Many of the reforms come from Rep. John Otto’s (R-Dayton) omnibus property tax reform bill, HB 2, which never received a hearing. Rather, it broke up into several stand-alone bills, some of which passed.

Up for a vote in November will be Otto’s HJR 36, a constitutional amendment that allows the Legislature by general law to require that a residence homestead be taxed solely on the basis of its value as a residence homestead, not its "highest and best use," as appraisal boards see it. The latter evaluation has been used by boards to increase tax rates.

The enabling legislation is HB 3613. Highest and best use has allowed appraisal districts to put commercial valuation on homes near shopping malls, for example. The amendment also would allow for the consolidation of appraisal review boards in small rural counties, where it can be more difficult to find people with experience in property valuation.

The enabling legislation, HB 3611, allows the boards of directors in two or more adjacent districts to consolidate their appraisal review boards.

Otto’s HB 3612 creates a pilot program that allows property owners whose land has been valued by a central appraisal district at $1 million or more to appeal the appraisal to the State Office of Administrative Hearings, instead of district court. The pilot will last three years starting in 2010, in Bexar, Cameron, El Paso, Harris, Tarrant, and Travis counties.

Rep. Dan Gattis (R-Georgetown) passed a taxation transparency measure, HB 2291, which aims to make it easier for property owners to know when a taxing entity wants to jack up their rates.

A motion to raise the tax rate under his bill would have to be clearly described as "effectively a (insert percentage by which the proposed tax rate exceeds the effective tax rate) percent increase in the tax rate" — which means taxing authorities would have to make clear that their proposal would raise people’s taxes, rather than simply say what the revenue would pay for.

The property value study reform bill, HB 8 from Otto, allows the Comptroller to conduct the study once every two years, rather than annually, as current law mandates. It also creates a nine-member Comptroller’s Property Value Study Advisory Board.

Two members are lawmakers — one from each chamber, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker. The remaining seven are all to be appointed by the Comptroller — two of them representing appraisal districts; two representing school districts; and three speaking as school district taxpayers or have residents with some expertise in school district taxation or ratio studies.

Rep. Ken Paxton’s (R-McKinney) HB 1038 requires appraisers to consider recently foreclosed properties when determining the fair market value of a property in the same district.

Current law allows appraisal districts to exclude such considerations and thus value more highly the properties of those still living in the district. The bill also prohibits an appraisal district from excluding a property from determining value merely because its value declined due to a declining economy.

SB 771, sponsored by Sen. Tommy Williams (R-The Woodlands) and Otto prevents an appraisal district from continuously raising the appraisal on a property every year, despite a taxpayer’s victory on appeal.

The legislation prevents raising the appraisal on a property whose value was successfully protested unless the appraiser can provide substantial evidence that would justify the higher appraisal. This bill would make it tougher for appraisers continuously to hike property appraisals on property whose value was successfully protested.

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