bill lets fire-damaged property owners ask for reappraisal

The text as introduced · 795 words

89R743 RDS-D

By: Hughes
S.B. No. 678

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the reappraisal for ad valorem taxation purposes of

certain property completely destroyed or partially damaged by an

accidental fire.

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

SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 23, Tax Code, is amended by

adding Section 23.025 to read as follows:

Sec. 23.025. REAPPRAISAL OF PROPERTY DESTROYED OR DAMAGED

BY FIRE. (a) In this section, "qualified property" means real

property that is completely destroyed or at least 15 percent

damaged by an accidental fire. For purposes of this subsection,

"real property" includes a manufactured home as that term is

defined by Section 1201.003, Occupations Code, that is used as a

dwelling, regardless of whether the owner of the manufactured home

elects to treat the manufactured home as real property under

Section 1201.2055, Occupations Code.

(b) A property owner may request the chief appraiser of an

appraisal district in which a qualified property owned by the

property owner and destroyed or damaged by an accidental fire is

located to reappraise the property. The owner must make the request

in writing not later than the 180th day after the date the fire

occurs.

(c) Except as provided by this subsection, the chief

appraiser shall reappraise a qualified property if requested to do

so by the owner of the property. The chief appraiser is not

required to reappraise the property if the property qualifies for

an exemption under Section 11.35 as the result of the same fire.

(d) The comptroller, in consultation with appraisal

districts, shall develop guidelines for determining the process for

reappraising property under this section, including for

determining whether a property is a qualified property and for

calculating an appropriate value of any exemption and appraisal

limitation applied during or after the tax year for which the

property is reappraised.

(e) The chief appraiser shall complete the reappraisal of

property as soon as practicable after a request is made.

(f) The chief appraiser shall include in the appraisal

records:

(1) the date the fire occurred;

(2) the appraised value of the property before the

fire occurred;

(3) the appraised value of the property immediately

after the fire occurred; and

(4) any other information required to be included in

the records.

(g) The amount of the taxes imposed by a taxing unit on

property reappraised under this section for the tax year in which a

fire occurs is calculated by:

(1) multiplying the amount of the taxes that otherwise

would be imposed by the taxing unit on the property for the entire

year 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 fire occurred;

(2) multiplying the amount of the taxes that would be

imposed by the taxing unit on the property for the entire year based

on the reappraised value of the property by a fraction, the

denominator of which is 365 and the numerator of which is the number

of days, including the date the fire occurred, remaining in the tax

year; and

(3) adding the amounts calculated under Subdivisions

(1) and (2).

(h) If property is reappraised under this section, the

assessor for each taxing unit shall calculate the amount of the tax

due on the property as provided by this section. If the property is

reappraised after the amount of the tax due on the property is

calculated, the assessor 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 paid the tax the

amount by which the payment exceeded the tax due.

SECTION 2. Not later than January 1, 2026, the comptroller

shall develop guidelines required by Section 23.025, Tax Code, as

added by this Act, and shall distribute those guidelines to each

appraisal district.

SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies to the

reappraisal of property destroyed or damaged by an accidental fire

only if the fire occurs on or after January 1, 2026.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.