Protest Legal Options
Section Talking Points
- How to appeal an ARB decision
- State District Court
- Homeowner binding arbitration
How to appeal an Appraisal Review Board decision
Once the Appraisal Review Board arrives at a decision it will send you its findings by certified mail. If you do not like the Appraisal Review Board's decision you still may have two options.
- Appeal the decision to the state district court
- Homeowners with less than $1 million in appraised value may use binding arbitration
Appeal the Decision in State District Court
You have the right to appeal the Appraisal Review Board decision to the state district court by filing a lawsuit. You should consult an attorney to determine if this is advisable. You must file a petition for review with the district court within 45 days of receiving the written decison. The filing deadline is 45 days from the time you signed for the certified letter. You are also required to make a partial tax payment. The payment is usually the amount of taxes that are not in dispute before the delinquency date.
Homeowner Binding Arbitration
A county appraisal district homeowner may appeal an appraisal review board decision through binding arbitration if:
- the dispute concerns the correct value of the property;
- the ARB value does not exceed $1 million;
- taxes have been paid in a timely manner;
- a lawsuit has not been filed in district court;
You must file a request for binding arbitration within 45 days of receiving the written decison. The request for binding arbitration form must be filed with the county appraisal district where the property is located. You must also submit a money order or cashier's check in the amount of $500 made payable to the Comptroller of Public Accounts.
The Texas Comptroller appoints an arbitrator that both you and the county appraisal district agree upon. If an arbitrator can not be agreed to, the Texas Comptroller appoints an arbitrator randomly. You and the county appraisal district present evidence to support your opinion of value. The arbitrator considers the evidence presented by both sides and arrive at a decision. If the arbitrator's decision is closer to your value, the county appraisal district will pay the arbitrator's fee and the Texas Comptroller will refund your deposit less a $50 fee. If the arbitrator's decision is closer to the county appraisal district value or equal to half of the difference between your value and the appraisal district's value, the arbitrator's fee is paid from your deposit.
Download Binding Arbitration Manual
The Texas Comptroller published a manual on property tax binding arbitration containing details about the binding arbitration process. Download Binding Arbitration manual.
PDF Form Reader
The county appraisal district forms and documents that may be downloaded from our website are in Adobe Acrobat Reader PDF format. If you do not already have Adobe Acrobat Reader, you will need to download the latest version to view and print the forms. Go to Acrobat Reader download for the latest version.
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