Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
Honorable Gee. H. au3ppmr4 Comptroller Yublta Aaaounta A
auotlc, "iaxee
, +s roqw8t of thla ror th8 wwwwat afa~lanfI* in Potter em lqatlanal Or&n Gorporatioa d In muaretioa tlsemwith pu rects and olrwwtanow erty, awl the respef~tlte 8 in regaz-4 to its taxixtioa.
fully stated in attaahed lett&r to pU * county &ttorwy, Potter county, from lor to 1936 Farmerr Watloaal tlon, wbleh vi) unnderrtmod %a a oub- arwre Xatimi4L Grain Corporat$on, survey 137 Blook B, AB&& 1~4~ Potter Gouaty, Texas, aai fall taxes hmd been paid up to &s%d fn~lrrdirrg 1MM. State an4 County tarw were aawwad againat thie property the year 1930 in the nmta si t&e m?iiQ aorpcrratioa, *2 496 Eon. ho. %. rt+ppard, page 9
the reaord owner am or the date of aasaestramt. vubseq,ueAtlp, it haa been claimed the tit18 to this property had been traASferred to tha 'Jnltsd k statsment of the Taut6 Up011 whloh the -rtates.
Gorexnmnt relies Is aontainad IA a letter frox hr.
Yeyton X. Evans, General Counnel of the Yaw Credit Mmfnlatratlon, to the &aessor and Collector 0r Taxes of this aounty, dated July 90, 1937, aa rol- lovaa:
**S'he Parsers Watlonal ksln Corporation was Indebted to the yederal ;raW fjaard (to Whose rune- tions the Yarm Credit idmiAletratloA euooeedsd under the terms of an exeoutlre order of the President of the United fjtatea 8xeauted Karah 87, 1933) lUOA87, an4 OA June x3, iA a larp ImouAt 0r it was agreed between the yala?ere htfOAa1 Grain Corporation the Zarfi Credit Adrtinistra- tion to trawrar a large part of tka Corpomti~*~ asset.6 and those or lta subeldlarleri to the united States Governmeat (farm Credit idminlstratloa) In partial extlngulshmnt of the then exlstlng indebt- Sdn46S. This agrwment was eub)eot to the appmral or the Saoretary of the Treawry. The approval the Saaretary was obtaSnad en Roteabber 7, 1936 EIowwor, a blanket a8slgnment or all or the ;&e& oovered by m&pwmeAt aovered by tha agreement of Juw le, 1956 was exeouted by tha Farmars hatloasl Grain CorpOratlOn on October 31, 1936. This awfgawnt contained wordr or grant and aonveymnoe aob lnaluded both real and peraenal . Separate t3onveyaaces 0r partiaular . bars been 13 preparation ror a period properties of some m&ha, and smq of them have been de- lirere8, but all have not been put OA reoord. #8 do not consider, however, the date8 of mmh aonveyanoer or the data& or their raoordatloa are material iA rWpe8t t0 CUeStfOa Of tie right or the states or their poUtlOa1 8ubdiVlslon6 Impwe t~axes thereon.*
*The property In qwrtl6n was eonveYsd daed rrom the Partners National tiprehouse Gorporatloh to the WIted sttttw exaoutad 'all as or octaber 31, 19Sd, but actually on this 84th day of Fabntarf, 1997,' which deed wmt *3 iion. Gee. il. L’hopperd. peg@ 3
fiba for record on Gecmber 17, 1937, ena re00raed in Wolume 850, page 42, of tte Deed iiecorde of Potter county.
