Texas Taxing Bodies - A Simple Question

[swebster_tnc]

Hello everyone. I'm a reporter working in North Texas, pursuing resident's claims of abuses and illegal taxation coming out of our appraisal district. Recently, the Board of Directors for the district in question appointed the County's tax assessor/collector to the Appraisal Review Board. The assessor/collector's alternate role is to serve on the Board of Directors as an "ex-officio" (non-voting) member.

According to the Office of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, "you may not serve on the board if you are: a current appraisal district director, a current employee or chief appraiser of the appraisal district, a current board member, employee or officer of a taxing unit served by the appraisal district, or a current employee of the Comptroller of Public Accounts.

Could the phrase "a current board member, employee or officer of a taxing unit served by the appraisal district" be accurately used to discribe our elected Tax Assessor/Collector? Is that, in legal terms, correct? If so, our district has made an illegal appointment.

If you are, in fact, responding with a "yes," please give me your name and title. I'd prefer an attorney's response, simply because it lends creditability to the claim and will look very good in print.

[freespeech]

I doubt many will want you to take their name and answers to some meeting when they do not have all the facts and only answer based on a one sided representation on a website.

[Snipes5]

If you want something you can quote, hire a real, live attorney in Texas, and pay for the privilege.

I could tell you whatever you want to hear, and then say I am an attorney, but it wouldn't be true, and you'd have no recourse against me. I would never actually do that, I am just making a point.

Better to do something like this in person, especially since you want a statute interpreted.

Snipes