Property Tax Appraisal Board 41.12

Appraisal Review Board Responsible for Certifying Tax Roll by July 20

Section 41.12 – Approval of Appraisal Records by Board

Certifying the tax roll is time sensitive because it must occur prior to tax entities setting tax rates, mailing tax bills and receiving payments for property taxes.

The appraisal review board (ARB) must hear and determine all (or substantially all) protests, determine all timely filed challenges and resolve enough protests so less than 5% of the tax roll are subject to an unresolved property tax appeal.

Completing “substantially all” timely filed property tax protests is an ill-defined term. The Harris County Appraisal District (HCAD) staff maintains that “substantially all” means more than half. Most individuals believe “substantially all” means 75% – 95%. Certifying the tax roll becomes more challenging as the number of property tax protests increase. The volume of property tax protests is increasing largely as a result of steadily increasing assessment ratios (the ratio assessed value to market value) that have been affected by the Texas Comptroller.

Timely certification of the tax roll is a core responsibility for the chief appraiser. While it would appear to be the responsibility of the appraisal review board, it is generally considered the chief appraiser’s responsibility.

 

Sec. 41.12. Approval of Appraisal Records by Board.

(a) By July 20, the appraisal review board shall:

(1) hear and determine all or substantially all timely filed protests;

(2) determine all timely filed challenges;

(3) submit a list of its approved changes in the records to the chief appraiser; and

(4) approve the records.

(b) The appraisal review board must complete substantially all timely filed protests before approving the appraisal records and may not approve the records if the sum of the appraised values, as determined by the chief appraiser, of all properties on which a protest has been filed but not determined is more than five percent of the total appraised value of all other taxable properties.

(c) The board of directors of an appraisal district established for a county with a population of at least one million by resolution may:

(1) postpone the deadline established by Subsection (a) for the performance of the functions listed in that subsection to a date not later than August 30; or

(2) provide that the appraisal review board may approve the appraisal records if the sum of the appraised values, as determined by the chief appraiser, of all properties on which a protest has been filed but not determined does not exceed 10 percent of the total appraised value of all other taxable properties.

Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2304, ch. 841, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1982. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., 1st C.S., p. 170, ch. 13, Sec. 136, eff. Jan. 1, 1982; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 312, Sec. 4, eff. June 7, 1985; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 630, Sec. 1, eff. June 14, 1985; Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 1031, Sec. 7, 8, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.

Amended by:

Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 626 (H.B. 538), Sec. 1, eff. January 1, 2008.

Cross References:
Supplemental records, see Sec. 25.23.
Approval of records for unfinished protests creates appraisal roll, see Sec. 25.24.
Suit to compel compliance with deadline, see Sec. 43.04.
Listing of property under protest, see Sec. 26.01(c).

Notes:
The taxpayer failed to exhaust its administrative remedies by not raising the issue of an application filing extension before the review board and evidence was not presented to establish entitlement to relief under Section 11.439 (now Section 11.4391) because no date of appraisal roll approval was offered. As a result, the Court did not address the retroactive application of the law. The application filed after the April 30 deadline in effect in 1999 barred the granting of the freeport exemption for that year. The taxpayer failed to file timely a freeport exemption application and did not request a filing extension for good cause as required in 1999. At trial, the taxpayer claimed that the appraisal district failed to treat the transmittal letter with the application as a request for extension. The taxpayer further contended that the amendment to the application requirements by Section 11.439 (effective in 2000 and renumbered in 2003 to Section 11.4391), permitting acceptance of late applications if filed before approval of appraisal records by the appraisal review board, should apply. Quorum International v. Tarrant Appraisal District, 114 S.W.3d 568 (Tex. App.-Fort Worth 2003, pet. denied).

[Sections 41.13 to 41.20 reserved for expansion]
These codes affect property owners across the state, in both larger and smaller cities including:

• Sunnyvale
• Fairchilds
• Flower Mound
• Woodbranch
• Newark
• Lincoln Park
• Onion Creek
• Mesquite
• Selma
• Patton Village
• Freeport
• Fairview
• Ponder
• McBeth
• Seagoville
• South Houston
• Briar
• Ashwood
• Richmond
• Kendleton

The Texas Property Tax Code applies to all property types in Texas including:

• Student housing
• Office warehouse
• Veterinary clinic
• Auto salvage yard
• Bank
• Supermarket
• Regional mall
• Convenience store
• Department store
• Greenhouse

O’Connor & Associates offers property tax services to all property owners of all land uses across Texas.

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