Case Information
*1 OFFICE OFTHEATTORNEY GENERAL OFTEXAS AUSTIN
mzmrable J. I?. .Brgan
County Attorney
Angleton, %xas
tete tare*’ be e and oi.amtp taxecr Is oouatyan to wbather a9.8 Qounty , wider t-he 8, till bare to aocrept he dl6eonat proriaed for aot going to pass an 0Pder provisions of this Aetl, or II with the above plle#tlca, you sabdt four on, together tith oopr or a letter rrcun Yr.
law18 B. Follett, dlsoussing rarioua aathoritieb of thM snd other states upoa thia qxiotion. And far the atralstanoa aftordod bg the50 brlere, you frera our thanks.
Artidle 4644, Ileviaed ix?11 Btututss, Sactf,oa 6, antbor- ieee the CeHnptrollar or Publia ao6otmta or the &ate of 'tens to *a&opt an&t regulf4tions not inaonsfsteat with the Constitutiorr an& *2 JJMS as be rrzay deem essential tic the 6poedy and propor assessment aad CClloCtipz of the rQYenUeS Of't!~e C'tate."
Section 3 of said krtiole 4344, iievfse4,Cl~l Statutes, requir&a tho Corptroller of Yublio AdeOuul;s to wsupsrintend the fisoal ooooerna of the state as the sole acoount.Ing ofifoer thtireof, an& manage the sari%% in the maMar required by la*.*
section 10 of hrtlole 4344, Revised Civil Statutes, re- quires thio o:'fioial to "examine and settle the aooouats of all per- sons indebted to the &ate and oertlfy the amount or balanoe to the 'Ireaaurer, and dlreat end supcrin$end the oollection of all moneye due the ~tatc.w
Pursuant to the express statutory warrant above stated, and to avoid intermlnabls in tho keepiry of l ocounts and oonfuei~n the issuanae of receipts by tax assessors-oolleotors'or the tarlow counties or Texas, the Comptroller of Publlo Aaoounte promulgated a regulat:on that all a+ valorem taxes appearing upon the general tax rolls such.68 state, county and cwaeon school dilrtrlot taxe8, which the tax,colleoting otiioials of the county were oharged with collsotlng muat, aa to any one sqpiwately-aosessod par001 0r lanh, be paid at the same time. This low-atandlng regulntion o&the Comptroller has been, time out or mind, urilroraly observed by the tax-oollsctlng orrloials of various countlea, and urder suoh admlnlstratlte regulation and ruling they heve r6fuse6.to isauo receipt for part papent of ad valoreiu taxes appearing upon the t;ner& tax rolla a@ainst any separataly-aessased tract or parcel
.
The foreming regulation made and published by the C&p- troller of Public Accounts Is not nlthout suppofi in the authorltlas. In the case of Stuard et ux ~8. Thompson, 261 S. 8. 377, the Court reviewed the statutes hereinabove quoted, and held that a regulation by the Coraptrollsr thereunder, requiring a county tax oollsctor to rsluse a tender of stats and oounty ad valorem taxe6 without .ths paymsut &the same time. of the poll tax levied upon the wife, *aa valid as a reasonable and effectlre means of toroing payment of such tsx, and, not being in oonfliot with the Constitution arid Laws,.must be (;fven the arreot or le~lalatire enactment.
fn the casaeof State v. Horriaan, 801 2,. w. 05Z, and Jutkin Land & Lumber Co. v. Noble, J27 5. R. 1093, the Court6 of Texas reooe- nizad the rights of a tax ooll8otor to refuse to aooept lees than the full emount of taxes asses&d. And thls~Eepartment, 'under former admi+etrations, haa ruled that a county tax oolleotor would not be *3 euthorired to scoapt paymut OS c~cmm sahwl dlstriote ad va&mn taxee, or iriaopeoaent aohooi diatriot taxeli aoseesetl *Aa oollected under Arti fm8, ridoba Civil ztatutea, without paynmnt or tile Ltate end county taxee. lheeo dspartientel. ruMAge vrere breed upon t::e &lain& of s~tuera vs. 'ihompocn, aupra, upholding ana rocagcllting tfio rule-zckine euthorltjr ci the Ccrrperoller of ?ublic Aooomata, wCer Xrticlo 4344,. (2). kevleed Civil ::tatuteti, lQi!&; i.A oonrteotlon with the apoeaysna proper asaemmeAt tina oolleotion or the re~onued of the Stata.
