§ 74-24. Payment; delinquent taxes; penalty

(a) All ad valorem taxes shall become due and payable on October 1 of each year and all ad valorem taxes for the year shall become delinquent after January 31 of the following years. There shall be no discount for payment of taxes prior to January 31. A delinquent tax shall incur all penalty and interest authorized by law (V.T.C.A., Tax Code § 33.01), a penalty of six percent of the amount of the tax for the first calendar month it is delinquent plus one percent for each additional month or portion of a month the tax remains unpaid prior to July 1 of the year in which it becomes delinquent.

(b) However, a tax delinquent on July 1 incurs a total penalty of 12 percent of the amount of the delinquent tax without regard to the number of months the tax has been delinquent. A delinquent tax shall also accrue interest at a rate of 15 percent for each month or portion of a month the tax remains unpaid. Taxes that remain delinquent on July 1 of the following year incur an additional penalty of 15 percent of the amount of taxes, penalty and interest due; such additional penalty is to defray costs of collection due to contract with the city attorney pursuant to V.T.C.A., Tax Code § 6.30.

(Code 1993, § 37.16)