HBA-EDN H.B. 887 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 887 By: Ramsay Ways & Means 4/16/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, an individual is eligible for a residence homestead tax exemption the year the individual turns 65. This exemption merely freezes the tax rate so as not to exceed that fixed rate and if the rate decreases in later years, the exemption would reflect that new decrease. However, many individuals 65 years of age and older are not aware that they qualify for this homestead tax exemption. Having an applicant include their date of birth on an application for a homestead tax exemption from a county or a school district would provide the chief appraiser with the information necessary to notify these individuals when they become eligible for the exemption based on their age or disability. House Bill 887 provides that an application for a residence homestead tax exemption from a county or a school district must include a space for the applicant's date of birth and requires the chief appraiser to mail to an individual an application for a homestead tax exemption based on age or disability in the year that the individual becomes eligible. 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 House Bill 887 amends the Tax Code to provide that an application form for a residence homestead tax exemption (exemption) must include a space on which the applicant may indicate the applicant's date of birth. If a person receiving an exemption under current law from a county or a school district based on the value of the residence homestead attains the age of 65, then the bill requires the chief appraiser, not later than December 31st of the tax year in which the person attains that age, to mail to the person an application for exemption from a county or a school district based on the applicant's age or disability, if applicable. These provisions apply only to a person who applied for an exemption based on the value of the residence homestead on or after September 1, 2001, and who stated the person's date of birth on that application. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.