Renditions and Appraisal For Ad Valorem Tax Purposes

SB 340 requires that all owners of tangible personal property used for the production of income, or all managers who have a fiduciary responsibility to the property, must file a rendition.

• A rendition must include five specifics: (1) the property owner’s name and address; (2) a description of the property by type of category; (3) a listing of all inventory, if applicable, described by type with an estimate of quantity; (4) the property’s physical location or taxable situs; and (5) the owner’s good faith estimate of value, or a listing of the property’s historical cost new and the year of acquisition.
• SB 340 does not define what a good faith estimate is.
• SB 340 allows districts to request additional information about the rendered value. This supporting data must identify the property and summarize the physical and economic characteristics of the rendered value. Beyond these general guidelines it does not specify the nature of that information.
• Both renditions and supporting data are confidential.
• Failure to file a rendition or to respond to a district’s request for additional data can result in a 10% penalty of the total amount of tax imposed on the property for the applicable tax year. The same penalty applies for late filings and late responses. The chief appraiser imposes and collects the penalty, and can also waive the penalty upon written request accompanied by supporting documents. The chief appraiser is under no obligation to waive the penalty, but his denial to do so is subject to appeal. An important incentive to note is that the chief appraiser, if he imposes a penalty and denies its waivers, can keep up to 20% of the penalty to defray collection costs.
• If a property owner fails to file a timely rendition or supporting data, resulting in a penalty, and files a protest under Sec. 41.41 (the protest provision in the Property Tax Code), the burden of proof rests on the owner’s shoulders at the protest hearing.
• Failure to file or to file timely may result in a 10% penalty, but if a court determines that a property owner attempted to evade taxation or filed a fraudulent rendition, as well as altering, destroying, or concealing records, the court can impose a 50% penalty on the total amount of tax imposed on the property for the tax year in question.
• The filing deadline did not change from January 1 through April 15. But SB 340 does allow for an extension to May 15, which may be granted upon written request. If the taxpayer needs additional time, the chief appraiser may grant an additional 15 days upon written request showing good cause.
• The requirement to file renditions and supporting data is unchanged. Documents can either be hand delivered or mailed through the United States Postal Service on or before the deadline. SB 340 does allow for electronic filing. The rules for electronic filing, as well as the forms for paper filing, are under the control of the comptroller’s office.