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March 3, 2000
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| Law
suggests appraisal coordination
The Property Tax Code requires county appraisal districts (CADs) to work together in appraising and listing property that lies in more than one CAD’s boundaries. Beginning January 1, 2000, the law will change that process for CADs. House Bill (HB) 1037 repeals most of the law changes added by the 75th Texas Legislature in 1997. HB 1037 adds language to have CADs coordinate their appraisal activities "to the extent practicable" so as to "encourage" and facilitate the appraisal of the same property at the same value. Beginning with the 2000 tax year, CADs do not have to agree on a proposed value for a property by May 1. Again, CADs are "encouraged" to appraise the same property at the same value, but are not required to arrive at the same appraised value. HB 1037 repeals the provision that a property owner could protest the proposed value of a property located in more than one CAD to only one ARB. Beginning in tax year 2000, property owners must file protests with each district’s ARB if they disagree with that CAD’s proposed value. HB 1037 also eliminates the provision that a homeowner may apply only at one CAD and receive the exemptions in the other CAD. Beginning in tax year 2000, these home owners must file in each CAD office that appraises their homestead to receive any applicable exemptions. Property owners still are required to file changes in current mailing address, property ownership, or any other information that helps the CAD list and appraise the property with each CAD. To receive special appraisal for agricultural or timberland based on the land’s productivity value, or any of the other special appraisals, the owners must apply to each CAD. Owners required to render their property must do so to each CAD in which their property is located. A property rendition lists an owner’s property and allows the owner to give an opinion of value. Source: Statement, Comptroller of Public Accounts, December 1999
A controversial national advertising campaign that compares the mass death camps of the Holocaust to today’s factory farms and slaughterhouses for animals is being run in some major newspapers. The ads, featuring photos of mangled bodies from the Holocaust, the Swastika and tortured animals, will run over the next few months in newspapers from Los Angeles to New York. The ad features a quote from Isaac Bashevis Singer, a Nobel Prize winner and Holocaust survivor, suggesting humans are "Nazis" to non-human animals. The program, sponsored by the Seattle-based Consistency in Compassion Campaign (CCC), questions what it calls "corporate greed and indifference to animals," and society’s tendency to "turn its back on the barbaric realities of factory farms and slaughterhouses." The newspaper ads and website– www.stopeatinganimals.org –highlights the organization’s views on the treatment and the connections between human and animal suffering. The half-page ad is set to run in at least seven major weeklies across the country which include the Village Voice, LA Weekly and the Seattle Weekly. Source: AFBF Speedlines, Feb. 7, 2000 New web site answers farm questions What is a farm? The answer to that and other questions related to agriculture and education can be found on a new web site produced by the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. Teachers, volunteers, students and others interested in learning more about American agriculture can access the "Educating About Agriculture" web site at www.ageducate.org. The new web site serves as a clearinghouse for ideas, resources and links to classroom-related material and complements ongoing Ag in the Classroom programs across the nation. The site is targeted at kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, students and state coordinators of the Ag in the Classroom programs. Included on the site is information regarding: careers in agriculture; Ag in the Classroom projects; links to state Ag in the Classroom programs; the latest Ag in the Classroom news; frequently asked questions about the need for agricultural education; and material order information. Source: AFBF, News Release, Feb. 15, 2000
Certificates will be available for producers to use to redeem commodities under loan with USDA. The certificates are in-kind, meaning they can be used only to redeem the crop under loan; they have no market value as such. It’s expected the certificates will directly benefit large producers—those who have reached the $150,000 payment limitation. But they will apply to 2000 crops under loan as well as 1999 commodities. USDA expects the problem will be greater with 2000 crops when the payment limit reverts to $75,000. Allowing the certificates means USDA will avoid forfeiture of commodities under loan. Source: Doane’s Agricultural Report, Feb. 18, 2000
The United States is expected to export 24.2 million tons of soybeans in the 1999/2000 marketing year, up more than 10 percent from last year. This volume of exports represents the third highest export volume in U.S. soybean history, despite the strong trade competition from South America.Year-to-date data indicate that total commitments (accumulated exports plus outstanding sales) as of the end of January are up 31 percent for Mexico, 8 percent for Asian destinations and 6 percent for European. Mexico in the past couple of years has become a significant soybean importer as its economy improved and the NAFTA agreement substantially reduced tariffs. Source: USDA, Oilseeds: World Markets & Trade, Feb., 2000
Estate, gift tax revenues reach a record high The administration’s new budget shows estate and gift tax revenues totaled a record $27.8 billion in the year ending September 30, 1999. That was up sharply from $24.1 billion the previous year and more than double the $12.6 billion collected in 1993. These large gains primarily reflect soaring prices of stocks, real estate, and art in recent years. The Treasury projects further sharp revenue increases in coming years. Less than 2 percent of Americans who die each year leave estates large enough to be subject to the tax. Source: Wall Street Journal, Feb. 16, 2000
Despite $930 million in property tax relief granted by the Legislature last year, about 35 percent of the state’s 1,035 school districts raised school property tax rates for the current fiscal year, while 28 percent left rates unchanged. This is according to a Texas Education Agency survey. The Legislature, in order to finance the tax relief, increased state education aid to school districts. However, the TEA survey shows that most districts plowed the new money into their budgets rather than use it to pay for tax cuts. Most of the school districts blamed salary increases for the tax rate hikes and about 160 districts cited the loss in revenue from a drop in oil prices. Source: Wall Street Journal, Feb. 16, 2000 |
