Sec. 11.253. TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY IN TRANSIT. (a) In this section:

(1) "Dealer's motor vehicle inventory," "dealer's vessel and outboard motor inventory," "dealer's heavy equipment inventory," and "retail manufactured housing inventory" have the meanings assigned by Subchapter B, Chapter 23.

(2) "Goods-in-transit" means tangible personal property that:

(A) is acquired in or imported into this state to be forwarded to another location in this state or outside this state;

(B) is stored under a contract of bailment by a public warehouse operator at one or more public warehouse facilities in this state that are not in any way owned or controlled by the owner of the personal property for the account of the person who acquired or imported the property;

(C) is transported to another location in this state or outside this state not later than 175 days after the date the person acquired the property in or imported the property into this state; and

(D) does not include oil, natural gas, petroleum products, aircraft, dealer's motor vehicle inventory, dealer's vessel and outboard motor inventory, dealer's heavy equipment inventory, or retail manufactured housing inventory.

(3) "Location" means a physical address.

(4) "Petroleum product" means a liquid or gaseous material that is an immediate derivative of the refining of oil or natural gas.

(5) "Bailee" and "warehouse" have the meanings assigned by Section 7.102, Business & Commerce Code.

(6) "Public warehouse operator" means a person that:

(A) is both a bailee and a warehouse; and

(B) stores under a contract of bailment, at one or more public warehouse facilities, tangible personal property that is owned by other persons solely for the account of those persons and not for the operator's account.

(b) A person is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the appraised value of that portion of the person's property that consists of goods-in-transit.

(c) The exemption provided by Subsection (b) is subtracted from the market value of the property determined under Section 23.01 or 23.12, as applicable, to determine the taxable value of the property.

(d) Except as provided by Subsections (f) and (g), the chief appraiser shall determine the appraised value of goods-in-transit under this subsection. The chief appraiser shall determine the percentage of the market value of tangible personal property owned by the property owner and used for the production of income in the preceding calendar year that was contributed by goods-in-transit. For the first year in which the exemption applies to a taxing unit, the chief appraiser shall determine that percentage as if the exemption applied in the preceding year. The chief appraiser shall apply that percentage to the market value of the property owner's tangible personal property used for the production of income for the current year to determine the appraised value of goods-in-transit for the current year.

(e) In determining the market value of goods-in-transit that in the preceding year were stored in this state, the chief appraiser shall exclude the cost of equipment, machinery, or materials that entered into and became component parts of the goods-in-transit but were not themselves goods-in-transit or that were not transported to another location in this state or outside this state before the expiration of 175 days after the date they were brought into this state by the property owner or acquired by the property owner in this state. For component parts held in bulk, the chief appraiser may use the average length of time a component part was held by the owner of the component parts during the preceding year at a location in this state that was not owned by or under the control of the owner of the component parts in determining whether the component parts were transported to another location in this state or outside this state before the expiration of 175 days.

(f) If the property owner was not engaged in transporting goods-in-transit to another location in this state or outside this state for the entire preceding year, the chief appraiser shall calculate the percentage of the market value described in Subsection (d) for the portion of the year in which the property owner was engaged in transporting goods-in-transit to another location in this state or outside this state.

(g) If the property owner or the chief appraiser demonstrates that the method provided by Subsection (d) significantly understates or overstates the market value of the property qualified for an exemption under Subsection (b) in the current year, the chief appraiser shall determine the market value of the goods-in-transit to be exempt by determining, according to the property owner's records and any other available information, the market value of those goods-in-transit owned by the property owner on January 1 of the current year, excluding the cost of equipment, machinery, or materials that entered into and became component parts of the goods-in-transit but were not themselves goods-in-transit or that were not transported to another location in this state or outside this state before the expiration of 175 days after the date they were brought into this state by the property owner or acquired by the property owner in this state.

(h) The chief appraiser by written notice delivered to a property owner who claims an exemption under this section may require the property owner to provide copies of property records so the chief appraiser can determine the amount and value of goods-in-transit and that the location in this state where the goods-in-transit were detained for storage was not owned by or under the control of the owner of the goods-in-transit. If the property owner fails to deliver the information requested in the notice before the 31st day after the date the notice is delivered to the property owner, the property owner forfeits the right to claim or receive the exemption for that year.

(i) Property that meets the requirements of this section constitutes goods-in-transit regardless of whether the person who owns the property on January 1 is the person who transports the property to another location in this state or outside this state.

(j) The governing body of a taxing unit, in the manner required for official action by the governing body, may provide for the taxation of goods-in-transit exempt under Subsection (b) and not exempt under other law. The official action to tax the goods-in-transit must be taken before January 1 of the first tax year in which the governing body proposes to tax goods-in-transit. Before acting to tax the exempt property, the governing body of the taxing unit must conduct a public hearing as required by Section 1-n(d), Article VIII, Texas Constitution. If the governing body of a taxing unit provides for the taxation of the goods-in-transit as provided by this subsection, the exemption prescribed by Subsection (b) does not apply to that unit. The goods-in-transit remain subject to taxation by the taxing unit until the governing body of the taxing unit, in the manner required for official action, rescinds or repeals its previous action to tax goods-in-transit, or otherwise determines that the exemption prescribed by Subsection (b) will apply to that taxing unit.

(j-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (j) or official action that was taken under that subsection before October 1, 2011, to tax goods-in-transit exempt under Subsection (b) and not exempt under other law, a taxing unit may not tax such goods-in-transit in a tax year that begins on or after January 1, 2012, unless the governing body of the taxing unit takes action on or after October 1, 2011, in the manner required for official action by the governing body, to provide for the taxation of the goods-in-transit. The official action to tax the goods-in-transit must be taken before January 1 of the first tax year in which the governing body proposes to tax goods-in-transit. Before acting to tax the exempt property, the governing body of the taxing unit must conduct a public hearing as required by Section 1-n(d), Article VIII, Texas Constitution. If the governing body of a taxing unit provides for the taxation of the goods-in-transit as provided by this subsection, the exemption prescribed by Subsection (b) does not apply to that unit. The goods-in-transit remain subject to taxation by the taxing unit until the governing body of the taxing unit, in the manner required for official action, rescinds or repeals its previous action to tax goods-in-transit or otherwise determines that the exemption prescribed by Subsection (b) will apply to that taxing unit.

(j-2) Notwithstanding Subsection (j-1), if under Subsection (j) the governing body of a taxing unit, before October 1, 2011, took action to provide for the taxation of goods-in-transit and pledged the taxes imposed on the goods-in-transit for the payment of a debt of the taxing unit, the tax officials of the taxing unit may continue to impose the taxes against the goods-in-transit until the debt is discharged, if cessation of the imposition would impair the obligation of the contract by which the debt was created.

(k) A property owner who receives the exemption from taxation provided by Subsection (b) is not eligible to receive the exemption from taxation provided by Section 11.251 for the same property.

Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 830 (H.B. 621), Sec. 1, eff. January 1, 2008.

Amended by:

Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., 1st C.S., Ch. 4 (S.B. 1), Sec. 48.01, eff. January 1, 2012.

Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., 1st C.S., Ch. 4 (S.B. 1), Sec. 48.02, eff. October 1, 2011.