There may be established a department of taxation to assess and collect taxes, the head of which shall be the city tax collector, which office shall be filled by appointment by the city manager. The tax collector shall give a surety bond for faithful performance of his duties, including compliance with all controlling provisions of the state law bearing upon the functions of his office, and a sum which shall be fixed by the city council at not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00).
The city council shall have the power to levy, assess and collect taxes of every character and type not prohibited by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas, and for any municipal purpose. The city council shall also have the power to enact tax exemptions in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas. The city council shall also have the power to assess and collect such occupation taxes, licenses and franchise upon trades, professions, occupations and any business transactions carried on in the city as may be authorized by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas. All existing taxes, assessments and charges of whatever kind or nature heretofore levied by the City of Hillsboro shall remain in full force and effect until and unless expressly repealed or changed by this charter or by ordinance.
All taxes due the City of Hillsboro on real or personal property shall be payable at the office of the city tax collector and may be paid at any time after the tax rolls for the year have been completed and approved, but shall not be later than October 1. Taxes shall be paid before February 1 of the following year, and all such taxes not paid prior to such date shall be deemed delinquent, and shall be subject to such penalty and interest as the city council may provide by ordinance or in the absence of such ordinance as is provided by laws of the State of Texas. The city council may provide further by ordinance that all taxes, either current or delinquent, due the City of Hillsboro may be paid in installments. Failure to levy, assess or collect taxes through omission and preparation of the approved tax roll shall not relieve the person, firm, corporation or other entity so omitted from the obligation to pay such current or past due taxes as shown to be payable by a recheck of the rolls and receipts for the years in question.
The tax levied by the city is hereby declared to be a lien, charge of encumbrance upon real or personal property of January 1 upon which the tax is due, which lien, charge or encumbrance the city is entitled to enforce and foreclose in any court having jurisdiction over the same. The lien, charge or encumbrance on the property is such as to give the state courts jurisdiction to enforce and foreclose said lien on the property on which the tax is due, not only as against any resident of this state or person whose residence is unknown, but also as against a nonresident. All taxes upon real estate and personal property shall especially be a lien and a charge upon the property on which the taxes are due, which lien may be foreclosed in any court having jurisdiction.
The city shall be entitled to counterclaim and offset against any debt, claim, demand or account owned by the city to any person, firm or corporation who is in arrears, and no assignment or transfer of such debt, claim, demand or account after said taxes are due, shall affect the right of the city to so offset the said taxes against the same.
All property, real, personal, or mixed, lying and being within the corporate limits of the City of Hillsboro on the first day of January of each year, not expressly exempted by law, shall be subject to annual ad valorem taxation at its true market value. The mode and manner of making renditions, tax lists, assessments, tax rolls, delinquent tax rolls, collections and procedures for enforcing collection of such taxes shall be in accordance with the laws of the State of Texas governing the levy and collection of ad valorem taxes by cities, school districts and counties. All owners of property subject to taxation in the City of Hillsboro shall, between January 1 and April 1 of each year, file with the tax collector a full and complete sworn inventory rendition of such property held, owned or controlled within the city limits on January 1 of each year.
The tax collector shall assess all property subject to taxation which for any cause has not been rendered, placing such valuation thereon in accordance with law.
The city council shall each year appoint three (3) residents, each of whom shall be qualified voters, real property owners and shall be well informed of property values within the city, as the board of equalization. The board shall choose from its membership a chairman, who shall preside at all meetings of the board, and a vice chairman who shall act in the chairman's absence. The board of equalization shall convene as soon as practicable after June 1 and shall give public notice of the time and place of meeting. The board shall adjust assessed values and, in addition to the powers herein granted, shall have all of the powers of a county commissioners court in regard to the equalization of assessed values of property for taxation.
Except as otherwise provided by law or by this charter, the council shall have the power to provide by ordinance for the assessment and collection of all taxes, and to make such rules, regulations and mode of procedure to enforce the collection by and payment to the City Tax Collector as it may deem expedient, and may provide such penalties for the failure to pay such taxes as it may deem appropriate
The city council shall be empowered to contract by ordinance or resolution with any other entity or district for the appraisal, assessment, equalization and/or collection of taxes, as may be authorized by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas. It is expressly provided that if any provision of this Article 10 is contrary to or in conflict with any provision of the Property Tax Code of the State of Texas, as amended, or any valid contract entered into by the City with another entity as provided by the Interlocal Cooperation Act to perform tax services for the city, the terms and provisions of the Property Tax Code and any such contract shall control.