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R2017-193 2017-09-25RESOLUTION NO. R2017-193 A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Pearland, Texas, nominating a candidate for a position on the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District. WHEREAS, those cities and towns, other than the City of Houston, within the Harris County Appraisal District have the right and responsibility to elect one person to the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District; for a term of office commencing on January 1, 2018, and extending through December 31, 2019; and WHEREAS, this governing body desires to exercise its right to nominate a candidate for such position on said board of directors; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PEARLAND, TEXAS: Section 1. That the facts and recitations set forth in the preamble of this resolution are hereby, adopted, ratified, and confirmed. Section 2. That Mike Sullivan is hereby nominated as a candidate for the position on the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District to be filled by those cities and towns other than the City of Houston within the Harris County Appraisal District for a two year term of office commencing on January 1, 2018. Section 3. That the presiding officer of the governing body of this taxing unit is hereby authorized and directed to deliver or cause to be delivered a certified copy of this resolution to the Chief Appraiser of the Harris County Appraisal District on or before October 15, 2017. RESOLUTION NO. 2017-193 PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this the 25th day of September, A.D., 2017. ATTEST: UNG RFIN ITY CRE TARY APPROVED AS TO FORM: DARRIN M. COKER CITY ATTORNEY 2 TOM EID MAYOR caE Resolution No. R2017-193 Harris County Appraisal District Interoffice Memorandum OFFICE OF CHIEF APPRAISER TO: PRESIDING OFFICERS OF TAXING UNITS SERVED BY THE HARRIS COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT FROM: ROLAND ALTINGER, CHIEF APPRAISER SUBJECT: SELECTION OF APPRAISAL DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS DATE: AUGUST 14, 2017 Your taxing unit participates in selecting members of the Harris County Appraisal District's board of directors. The board is composed of six members who serve two-year terms, all of which expire December 31, 2017. This memorandum describes the process of selecting directors for the two-year term that begins January 1, 2018. Functions of the Board The appraisal district appraises all property in the county for ad valorem tax purposes. The board of directors is the governing body for the district. This board employs the chief appraiser, sets general policies for the district, and adopts the budget for the district. By law, board members cannot communicate with the chief appraiser regarding appraisals. There is no compensation for service an the appraisal district board of directors; however, directors are reimbursed for travel expenses if incurred. The board of directors typically meets once a month. Participating Units The current method of selecting directors was established by resolutions of the county, cities, and school districts participating in the appraisal district in 1981. The method of selection was modified in 1991 after the law was changed to provide a voting entitlement to conservation and reclamation districts and has also been modified to provide a voting entitlement for junior college districts. Sec. 6.031, Tax Code, authorizes an appraisal district to vary both the size and the method of selecting its board members. The six members of the Harris County Appraisal District's board of directors are selected as follows: Presiding Officers, August 14, 2017 Page 2 • One member appointed by the Harris County Commissioners Court. • One member appointed by the Houston City Council. • One member appointed by the board of trustees of the Houston Independent School District. • One member appointed by votes of the city councils of the cities other than Houston. Each city council casts a single vote. The candidate who receives the most votes is elected, One member appointed by votes of the boards of trustees of the school districts other than Houston Independent School District and by the boards of directors of the junior colleges with territory in Harris County. Each school district board casts a single vote. The junior college districts collectively cast a single vote. The candidate who receives the most votes is elected. One member appointed by votes of the governing bodies of the conservation and reclamation districts that participate in the appraisal district, Each body casts a single vote. The candidate who receives the most votes is elected. In the event the county appoints someone other than the county assessor -collector to the board, the county assessor -collector will serve ex -officio in a non-voting capacity as a seventh member, Board members whose terms expire December 31, 2017, are: • Ed Heathcott, Chairman, representing cities & towns, except City of Houston • Pete Pape, Secretary, representing junior college districts and school districts other that Houston ISD • Wanda Adams, Assistant Secretary, representing Houston ISD • Ann Harris Bennett, Ex -Officio Member, Harris County Tax Assessor -Collector • Jim Robinson, Member, representing Harris County • Glenn E. Peters, Member, representing conservation and reclamation districts • Al Odom, Member, representing City of Houston Eligibility Requirements An individual must satisfy certain residency, employment, and conflict-of-interest requirements to be eligible to serve on the board of directors. Residency: The candidate must be a resident of Harris County, and must have resided in the county for at least two years immediately preceding the date he or she takes office. The appraisal district's boundaries are the same as those for Harris County. Employment: An employee of a taxing unit served by the appraisal district is ineligible, with one exception. An employee may serve if the employee is also a member of the governing body or an elected official of a taxing unit that participates in the district. For example, a member of the governing body of a school district who is also a city employee would be eligible to serve on the appraisal district's board of directors. Elected officials or members of governing bodies who are not employed by taxing units are also eligible to serve on the board, An individual is ineligible to serve on an appraisal district board of directors if the individual has engaged in the business of appraising property for compensation for use in proceedings under this title or of representing property owners for compensation in proceedings under this title in the appraisal district at any time during the preceding five years. Presiding Officers, August 14, 2017 Page 3 Conflict-of-interest: A candidate may not serve if the candidate is related to a person who is in the business of appraising property or represents property owners for a fee in proceedings in the appraisal district. Relatives barred are those within the second degree by consanguinity (blood) or affinity (marriage). These persons include: spouse, children, brothers and sisters, parents, grandparents, and grandchildren. The spouse's relatives in the same degree are included. A candidate who contracts with the appraisal district for any