NEW YEAR BRINGS NEW LAWS PART II
With the start of the new year, it is important to know about the laws that went into effect. Certain laws that were passed during the 83rd Regular Legislative Session came into effect on January 1, 2014. These new laws range from bills addressing ad valorem taxes to the disconnection of electric or gas utility services. Each of the bills that took effect on January 1 went through a 140 day legislative session. During that 140 day period, these bills went before House and Senate Committees before going before the Texas House and Senate as a whole and then going to the Governor’s office.
The laws mentioned below represent some more of those pieces of legislation that passed and went into effect on January 1:
• House Bill (HB) 800 is relating to a sales and use tax exemption and a franchise tax credit related to certain research and development activities. Under the HB 800’s legislative findings and purposes, it states that the legislature finds that while the Texas economy accounts for over eight percent of the United States economy, the State of Texas only accounts for five percent of the research and development spending in the United States. Research and development spending is important because it enhances and pushes the state economy forward. Research and development tends to create high-paying jobs that are extremely beneficial to our state’s economy. It is also shown that research and development creates unique opportunities for private-sector and public institutes of higher education partnerships, which expand opportunities for the development of innovation and learning. Some of the areas of research and development that HB 800 will include are oil and gas, biosciences and semiconductors, along with numerous other areas. By providing tax exemptions as established under HB 800, Texas can and help to promote research and development in the State of Texas and there by continue to push our economy into the future.
• HB 1349 is related to information that may be requested by the Department of Public Safety from a person applying for or renewing a concealed handgun license. Under HB 1349 the Texas Department of Public Safety may not request or require an applicant for a concealed handgun license (CHL) to provide a social security number for either an initial application or a renewal.
• HB 1772 relates to the disconnection of electric or gas utility service. Recently, there have been concerns over the disconnection of electric and gas services to multi-family residences which are not submetered. If a landlord fails to pay for the service which is master metered, the service is ultimately shutoff for all the residents on the property. In order to help address this issue, HB 1772 requires the customer or person responsible for paying the utility service to send written notification to each tenant not later than the fifth date that the customer receives notice from the provider that the service is to be disconnected. In addition, the retail service provided is required to send notification of a pending disconnect to the municipality in which the multi-family residence is located.
It is important to learn and know about the new laws that were passed by the 83rd Texas Legislature. If you would like to view any of the other legislation that was passed during the 83rd Regular Session, these websites are great resources:
• The Texas Legislature
• The Texas House of Representatives
• The Texas Senate
If you have questions regarding any of the information mentioned in this article, please do not hesitate to call my Capitol or District Office. As always, my offices are available at any time to assist with questions, concerns or comments (Capitol Office, 512-463-0672; District Office, 361-949-4603).
– State Representative Todd Hunter, District 32
Rep. Hunter represents Nueces County (Part). He can be contacted at todd.hunter@house.state.tx.us or at 512-463-0672.
