Does the broader ADA definition of disability let more Texas homeowners qualify for the homestead property tax freeze?

Plain-English summary

Texas lets local taxing units give certain disabled homeowners property tax breaks, including a freeze that stops the total ad valorem taxes on a homestead from rising while it stays the disabled person's residence. State Representative Veronica Gonzales asked the Attorney General whether the federal government's 2008 expansion of the definition of "disability" under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) meant that more Texas homeowners would now qualify for those freezes and exemptions.

The opinion concluded that the ADA change does not affect Texas eligibility. The property tax breaks come from article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution. One of its subsections expressly ties the term to persons who are under a disability "for purposes of payment of disability insurance benefits under Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance," that is, the Social Security Act definition. A later subsection (the freeze) refers to "a person who is disabled" without repeating the Social Security reference, but the opinion read the word consistently across the section: because "disabled" was already described by reference to Social Security earlier in the same section, the same meaning carries into the later subsections.

The opinion then pointed out that the Social Security Act and the ADA define "disability" in different ways. The Social Security definition turns on the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity because of a medically determinable physical or mental impairment, while the 2008 ADA amendments broadened the ADA's own definition (for example, by barring the use of mitigating measures like medication or hearing aids when deciding whether someone is disabled). Because Texas pegs the tax-freeze and exemption eligibility to the Social Security definition, the opinion concluded that the ADA definition is not relevant to who qualifies.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2011. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later Attorney General opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

What the opinion meant for those who asked

The legislator and taxing units (as the opinion held for them): The opinion told them the 2008 ADA expansion did not enlarge the pool of homeowners eligible for the disability tax freeze or exemptions, because Texas eligibility runs on the Social Security definition, not the ADA's.

Homeowners seeking the disability tax freeze (as the opinion described it): Under the opinion, qualifying as "disabled" for the Texas homestead tax freeze meant being under a disability for Social Security disability insurance purposes; meeting the broader ADA definition did not, by itself, qualify a homeowner.

On the federal-law side (where the opinion stopped): The opinion addressed only the effect of the ADA change on Texas property tax eligibility. It did not opine on the ADA's reach in other contexts.

Common questions

Did the 2008 ADA expansion make more Texas homeowners eligible for the disability tax freeze?
No. The opinion concluded the ADA change does not affect who qualifies for the Texas homestead tax freeze or exemptions.

What definition of "disability" governs the Texas homestead tax freeze?
The Social Security Act definition. The opinion read article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution to tie eligibility to being under a disability for purposes of Social Security disability insurance benefits.

Why doesn't the ADA definition count?
Because Texas law defines "disabled" for this tax purpose by reference to Social Security, the opinion concluded the differently worded ADA definition is not relevant to the analysis.

What is the Social Security definition the opinion used?
The inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of a medically determinable physical or mental impairment.

Background and statutory framework

Article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution allows certain local governing bodies to give a "person who is disabled" tax exemptions, and subsection 1-b(h) provides that the total ad valorem taxes on the homestead may not be increased while it remains that person's residence homestead. Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 1-b(h); see also id. art. VIII, § 1-b(d); Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.261 (West Supp. 2010). Subsections 1-b(b) and (c) allow exemptions for disabled persons, implemented in part by Tax Code section 11.13(d). Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 1-b(b), (c); Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.13(d) (West 2008). Subsection 1-b(b) ties "disabled" to persons under a disability for Social Security disability insurance benefits, and Tax Code section 11.13(m)(1) defines "disabled" the same way. Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.13(m)(1) (West 2008).

The opinion construed "disabled" consistently across the constitutional section. Lewis v. Funderburk, 253 S.W.3d 204, 207-08 (Tex. 2008) (a word defined in one subpart carries the same meaning in another subpart of the same statute); see Booth v. Strippleman, 61 Tex. 378 (Tex. 1884) (construction of the constitution is generally governed by the rules for interpreting statutes). The Social Security definition turns on the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of a medically determinable impairment, 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(d)(1)(A) (West Supp. 2009), while the 2008 ADA amendments broadened the ADA's own definition, ADA Amendments Act of 2008, § 4, 42 U.S.C.A. § 12102(4)(E)(i) (West Supp. 2009). Because Texas eligibility runs on the Social Security definition, the opinion held the ADA definition was not relevant.

Citations

Statutes:

• Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 1-b(h)
• Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 1-b(d)
• Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 1-b(b), (c)
• Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.261 (West Supp. 2010)
• Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.13(d) (West 2008)
• Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 11.13(m)(1) (West 2008)
• ADA Amendments Act of 2008, § 4, 42 U.S.C.A. § 12102(4)(E)(i) (West Supp. 2009)
• 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(d)(1)(A) (West Supp. 2009)

Cases:

• Lewis v. Funderburk, 253 S.W.3d 204, 207-08 (Tex. 2008)
• Booth v. Strippleman, 61 Tex. 378 (Tex. 1884)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opinions/greg-abbott/ga-0868
• Original PDF: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/2011/ga0868.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from the official PDF. Minor extraction artifacts were corrected; the linked PDF is authoritative.

