HB 7061 (Ways and Means) is the tax packages for the 2021 Session. The bill includes a sales tax holiday for back-to-school, disaster preparedness and “recreation” purchases. The bill expands the current property tax discount from 50% to 100% for certain multifamily projects that provide affordable housing for low-income families. Other property tax changes in the bill include clarifying the application of an exemption from ad valorem taxation for portions of property used for charitable, religious, scientific or literary purposes; requiring the tax collector to accept late payments on the first installment of prepaid property taxes; repealing the hospital community benefit reporting and creating two additional situations when a change in the ownership of homestead property would not result in the property being reassessed at just value. The bill also clarifies that when a property is damaged or destroyed by a calamity, ancillary improvements may also be repaired or replaced without the improvement being assessed at just value and that the assessment made for repaired or replaced property must be calculated based on the assessed value as of the January 1 immediately before the damage or destruction occurred. The bills also make a number of updates related to tax administration. The bill also implements HJR 1377, if approved by 60% of voters at the next general election, which will mean that changes to elevate certain homestead and non-homestead residential property do not increase the assessed value of the property under specific circumstances. HB 7061 passed the House (117-1) and the Senate (40-0) and is awaiting action by the governor. (Hughes)