Tax Code Section 31.01 requires the assessor to prepare and mail a tax bill to each property owner listed on the tax roll or to that person's agent by Oct. 1 or as soon thereafter as practicable each year. In the case of mortgaged property where taxes are paid from an escrow account controlled by the mortgagee (mortgage holder), the notice requirements are satisfied by sending the tax bill to the mortgagee. Written authorization by the property owner is not required in order to deliver the tax bill to the mortgage company when the mortgage company acknowledges that it has authority for payment of taxes on the property.
For purposes of this section, a tax bill includes both the tax bill and separate statements referenced in Tax Code Section 31.01.
Tax Code Section 31.01 requires tax bills to include the following information:
Transportation Code Section 280.003(d) requires the tax assessor-collector of certain counties that establish street lights along a county road to impose a fee on every landowner whose real property benefits from the street lights and to include the fee on the owner's property tax bill. The tax bill is required to separately state the amount of the fee.
Tax Code Section 33.04 requires delinquent tax bills to be delivered to each person whose name appears on the current and cumulative delinquent tax rolls.
Delinquent tax bills or statements are required Comptroller Rule 9.3038(c) to include the following information:
Delinquent tax bills prepared for owners of special inventory shall separately itemize the taxes levied against special inventory pursuant to Tax Code Sections 23.122, 23.12, 23.1241 and 23.128, and must include the name and telephone number of the assessor for the taxing unit and, if different, of the collector for the unit.
Tax Code Section 31.01(k) allows taxpayers and tax assessor-collectors to enter agreements for the electronic delivery of tax statements or bills. Tax Code Section 31.01(l) provides that the Comptroller's office may prescribe acceptable media, formats, content and methods for the delivery of tax bills by electronic means and provide a model form agreement which are outlined below.
DISCLAIMER: This is not a rule. Electronic delivery of tax bills is a local option. The guidelines and model form are not mandatory. They are intended to be used as general information to assist taxing units. The Comptroller's office is not offering legal advice. The guidelines and model form neither constitute nor serve as a substitute for legal advice. Questions regarding the meaning or interpretation of statutes, legal requirements, and other matters should, as appropriate or necessary, be directed to an attorney or other appropriate counsel.
The content and format of all tax bills delivered electronically must conform to the requirements of all laws and Comptroller rules applicable to content and format of tax bills delivered by mail.
For purposes of this section, electronic refers to the method of transfer of information delivered by email (e.g. content set forth in body of email, PDF attachment to email, word processing document attachment to email, hyperlink included in body of email).
Electronically delivered tax bills:
When an individual submits a signed agreement for the electronic delivery of tax bills to the assessor for consideration, the assessor must advise the individual or entity of its acceptance or rejection within 10 business days of receiving it. Written notice of acceptance must be provided by email to the email address designated in the agreement for electronic delivery of tax bills. Written notice of rejection must be mailed to the name and mailing address designated in the agreement as the name and address of the individual or entity entitled to receive a tax bill under Tax Code Section 31.01.
Failure to send or receive the required tax bill, including a tax bill that has been requested to be sent under electronic agreement, does not affect the validity of the tax, penalty or interest, the due date, the existence of a tax lien, or any procedure instituted to collect a tax.
Tax Code Section 33.01 establishes the penalty and interest (P&I) rates on delinquent property taxes. PTAD provides P&I charts for use in calculating the total amount due on delinquent property tax bills. The charts include the rates for taxes delinquent on Feb. 1 of the tax year, but do not include additional penalties for attorney fees.
The rates in these charts do not apply to delinquent taxes based on a different delinquency date such as taxes on omitted property, split payments, late-mailed tax bills, installment payments or homesteads with a tax deferral. For more information on these topics go to the Delinquent Dates, Penalty and Interest by Type of Property Tax Bill section on this page. Except for school districts, these rates also do not apply to delinquent taxes for a year in which a tax rate rollback election reduced the tax rate because the taxing unit had to extend the delinquency date.
Tax Code Section 33.05 provides that real property taxes delinquent more than 20 years and personal property taxes delinquent more than 10 years are removed from the delinquent tax rolls, unless the taxing unit has pending litigation on those taxes.
The Tax Code addresses 33 types of property tax bills that vary by delinquency date or by the requirements for applying delinquent penalty and interest charges. The tax bill charts detail the delinquency date, penalty and interest amounts for each type of bill.
Almost all property tax bills are due on receipt. Tax Code Section 31.01(g) provides that failure to send or receive the tax bill does not affect the validity of the tax, penalty, interest, the due date, the creation of a tax lien or any procedure instituted to collect a tax.
The only exception is that a property tax collector may wait to send a bill until the total taxes due for all taxing units the collector serves is $15 or more. A property owner may file a written request with the collector that a tax bill not be sent until the total amount of taxes due on the property is $15 or more.
The dates in the charts reflect the delinquency date; not the last day to pay before delinquent. Tax Code Section 1.06 states that if the last date for the act to be performed is on a Saturday, Sunday or legal state or national holiday then the act is considered timely if done on the next business day. One example of how this provision would affect this chart is as follows:
For questions about property tax bills and collections, call the Property Tax Assistance Division's Information Services Team at 512-305-9999 or 1-800-252-9121 (press 3).