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
GREG ABBOTT

August 1, 2011

The Honorable Veronica Gonzales Opinion No. GA-0868
Chair, Committee on Border and
Intergovernmental Affairs Re: Whether the expanded definition of "disability"
Texas House of Representatives under federal law affects a taxpayer's qualification
Post Office Box 2910 for the real property tax freeze on existing
Austin, Texas 78768-2910 homesteads under Texas law (RQ-0939-GA)

Dear Representative Gonzales:

You ask whether "the expansion of the definition of a disability" under the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 "also means that more Texas homeowners now qualify for property tax freezes on their principal homesteads and for any other property tax exemptions."[1]

Article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution allows certain local governing bodies to provide to "a person who is disabled" tax exemptions in various circumstances. Article VIII, section 1-b(h) provides that "the total amount of ad valorem taxes imposed on that homestead ... may not be increased while it remains the residence homestead of that person or that person's spouse." TEX. CONST. art. VIII, § 1-b(h); see also id. art. VIII, § 1-b(d) (providing a similar exemption for taxes imposed for public school purposes); TEX. TAX CODE ANN. § 11.261 (West Supp. 2010) (implementing constitutional provision). Subsections (b) and (c) of that section of the Texas Constitution also allow the governing bodies of certain political subdivisions to provide a tax exemption to disabled persons. TEX. CONST. art. VIII, § 1-b(b), (c); see also TEX. TAX CODE ANN. § 11.13(d) (West 2008) (implementing constitutional provision).

You note that in 2008, Congress enacted amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), expanding the definition of "disability" and thereby increasing the number of individuals qualifying as disabled under that Act.[2] Request Letter at 1. This change to the federal ADA, however, does not impact the definition of "disabled" for purposes of Texas Constitution article VIII, section 1-b and the statutes that implement it. The tax exemptions authorized by article VIII, section 1-b(b) are expressly available for "residence homesteads of persons ... who are under a disability for purposes of payment of disability insurance benefits under Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance," otherwise known as the Social Security Act ("SSA"). TEX. CONST. art. VIII, § 1-b(b). The tax freezes authorized in subsection 1-b(h) apply to "a person who is disabled," without reference to the SSA. Id. § 1-b(h). However, because "disabled" has, in the same section, already been described pursuant to the SSA, we construe the term in a conforming manner when used in subsequent subsections. See Lewis v. Funderburk, 253 S.W.3d 204, 207-08 (Tex. 2008) (explaining that when a word is defined in one subpart, the same meaning must be given in a different subpart of the same statute); see also Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. GA-0293 (2005) at 2 (citing Booth v. Strippleman, 61 Tex. 378 (Tex. 1884)) (explaining that construction of the constitution is generally governed by the same rules as those governing the interpretation of statutes).[3]

The SSA and ADA define "disability" in different terms. "Disability," under the SSA, means the "inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of a medically determinable physical or mental impairment." 42 U.S.C.A. § 423(d)(1)(A) (West Supp. 2009). For purposes of the tax freezes and exemptions authorized under article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution, "disabled individuals" are those persons that fall within this SSA definition and meet any other applicable requirements. Because the Texas Constitution and statutes have so defined the term "disabled" for purposes of who qualifies for a tax freeze or exemption under article VIII, section 1-b, the definition of "disabled" under the ADA is not relevant to the analysis.

SUMMARY

The tax freezes and exemptions authorized by article VIII, section 1-b of the Texas Constitution are available for residence homesteads of persons who are under a disability for purposes of payment of disability insurance benefits under Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance. Whether a person falls within the definition of "disability" under the Americans with Disabilities Act is not relevant to the analysis.

Very truly yours,

GREG ABBOTT
Attorney General of Texas

DANIEL T. HODGE
First Assistant Attorney General

DAVID J. SCHENCK
Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel

JASON BOATRIGHT
Chair, Opinion Committee

Virginia K. Hoelscher
Assistant Attorney General, Opinion Committee

[1] Letter from Honorable Veronica Gonzales, Chair, House Committee on Border and Intergovernmental Affairs, Texas House of Representatives, to Honorable Greg Abbott, Attorney General of Texas at 2 (Jan. 4, 2010), https://www.oag.state.tx.us/opin/index_rq.shtml ("Request Letter").

[2] Specifically, the amendments prohibit mitigating measures like medication, medical supplies, prosthetics and hearing aids, among others, from being used to determine whether an individual has a disability. ADA Amendments Act of 2008, § 4, 42 U.S.C.A. § 12102(4)(E)(i) (West Supp. 2009).

[3] We also note that Tax Code section 11.261, which implements article VIII, section 1-b(h), provides that a political subdivision that has adopted a tax freeze under that constitutional provision may not increase ad valorem taxes on a homestead "in which the individual qualified that residence homestead for the exemption provided by Section 11.13(c) for a disabled individual." TEX. TAX CODE ANN. § 11.261(b) (West Supp. 2010). Section 11.13 defines "disabled" to mean "under a disability for purposes of payment of disability insurance benefits under Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance." Id. § 11.13(m)(1) (West 2008).