CS/CS/HB 289 - Property Taxes Summary

• Requires persons claiming adverse possession of real property for 7 years to pay all delinquent taxes within 1 year of entering possession and subsequently pay all remaining taxes before claiming adverse possession rights.

• Allows property appraisers to waive penalties and interest for improper homestead exemptions, property assessment limitations, and parent/grandparent living quarters reductions if the person qualified at application time and received no additional financial benefit, unless they claimed similar exemptions elsewhere.

• Permits late petitions to value adjustment boards within 60 days after the deadline if petitioner identifies extenuating circumstances preventing timely filing, though the board is not required to delay proceedings.

• Specifies that "good cause" does not include scheduling conflicts with other jurisdictions in counties with more than 5,000 petitions per year, and allows identification of up to 15 unavailable business days per roll year.

• Prohibits special magistrates from submitting their own appraisals as evidence to the value adjustment board in the same roll year they served as magistrate.

• Authorizes property appraisers to include additional explanatory statements about tax notice items in mailings to property owners; effective July 1, 2017.