*'This property was all arbitrarily asiesaee for taxa- tion on January 1, 1937, for the year 1937. he find in the file OS tke a8aaaoor and aollector of taxea for Potter County a printed notice *that on Eovembar 7, 193A, the United State6 of breerioa beoam the ownar of 411 real estate,* 4na other propertlen 0r this aorpora- Thie notloe le dated Dcoarrber EQ, 1936, but bate tion. OS reoaipt le not ahown.” immunity,or
Xo question is prasantea here of the owned and held by the Unitad titatee of kmarioa, from atat taxa- tion of any kind, beoauee it ha6 1onA bean settled beyond dim- puts that such property, whether ouned and held for governmental purposes or othexwlee, la exampt, more properly, not aubjeet to the taxes lerfea by a State, exoapt by Congraealonal conaent. The only queetio,n presented here la whether or not the proparty Involved was aotually owned held by the UnitaA Stats6 OS America on January 1, 1987, the bate fixed statute datar- rinlng ownerehlp of property for tax purpose6 the year. Issue oi ?aot regarding ovnerehip oi
Upon this land %n queatfon on January 1, 1939, Is, whether or not earn wan ownod and held by ~armera Batlonal Grain Corporation an that data or by the pa= credit Mmlnistratlon, a6 an inatrumantality OT agency of the UnlteA state4 %rloa, we find; ev8n in the etatements mede by repreeentatlvee of the Unit& @tat64 of and iraats. tiesme, ‘16 cannot &erloa, a eoniliet of pe4ltlona answer your qmestlon aategorloelly but 6re aonstrainad answer aam up& tha aaaumption that one or the other atate of faotr la true.
In thla oonneotion, it should be stated that we do not have the becetit OS a copy of any deeA, aoel~ent or other al- leged muniment of title pae8ing between ]Parmere lFaflon61 Or4in Corporation and the United Statea, and referred to In at- taehsd aorrosponAanoa, but muat aeeume that raota and atate- manta made in regard thereto correctly reflaet tenor, affect and reading of such in6truma~ts. icitb thie in mind, wa oall yvmr attentlcn to the 8tataBlant eontalned letter from Mr. Pagton k. Evarm, General Counsel of Pam Credit Mmlnfstra- tton, ~aeeeor~Collaetor oi Tares for Potter County, dated duly ZO, 1939, and &areinabove eet out aa patt of the *4 Hon. Coo. 8. Sheppard, pace
quoted letter therein tc you by said ~~seeu6or-Collector of Taxea. It 16 that the ~armar8 Eational Grain Corporation be- stated ing lnaabtad to ttia ~edaral Iant Board end its 6ucoeanor, the Sarm Credit Adxilulatratio~, agreed, OEL June 18, 1936, to transfer a large part of ita aareta and thoae of lta aubdUariea the raid fan Cradlt &l&4.nlatratlon tn partial artlnguIahmant or the then axlatIkg 1nA#bte&e66, which agreemer;t was eubjeot to the approval of the bacretary of the Treasury. UlEder the Statutes ~axaa governing conveyanolng and t&e paaaage of tltia to real eatate, ouch uneer&anAlng and agreanzent would to real aatete, but the atatexent to transfer not aufflos la further made thnt *a blanket aaalgnasnt of all of the aaaeta ooverad by the agreement of June 18, 1986, was exaouta4 by the @#mar8 Xational Greln Corporation on Uatober 31, 1936, rhloh contslned worda ot 6-t conveyance and Ineluded aaalgmsent both real 4Aa personal property."
X6 are not able to 6ey that above deaorlba4 Inotru- throqh aent did not vest in the United State8 of SMrIoa, Paw We&it AAmInIatratlon. tltle to the realty In queatlon here, upon It6 approval by the kuratary of the l’reaauq. W are net wvoindful ot the fact that the utual anA eustosary mAe of tranaferrhg to real eatata ln %xea la by general warrenty deed, ln the fern? praacrlbed etatutu, cPantainlng the usual formal oosqmneat part8 of pramiaest habandun;, tanenAum, reAAenAum, warranty and tastimbnium alauara. And ft such inatrumnt or dee4 us6 alne qua noli to poemage OS tltLa In Teraa, then we wouid’ay t&e property hare wouiA be aubjeat %iata and county ad vsloran tax66 the year 1959, beeauea aueh dead, In thIa usual atetutory form, was not axeouted until the Mth day of February, A. 0. 1939. Sor would our aoncluslon bs ‘by the toot t&at raid doe4 purported to relete baok, altered wall a6 of Ootober 31,
lQSA,” beeauee, l otuai In our opinion, Ante ct e xaeutlon waouM govern. law too well e6tabllrbsA
3ut it la a rule of to require elaboration here, tkat tltla to raai e~rtate In ‘isxaa may pas6 by say writtec instrument which otmtaimo expreae word&! oi &rant between the partlea aonvayanoe, thereby evldanoing en Intent to effect a transfer of title, aad lb It not neeeaaary forpp of general warranty Bead, ruggeataA by the lar mkar8, be literally followeA k, acocmpliah this purpose. lo beve before us unpualliled that on Qotobes 31, l@S, e written atatemeat covering ammg othsr aeoeto and propertlas, blanket asaignreent, t&e real eetate fnvolv6A In the Inetant inqtiry,, waa Auiy exeouteA *5 Eon. GaQ. E. Sh4ppard, peg4 5
by and between the ~arxzcrn Aatitnal Grain Corporation aad tba Sam iidrololstrstlon, purporting to ccnvey said gropcrty, end Credit oonteining rords of grant end ccnveyerce to tbie end, and being in oonnummatlon of sn agreesent a&e on June IS, 1938, between t&e parties to make suck transfer. It is further eteted neeanrary approval of the Secretary of the Tresaury was obtained on 8ovember 7, 1936. Kot bavia6 e copy of this eesigmaent be- to the aforeaald statements, fore ~8, and glring full oredenoe we me ippelled to the oonoluslon that not only the equitable, in question, but the legal es wall, t+ the real estate wes vested in the United ~tatar, through the ysrm Credit Ad- minlutratlon, before January 1, 1937, end, consequently, under l Mtte4 prlnoiples of law, was not rubjeet to State and eountp taxetloa the yser 1939.