purpose, or who contracts with a taxing unit served by the district for a property tax related purpose, may not serve. The same rule applies to candidates who have a substantial interest in businesses contracting with the appraisal district (for any purpose) or with the taxing unit (for property tax purposes). A candidate has a substantial interest if the candidate or the candidate's spouse has combined ownership of at least ten percent (10%) of the voting stock or shares of the business. A candidate also has a substantial interest if the candidate or the candidate's spouse is a partner, limited partner, or an officer of the business. These prohibitions on contracting continue for the duration of the affected director's term of office. The appraisal district may not employ any person who is related to an appraisal district director within the second degree by affinity or the third degree by consanguinity. The provision applies to existing employees at the time the director takes office and to employees hired during the director's term. Delinquent taxes: Texas law makes a person ineligible to serve as an appraisal district director if he or she has delinquent property taxes owing to any taxing unit 60 days after the person knew or should have known of the delinquency. Selection Procedures The procedures for selecting members of the board of directors for the two-year term beginning on January 1, 2018, are as follows: For Cities and Towns Other Than the City of Houston The cities and towns other than the City of Houston appoint one member by majority vote of their city council. The process for these cities and towns involves two steps; nomination and election. Nomination The city council of each city and town has the right to nominate a single candidate for the position. To noininate, the governing body must adopt a resolution nominating the candidate by formal action. The mayor, as presiding officer of the city council, must submit the nominee's name to the chief appraiser of the Harris County Appraisal District no later than Sunday, October 15, 2017. The mayor must provide a certified copy of the resolution and may include a cover letter naming the nominee. Presiding Officers, August 14, 2017 Page 4 Election Before Monday, October 30, 2017, the chief appraiser will prepare a ballot listing the nominees in alphabetical order. The chief appraiser will deliver a copy of the ballot to the mayor of each voting city or town. No later than Friday, December 1, 2017, each city council must cast its vote for one of the nominees, formally adopt a resolution naming the person for whom it votes, and submit an official copy to the chief appraiser. Ballots received by the chief appraiser after December 1 may not be counted. By December 15, 2017, the chief appraiser will count the votes, declare the results, and notify the winner, the nominees, and the managers of each city and town. A tie vote will be resolved by a method of chance chosen by the chief appraiser. For Junior Colleges and School Districts Other Than the Houston Independent School District With the exception described below for junior college districts, exactly the same procedure described for cities and towns above applies to the selection of the member who represents junior colleges and school districts other than Houston ISD. The board of trustees of the school districts must nominate and elect following the deadlines and procedures described above. The four junior college districts with territory in Harris County may participate in the selection of the member who represents school districts other than Houston ISD and the junior colleges. However, the junior college districts collectively have the same voting authority as a single school district. The boards of trustees of junior college districts may each nominate a candidate following the deadlines and procedures described above. However, the four junior colleges collectively have a single vote in the election. Each board of trustees may cast a vote by resolution and file the resolution with the chief appraiser. The collective vote will be automatically cast for the candidate who receives the most votes from among the junior colleges. As an example, if one candidate receives three votes and another receives one vote, the junior colleges will be deemed to have collectively cast their vote for the candidate who received the three votes. For Conservation and Reclamation Districts The procedure and timetable for selecting the member who represents the conservation and reclamation districts are the same as that described above for small cities and school districts. The conservation and reclamation districts that participate in the appraisal district may cast a single vote. The candidate who receives the most votes is elected. Presiding Officers, August 14, 2017 Page 5 For Ilarrls County, the City of Houston, and the Houston Independent School District 13y December 15, 2017, the governing body of each of these entities appoints a single person to represent it on the board. Each governing body must formally adopt a resolution naming the person who will serve as a board member and submit it to the chief appraiser at the address shown below: Roland Altinger Harris County Appraisal District 13013 Northwest Freeway P. O. Box 920975 Houston, TX 77292-0975 To assist you in this process, 1 have enclosed a suggested form of resolution for the nomination of a candidate to the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District. We invite your questions or comments on the board selection process. Please do not hesitate to call me at (713) 957-5670. Roland Altinger, RPA, CAE, CTA, CCA Chief Appraiser Attachments cc: HCAD Board Members Tax Assessors Attorneys RESOLUTION NO. A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF , TEXAS, NOMINATING A CANDIDATE FOR A POSITION ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE HARRIS COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT WHEREAS, those cities and towns other than the City of Houston within the Harris County Appraisal District have the right and responsibility to elect one person to the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District fora term of office commencing on January I, 2018, and extending through December 31, 2019; and WHEREAS, this governing body desires to exercise its right to nominate a candidate for such position on said board of directors; now, therefore BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF Section 1. That the facts and recitations set forth in the preamble of this resolution be, and they are hereby, adopted, ratified, and confirmed. Section 2. That (name), _�_--- (address, zip code) (phone number), be, and he or she is hereby, nominated as a candidate for that position on the board of directors of the Harris County Appraisal District to be filled by those cities and towns other than the City of Houston within the Harris County Appraisal District for a two-year term of office commencing on January 1, 2018. Section 3, That the presiding officer of the governing body of this taxing unit be, and he or she is hereby, authorized and directed to deliver or cause to be delivered a certified copy of this resolution to the chief appraiser of the Harris County Appraisal District no later than October 15, 2017, PASSED AND APPROVED this day of , 2017. Mayor ATTEST: City Secretary