Sec. 26.05. TAX RATE. (a) The governing body of each taxing unit, before the later of September 30 or the 60th day after the date the certified appraisal roll is received by the taxing unit, shall adopt a tax rate for the current tax year and shall notify the assessor for the unit of the rate adopted. The tax rate consists of two components, each of which must be approved separately. The components are:
(1) for a taxing unit other than a school district, the rate that, if applied to the total taxable value, will impose the total amount published under Section 26.04(e)(3)(C), less any amount of additional sales and use tax revenue that will be used to pay debt service, or, for a school district, the rate calculated under Section 44.004(c)(5)(A)(ii)(b), Education Code; and
(2) the rate that, if applied to the total taxable value, will impose the amount of taxes needed to fund maintenance and operation expenditures of the unit for the next year.
(b) A taxing unit may not impose property taxes in any year until the governing body has adopted a tax rate for that year, and the annual tax rate must be set by ordinance, resolution, or order, depending on the method prescribed by law for adoption of a law by the governing body. The vote on the ordinance, resolution, or order setting the tax rate must be separate from the vote adopting the budget. For a taxing unit other than a school district, the vote on the ordinance, resolution, or order setting a tax rate that exceeds the effective tax rate must be a record vote, and at least 60 percent of the members of the governing body must vote in favor of the ordinance, resolution, or order. For a school district, the vote on the ordinance, resolution, or order setting a tax rate that exceeds the sum of the effective maintenance and operations tax rate of the district as determined under Section 26.08(i) and the district's current debt rate must be a record vote, and at least 60 percent of the members of the governing body must vote in favor of the ordinance, resolution, or order. A motion to adopt an ordinance, resolution, or order setting a tax rate that exceeds the effective tax rate must be made in the following form: "I move that the property tax rate be increased by the adoption of a tax rate of (specify tax rate), which is effectively a (insert percentage by which the proposed tax rate exceeds the effective tax rate) percent increase in the tax rate." If the ordinance, resolution, or order sets a tax rate that, if applied to the total taxable value, will impose an amount of taxes to fund maintenance and operation expenditures of the taxing unit that exceeds the amount of taxes imposed for that purpose in the preceding year, the taxing unit must:
(1) include in the ordinance, resolution, or order in type larger than the type used in any other portion of the document:
(A) the following statement: "THIS TAX RATE WILL RAISE MORE TAXES FOR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS THAN LAST YEAR'S TAX RATE."; and
(B) if the tax rate exceeds the effective maintenance and operations rate, the following statement: "THE TAX RATE WILL EFFECTIVELY BE RAISED BY (INSERT PERCENTAGE BY WHICH THE TAX RATE EXCEEDS THE EFFECTIVE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS RATE) PERCENT AND WILL RAISE TAXES FOR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS ON A $100,000 HOME BY APPROXIMATELY $(Insert amount)."; and
(2) include on the home page of any Internet website operated by the unit:
(A) the following statement: "(Insert name of unit) ADOPTED A TAX RATE THAT WILL RAISE MORE TAXES FOR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS THAN LAST YEAR'S TAX RATE"; and
(B) if the tax rate exceeds the effective maintenance and operations rate, the following statement: "THE TAX RATE WILL EFFECTIVELY BE RAISED BY (INSERT PERCENTAGE BY WHICH THE TAX RATE EXCEEDS THE EFFECTIVE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS RATE) PERCENT AND WILL RAISE TAXES FOR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS ON A $100,000 HOME BY APPROXIMATELY $(Insert amount)."
(c) If the governing body of a taxing unit does not adopt a tax rate before the date required by Subsection (a), the tax rate for the taxing unit for that tax year is the lower of the effective tax rate calculated for that tax year or the tax rate adopted by the taxing unit for the preceding tax year. A tax rate established by this subsection is treated as an adopted tax rate. Before the fifth day after the establishment of a tax rate by this subsection, the governing body of the taxing unit must ratify the applicable tax rate in the manner required by Subsection (b).
(d) The governing body of a taxing unit other than a school district may not adopt a tax rate that exceeds the lower of the rollback tax rate or the effective tax rate calculated as provided by this chapter until the governing body has held two public hearings on the proposed tax rate and has otherwise complied with Section 26.06 and Section 26.065. The governing body of a taxing unit shall reduce a tax rate set by law or by vote of the electorate to the lower of the rollback tax rate or the effective tax rate and may not adopt a higher rate unless it first complies with Section 26.06.
(e) A person who owns taxable property is entitled to an injunction restraining the collection of taxes by a taxing unit in which the property is taxable if the taxing unit has not complied with the requirements of this section and the failure to comply was not in good faith. An action to enjoin the collection of taxes must be filed prior to the date a taxing unit delivers substantially all of its tax bills.
(f) Except as required by the law under which an obligation was created, the governing body may not apply any tax revenues generated by the rate described in Subsection (a)(1) of this section for any purpose other than the retirement of debt.
(g) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the governing body of a school district that elects to adopt a tax rate before the adoption of a budget for the fiscal year that begins in the current tax year may adopt a tax rate for the current tax year before receipt of the certified appraisal roll for the school district if the chief appraiser of the appraisal district in which the school district participates has certified to the assessor for the school district an estimate of the taxable value of property in the school district as provided by Section 26.01(e). If a school district adopts a tax rate under this subsection, the effective tax rate and the rollback tax rate of the district shall be calculated based on the certified estimate of taxable value.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2268, ch. 841, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1982. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., 1st C.S., p. 164, ch. 13, Sec. 117, eff. Jan. 1, 1982; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 657, Sec. 3, eff. June 14, 1985; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 699, Sec. 2, eff. June 19, 1987; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 947, Sec. 7, eff. Jan. 1, 1988; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 988, Sec. 2, eff. June 18, 1987; Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 404, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1992; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 29.06, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1039, Sec. 27, eff. Jan. 1, 1998; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 398, Sec. 3, eff. Aug. 30, 1999; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 423, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2000; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1358, Sec. 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2000.
Amended by:
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 412 (S.B. 1652), Sec. 13, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1368 (S.B. 18), Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2005.
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 921 (H.B. 3167), Sec. 14.001, eff. September 1, 2007.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 668 (H.B. 2291), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2009.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 1328 (H.B. 3646), Sec. 86, eff. September 1, 2009.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., 1st C.S., Ch. 4 (S.B. 1), Sec. 57.28, eff. September 28, 2011.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 481 (S.B. 1760), Sec. 5, eff. January 1, 2016.
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