($0 recognize tie hardahlpe which might be vi8lted UDOA the taxpayer by tCa applicaticm of the above dlaousaed rule when aooh tax- payer elects to pay hie state ad *e&rem taxeu mlnr Benate Bfll~?~. 408, i&a, Ifaguular ~00810A, 46th bgialatum'in order to raotsivo the dlsoourrt thsroby provided. But wc ere not prepared to ra in thcr Sac0 or the foregoing admfol6'tratioe ana juaiai61 arrtborl to x, ttet tho Lsgisloturo intantisd by the eztaotmoat OS the dl8ooWi statute for pronqt payslent of tbxee, to overturn this.authorlty and upset the time-honored spetca ot tax oolleotions which obttiaed In this :.kbta et ths the6 Of the QAEaa6e of ?&is bati Oited l t,‘and with utloh tie LegirlAture la preouwa to hwe barn tul~. W&iAlUAt,
The feat that this sicrlutsry regulation, ptcaeolgW&l by the Cosiptroller, unasr aktutory authority, end uphela by the~oourtr and tto opinions of this %NwtrseAt, has, iu thS pa&&, been in fhs tied or th0 ~glalature, Oan be denronstratoa by a-reforenoe to brt- 101s 7336e. ~~~AoA*O tiotatea Clvll Ststutes., grorldi~g QII ioUowA:
"%OtiOA 1. =n~oaabl v&here 002lPiOA school~dl.etrlOt tnxes and/or $AdOpOAaOnt sahool alstrlot texes are ool- leotable from the .eaas roll with any other tax, any texpeyer of e~y.con~~on sohool aletrlot or'S.ndopsnQant sot001 district ir suthorlzea to pay one-halr or all of said sohool tare8 prior to tte paynvtnt or any oth@4? tuti and U~OZI mob pameAt or tmder of pa@eAt~ of one-h%lf or all oi.suoh oomam echool diotrLot tex end/or any l.Aaeper?aant aohool.aiatrtot tax, together wrth penalty, lntere~at, and ooats therean, if any, auoh Collootor 18 authorizac¶ and directtea to receive the ease and exeoute iu d~Xc&,te a mmorandw reoelpt thar,eFor 6~4 doliver CAB oopya, the texpapar and kee the othhr a8 part 0r the records ot hi0 offLoe, aad the 8 ax Collcotor ehall onter the date ana amount paid Jm 05me mmeAauA forrs on tP0 tQx rolli sna therosf%er 00 ruil payment of all.ot $he rcmeinlng tares togbther with iAtereat, poaalty and ooete, lf any, aa way ba shovfn to bo &uc on such roll, he ahtil. ~issuci his.offlolal tax reoelpt or oertifloate of raEemQ- ti.on, es the ease may be, $n the mmner pro+ldcd by low bed iuolude therein t&e amount or amount8 iwrmerly paId. *4 Zllhs Y;ex Co;leoto? my .:n r.13 cliocretion -:.eo. 2.
