Summary of Bill SB 1326 (Session 114, Tennessee)
Purpose
- Create a streamlined process for elderly property tax relief participants. Specifically, for eligible taxpayers aged 85 or older (as introduced) or 80 years or older (as amended in later versions), who have received property tax relief for a specified number of consecutive years, the bill would exempt them from submitting a full annual income report when renewing continued participation, provided they meet income and other eligibility criteria.
Principal Provisions (as introduced)
- Amends Tenn. Code Annotated Title 67, Chapter 5, Part 7.
- New subsection (n) to 67-5-701:
- Eligibility for simplified renewal:
- Taxpayer age: 85 years or older (as introduced).
- Has received property tax relief under § 67-5-702 for at least five consecutive years.
- Annual income does not exceed the annually adjusted income threshold in § 67-5-702(a)(2).
- Meets all other non-income-related eligibility criteria.
- Provisions of simplified renewal:
- The State Board of Equalization, Division of Property Assessments, in consultation with the Comptroller of the Treasury and county property assessors, must develop a simplified renewal process (online or mail) that allows the taxpayer to indicate (by checking boxes) whether they meet income and other non-income-related requirements.
- This would replace the requirement to submit a complete application and full income report for continued participation.
Effective Date
- Takes effect upon becoming law.
Additional Context from Fiscal Notes
- The bill’s fiscal notes consistently indicate a NOT SIGNIFICANT impact on state expenditures.
- The amended versions expand eligibility to include:
- 80 years of age or older if they meet similar five-year consecutive participation criteria (either as a sole owner or co-owner) and income thresholds, with a simplified renewal process.
- The simplified process is intended to be implemented via paper and online forms, with an estimated development period of about 18 months by the Comptroller’s Division of Technology Solutions (DTS) staff.
Key Topics Addressed
- Target population: Elderly homeowners who have long participated in property tax relief programs.
- Administrative simplification: Reducing or removing the requirement to submit full income documentation annually for continued relief.
- Income eligibility: Maintains an annual income threshold tied to the program (the “annually adjusted income threshold” used in § 67-5-702(a)(2)).
- Non-income criteria: Requires that non-income-related eligibility criteria be met.
Who Is Affected
- Property taxpayers who qualify for relief under the program and are at least 80–85 years old (depending on version) and have five consecutive years of participation.
- County property assessors, the Division of Property Assessments, the State Board of Equalization, and the Comptroller of the Treasury, due to the creation of a simplified renewal process and coordination requirements.
Timeline & Process Implications
- Development of a simplified renewal process (online or mail) by the State Board of Equalization in consultation with COT and county assessors.
- Paper form and online application development projected to take about 18 months in prior fiscal notes.
- Initially, the simplified process may be mail-only until the online system is implemented.
Notes
- The bill has evolved through amendments (notably expanding eligibility to include those aged 80+ under certain conditions), with multiple fiscal analyses reiterating a not-significant fiscal impact.
- The sponsor is Harris; co-sponsor is Sara Kyle.
