hearings;
               (5)  the notices required under this title;
               (6)  the determination of good cause under Section
  41.44(b);
               (7)  the determination of good cause under Sections
  41.45(e) and (e-1);
               (8)  a party's right to offer evidence and argument;
               (9)  a party's right to examine or cross-examine
  witnesses or other parties;
               (10)  a party's right to appear by an agent;
               (11)  the prohibition of an appraisal review board's
  consideration of information not provided at a hearing;
               (12)  ex parte and other prohibited communications;
               (13)  the exclusion of evidence at a hearing as
  required by Section 41.67(d);
               (14)  the postponement of a hearing as required by
  Section 41.66(h);
               (15)  conflicts of interest; and
               (16)  [the process for the administration of
  applications for membership on an appraisal review board; and
               [(17)]  any other matter related to fair and efficient
  appraisal review board hearings.
         SECTION 2.  Sections 6.41(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (j),
  and (k), Tax Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  An [The] appraisal review board is established for each
  appraisal district.
         (b)  The board consists of five [three] members elected at
  the general election for state and county officers. One member is
  elected from each of the four commissioners precincts in the county
  in which the appraisal district is established and one member is
  elected at large from the county. The members serve two-year terms
  beginning on January 1 of odd-numbered years. [However, the
  district board of directors by resolution of a majority of its
  members may increase the size of the appraisal review board to the
  number of members the board of directors considers appropriate.]
         (c)  To be eligible to serve on the board, an individual
  must:
               (1)  be a resident of:
                     (A)  the commissioners precinct from which the
  member is elected, in the case of a member elected from a
  commissioners precinct; or
                     (B)  the county for which the appraisal district
  is established, in the case of a member elected at large; [district]
  and
               (2)  [must] have resided in the county [district] for
  at least two years.
         (d)  [Except as provided by Subsection (d-1), members of the
  board are appointed by resolution of a majority of the appraisal
  district board of directors.] A vacancy on the board is filled by
  appointment by the commissioners court of the county in which the
  appraisal district is established [in the same manner] for the
  unexpired portion of the term. An individual appointed to fill a
  vacancy on the board must meet the qualifications of the vacated
  position.
         (e)  If as a result of a change in the boundaries of a
  commissioners precinct an individual serving as a member no longer
  resides in the precinct from which the office is elected, the
  individual is not for that reason disqualified from office during
  the remainder of the term of office being served at the time the
  boundary change takes effect. If as a result of a change in the
  boundaries of a commissioners precinct an individual elected as a
  member before the boundary change to a term that begins after the
  boundary change no longer resides in the precinct from which
  elected, the individual is not for that reason disqualified from
  serving the term to which elected. [Members of the board hold
  office for terms of two years beginning January 1. The appraisal
  district board of directors by resolution shall provide for
  staggered terms, so that the terms of as close to one-half of the
  members as possible expire each year. In making the initial or
  subsequent appointments, the board of directors or the local
  administrative district judge or the judge's designee shall
  designate those members who serve terms of one year as needed to
  comply with this subsection.]
         (f)  For purposes of Chapter 87, Local Government Code,
  grounds [A member of the board may be removed from the board by a
  majority vote of the appraisal district board of directors, or by
  the local administrative district judge or the judge's designee, as
  applicable, that appointed the member.   Grounds] for removal of a
  member of an appraisal review board include [are]:
               (1)  a violation of Section 6.412, 6.413, 41.66(f), or
  41.69;
               (2)  good cause relating to the attendance of members
  at called meetings of the board as established by written policy
  adopted by a majority of the appraisal district board of directors;
  [or]
               (3)  clear and convincing evidence of repeated bias or
  misconduct; or
               (4)  failure to complete a course required by Section
  5.041.
         (j)  A chief appraiser or another employee or agent of an
  appraisal district commits an offense if the person communicates
  with a member of the appraisal review board for the appraisal
  district or[,] a member of the board of directors of the appraisal
  district[, or, if the appraisal district is an appraisal district
  described by Subsection (d-1), the local administrative district
  judge] regarding a ranking, scoring, or reporting of the percentage
  by which the appraisal review board or a panel of the board reduces
  the appraised value of property.
         (k)  An offense under Subsection [(i) or] (j) is a Class A
  misdemeanor.
         SECTION 3.  Section 6.411(c-1), Tax Code, is amended to read
  as follows:
         (c-1)  This section does not apply to communications with a
  member of an appraisal review board by the chief appraiser or
  another employee or a member of the board of directors of an
  appraisal district or a property tax consultant or attorney
  representing a party to a proceeding before the appraisal review
  board:
               (1)  during a hearing on a protest or other proceeding
  before the appraisal review board;
               (2)  that constitute social conversation;
               (3)  that are specifically limited to and involve
  administrative, clerical, or logistical matters related to the
  scheduling and operation of hearings, the processing of documents,
  the issuance of orders, notices, and subpoenas, and the operation,
  appointment, composition, or attendance at training of the
  appraisal review board; or
               (4)  that are necessary and appropriate to enable the
  appraisal review board [of directors of the appraisal district] to
  determine whether to appoint, reappoint, or remove a person as an
  auxiliary board [a] member or as the chairman or secretary of the
  appraisal review board.
         SECTION 4.  Section 6.412(e), Tax Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         (e)  A person who has served for all or part of four [three]
  consecutive terms as a board member on an appraisal review board is
  ineligible to serve on the appraisal review board during a term that
  begins on the next January 1 following the fourth [third] of those
  consecutive terms.
         SECTION 5.  Section 6.413(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         (a)  An individual is not eligible to be elected or appointed
  to or to serve on the appraisal review board established for an
  appraisal district if the individual or a business entity in which
  the individual has a substantial interest is a party to a contract
  with the appraisal district or with a taxing unit that participates
  in the appraisal district.
