HBA-CBW S.B. 865 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 865
By: Staples
Ways & Means
4/24/2001
Engrossed


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, if the chief appraiser discovers that property has been omitted
from the tax roll in any of the five previous years, the appraiser may add
it to the appraisal roll.   A property owner may file a motion with an
appraisal review board to correct certain errors in the appraisal roll for
any of the prior five years, but the taxpayer must do so before the end of
five years after January 1st of a tax year. For the 2000 tax year, the last
day for a property owner to file a motion is January 1, 2005,  but the last
day that a chief appraiser may add omitted property to the appraisal roll
is December 31, 2005.    Thus, the chief appraiser has almost a year longer
to add omitted property to the appraisal roll than property owners have to
correct the appraisal roll. 

Some courts have held that a property owner may not file a motion to
correct the appraisal roll, unless the error is evident on the appraisal
roll.  These rulings have precluded a motion by a property owner to correct
a clerical error that resulted in an erroneous appraised value, because the
error could only be detected by reviewing evidence of the value of the
property and could not  be detected on the face of the appraisal roll.
Senate Bill 865  requires the appraisal review board to direct by written
order specified changes in the appraisal roll for any of the five preceding
years on the motion of a property owner or the chief appraiser. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

Senate Bill 865 amends the Tax Code to require, instead of authorize, the
appraisal review board to direct by written order specified changes in the
appraisal roll for any of the five preceding years  on motion of a property
owner or the chief appraiser.  The bill removes the provision that
authorizes the appraisal review board to direct specified changes in the
appraisal roll at any time before the end of five years after January 1 of
a tax year.  The bill prohibits the appraisal roll from being changed if
the property was the subject of a protest brought by the property owner
under local review, a hearing on the protest was conducted in which the
property owner offered evidence or argument, and the appraisal review board
made a determination of the protest on the merits.  

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.