On the other band, we are oonfrontcrd with a statement of the United States ot hlrerloe iron another represeotetlve or one of its duly oonstituted inntrumantelltler and a6encier, which presents 8, different aspeat upon the queetion oE the essot date, with referones to January 1, 1939, to this reel from the bmmers Kitlonnl &in entatu maed to the Corporetton United Statee. This statement is in the ?or?a oi a letter from rC. E. Daly, &rletsnt tc Oenerel Counsel, Bedersl Land Bonoreble Bank o,f Bouston, to Elss Jewel Davidson, Aeeeroor-Colleetor, pertinent Potter County, oi datd.June 39, 1939, a& we quote parts tbenoi es follon8: *Rerererme fe mede to your letter8 of b&y 88th traourer or owawahip of
end June Z4 regarding oertaln properties ia Potter County frala the Farmers Satloan %rebouse Corporation tom the United States +merieu. a d06a executed under -1 have in my pouseeelon date of February 84th. 1939, by tbe Pmeer8 Betloxml ';.erehoase Corporation, conveyin& Or&ted Stetelr 02 emsrice the following deroribed propertyt . . “This deed has net 84tU4llr been aooeQted, and are now pending *hfeb will in all pro- negotletions bability result seoegtenoe of the da&. Wmn thiu trsnsaotlon is txmmua?rrstaQ tke deed will, courma, be forwarded to Potter Countg for r40or&ing.~ Should full faith end oredit be eoaorde& to tba foregoing Statammt frort an euthorizsd repreeentatkvs ot the grantee of tbe *6 Eou. ho. II. 3bep,-ard, $%!4 6 of hmrica, tbmu,yb t2.e ?erk
property here, ikited States credit hdffilnistratlon, men our answer would be dle~etrloally (tlver. It is settled law in Texas opposite to that heretorare oonv4y realty, that a deed or eny other lnsfru!wmt, purportlng~to does not divest out of t&a grantor and vest 6eEe in the ereritte, until there baa been en setuel eoceptacee of such deed The laws of the State or other inet~rucrent said grantem. where ie looeted govern exolueively the oonstruo,t~lon md effect of all instnmente intended to oorvey it. KeTLoe, if, at tbe writing at t&e above quoted letter, to-wit June 39, 1930, the trenseotlan described herein bad not been consummated by deed or other either expressly tsrplledly, eooeptnnae, lnstrtumnt purportLag 00~~4~ to t&Is realty, then title cm thet date,~remain in the &rmrs thereto would, ,*latienel Grain Corporstion, e private corporation, &Ad rOllid be aubjeet to Xate and county ad valorem taxes assessed against saw the year 1937.
se realize this opinion osnnot Be useful to you until the aonfliatln~ iactual e~atmneuat sppearlng here Is reaolve6 one wry or th4 otber,~ anO to thte enb, we mg$est you further eevelop facts fn li*t oi the foregoing discussion kod be goveme thereby in yeWilndin$e.
Your* very truly A'l'%RBEY &i'&WiL OF TDAS