What does the evidence-request box on the Texas protest form do?

One of the most undervalued tools in a Texas protest is your right to demand the appraisal district's evidence in advance.

The right. Under Tex. Tax Code §41.461, at least 14 days before your hearing the chief appraiser must inform you that, on request, you are entitled to a copy of the data, schedules, formulas, and all other information the chief appraiser will introduce at the hearing to support the value. You trigger this by checking the evidence-request box on Form 50-132 or by sending a written request.

It is free. The statute bars the chief appraiser from charging you for these copies, regardless of how they are prepared or delivered. On request, the district must provide them by first-class mail or in person at the appraisal office.

The teeth. This is the part most homeowners miss: information that you requested but the district did not deliver to you at least 14 days before the hearing may not be used or offered in any form as evidence at the hearing — not as a document, and not through argument or testimony. If the district shows up with comps or a valuation model it never sent you, you can object and ask the ARB to exclude it.

How to use it strategically: 1. Always check the box when you file. There is no downside. 2. Request the district's evidence early so you have time to study it. 3. Study their comparables — they reveal exactly how the district justified your value, and often expose comps that are larger, newer, or in better condition than yours. 4. Build your rebuttal around the weaknesses you find, and prepare your own comparable-sales or equal-and-uniform evidence under Tex. Tax Code §41.43.

The Texas Comptroller reminds owners the burden is on them to prove their case — seeing the district's hand 14 days early is the single biggest advantage you can claim.