         SECTION 6.  Sections 6.414(a), (b), and (f), Tax Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  An [The board of directors of an] appraisal review board
  [district] by resolution of a majority of the members may provide
  for a number of auxiliary appraisal review board members that the
  board considers appropriate to hear taxpayer protests before the
  appraisal review board and to assist the board in performing its
  duties.
         (b)  An auxiliary board member is appointed to a two-year
  term by resolution of a majority of the [in the same manner and for
  the same term as an] appraisal review board members. An auxiliary
  board member [under Section 6.41 and] is subject to the same
  eligibility requirements and restrictions as a board member under
  Sections 6.41, 6.411, 6.412, and 6.413. A vacancy among the
  auxiliary board members is filled in the same manner as the original
  appointment to the appraisal review board.
         (f)  An auxiliary board member is entitled to compensation
  and [as provided by the appraisal district budget and is not
  entitled to a per diem or] reimbursement of expenses as provided by
  [under] Section 6.42(c).
         SECTION 7.  Section 6.42(a), Tax Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         (a)  A majority of the appraisal review board constitutes a
  quorum.  The board [of directors of the appraisal district] by
  resolution shall select a chairman and a secretary from among the
  board's [the] members [of the appraisal review board].  The board
  [of directors of the appraisal district] is encouraged to select as
  chairman [of the appraisal review board] a member of the [appraisal
  review] board, if any, who has a background in law and property
  appraisal.
         SECTION 8.  Section 41.66(g), Tax Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         (g)  At the beginning of a hearing on a protest, each member
  of the appraisal review board hearing the protest must sign an
  affidavit stating that the board member has not communicated with
  another person in violation of Subsection (f).  If a board member
  has communicated with another person in violation of Subsection
  (f), the member must be recused from the proceeding and may not
  hear, deliberate on, or vote on the determination of the protest.
  The appraisal review board [of directors of the appraisal district]
  shall adopt and implement a policy concerning the temporary
  replacement of an appraisal review board member who has
  communicated with another person in violation of Subsection (f).
         SECTION 9.  Section 172.024(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  The filing fee for a candidate for nomination in the
  general primary election is as follows:
               (1)  United States senator $5,000
               (2)  office elected statewide, except United States
  senator 3,750
               (3)  United States representative 3,125
               (4)  state senator 1,250
               (5)  state representative 750
               (6)  member, State Board of Education 300
               (7)  chief justice or justice, court of appeals, other
  than a justice specified by Subdivision (8) 1,875
               (8)  chief justice or justice of a court of appeals that
  serves a court of appeals district in which a county with a
  population of more than one million is wholly or partly
  situated 2,500
               (9)  district judge or judge specified by Section
  52.092(d) for which this schedule does not otherwise prescribe a
  fee 1,500
               (10)  district or criminal district judge of a court in
  a judicial district wholly contained in a county with a population
  of more than 1.5 million 2,500
               (11)  judge, statutory county court, other than a judge
  specified by Subdivision (12) 1,500
               (12)  judge of a statutory county court in a county with
  a population of more than 1.5 million 2,500
               (13)  district attorney, criminal district attorney,
  or county attorney performing the duties of a district
  attorney 1,250
               (14)  county commissioner, district clerk, county
  clerk, sheriff, county tax assessor-collector, county treasurer,
  or judge, constitutional county court:
                     (A)  county with a population of 200,000 or
  more 1,250
                     (B)  county with a population of under
  200,000 750
               (15)  justice of the peace or constable:
                     (A)  county with a population of 200,000 or
  more 1,000
                     (B)  county with a population of under
  200,000 375
               (16)  county surveyor75
               (17)  office of the county government for which this
  schedule does not otherwise prescribe a fee 750
               (18)  appraisal review board member:
                     (A)  county with a population of 200,000 or
  more 1,250
                     (B)  county with a population of under
  200,000 750
         SECTION 10.  The following provisions of the Tax Code are
  repealed:
               (1)  Section 6.052(f); and
               (2)  Sections 6.41(d-1), (d-2), (d-3), (d-4), (d-5),
  (d-6), (d-7), (d-8), (d-9), and (i).
         SECTION 11.  (a)  Appraisal review board members shall be
  elected under Section 6.41, Tax Code, as amended by this Act,
  beginning with the primary and general elections conducted in 2018.
  Members then elected take office January 1, 2019.
         (b)  The change in the manner of selection of appraisal
  review board members made by Section 6.41, Tax Code, as amended by
  this Act, does not affect the selection of members who serve on the
  board before January 1, 2019.
         (c)  The term of an appraisal review board member serving on
  December 31, 2018, expires on January 1, 2019.
         (d)  Auxiliary members may be appointed under Section 6.414,
  Tax Code, as amended by this Act, by the elected appraisal review
  board members on or after January 1, 2019.
         (e)  The change in the manner of selection of auxiliary
  members made by Section 6.414, Tax Code, as amended by this Act,
  does not affect the selection of auxiliary members who serve before
  January 1, 2019.
         (f)  The term of an auxiliary member serving on December 31,
  2018, expires on January 1, 2019.
         SECTION 12.  The repeal by this Act of Section 6.41(i), Tax
  Code, and the change in law made by this Act to Section 6.41(j), Tax
  Code, do not apply to an offense committed under either of those
  subsections before January 1, 2019. An offense committed before
  January 1, 2019, is governed by the applicable subsection as it
  existed on the date the offense was committed, and the former law is
  continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section,
  an offense was committed before January 1, 2019, if any element of
  the offense occurred before that date.
         SECTION 13.  (a)  Except as otherwise provided by this
  section, this Act takes effect January 1, 2019.
         (b)  This section and Sections 9 and 11 of this Act take
  effect December 1, 2017.

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