pre:m:e n sa;:arate ml?. ehowlng tta robocl taxen only, (sf imy aomac sahool dlstr!ct zr axy independent 5obOal dis- tr?at rio. ah.ma on ttla o;*fialsl tax roll deliv0rea to hia by thn w8ebnor r%~d in ;uch overt, lertuo tlr, reoalpts ttifmax or ii,iot: ached tax pqyki+ntc. 21 the event the co~~~isst~nem court or tha county and/or Board of Trurrtae8 tf the ir,depandent i3ohooL distrlot authorlebe in writins prior theret., tha making of such spoclol roll, than they are himby empowered to contrcat for .noceseary expaneae tkrofer I:OL LO %XOWUi th% !~OIAUI~ Cost Of th0 8tEitlOIWy ana extra additional labor oaoasioned tbareby." To our aind, tlifn ntcltut8 8tar;ds an 8 rtwcgrr~t~an of the rule that ad valoram. taxes appoarlag upon ths Renaral tu roll.8 0r 8' county r-iust be paid in thalr entirety, aad a tax ootleokrr OS l aounty 10 authorlzed.taa required to refuee a part priyamnt of mot: taxee. ii the Leglelatura desired end lntandod to renmve oou&ty ad V&Or%!% ta%efJ Xrom the OpcrtttiOIi Of this Nle, t&i8 it Ootflb easily have done by the enaotment OS a statute ruch a8 the on6 above Quot~@Ub deelgned t0 remove dosaon SOhOd di*triot tars8 U36 Inbe- pea&at cohoof diBt.rlat taxer on t&s genera1 rolls tram mob r4O.e. But we think that hirats Bill No. 408, ZiEfr81y prorid,&& ,fOr a die- 8ount In +z prompt payment of teXe8, 8hould riot, by.inteX-fil%Oa aX& impUcotlon only, olfoct this raau.It and overturn d8tabUrrhrd pro- oadent and pcliop.
But ah do not hold by tble oplnloa that a property ovm8r doea got hnva the privllree of paying tax66 assesaad and due upw any epto:flc pie06 of property owned b;: him wl,thoyt the payamt 0r tams due upon any one or mom othsr unita of t.axabl.o pr~pcrty tbot he OWM. The Guprurw Covrt,of lierae in ~Utibay vs. Eoor, 24Q S. a. 19e, aha In other a0cm0ns, has olearlydeolared theri&ht of a taxpayer to pay his taxerr eswsssd sl&slaut onr tmct or paroel of his proparty without at the a.aXm time paying taxes emSeS8ad agird other property. But unlelrs o'chcl'uiso allowed by statute, the tax- +ayer rmat pay all of the taxem eaaosaed upon the county t8X TOUR ;Fplntbhis panaufar piece af propsrty,,,aM such is the extent $ * the oafm c;f fiichay v. S!oor, sups,
idi- h may be cons&a?% a$b$?.iy for our holdice rethar than opposed' cdieryto, under t&a f~fl~lhlihg language: %MSh be p8fd Whiln ths pxaral rule f8 tJict tax&
in full olt ooe tlma, and, unless otherviea provided~by statute,~a taxpayer oannot tetier a oartim of the tax ,,,,
269 Ron. J. '. ijryan,~#a
and demtr,d a raslyt tbareim, yet t;.le rule is zubjaot The citizen alwaya tmi tho rlgbt tt~ s01ro qdiriOati0n. to ply tC* arecunt al- any C"C tex ileted a&nat hia, or es field In ecm !urisdlotions, to pay the wx on any on4 1%~. cr piecs: or property rblch bae bran separately BBI)CSB~~$, witbout of?crin& Lo, pay th? trxee on ::thr?r parts.
37 Cyc. pp. 1164, Uat; E7 kmer. E F.nr;. :noy. of X.W, p. last olauas in the statement :ust meda finds
781. he support in tha authorities cited in the notes, but in nest lnetancns the statute directly or lapliedly pamitted the appilcotlon of the exceptions t:? the rule. There are other sraeptioss to ths gmeral rule xhlch are racofgdzed in May, if not in all, jurfadlctions." your intuiry,
Trustlog tho forogofng aatlsfeetorily miewers we are
Yoiire very truly BY