Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable Basaom Gilea
chIlQi6SiOll8~ General Land Offioe
&utin,Tens
Honorable Eascom Gllee, Page 2
"All payment.8 whlob may fall due under thla lease may be made to Otto Staerker, as kenti, on8 Of the above named lessors, In the manner herein stated, to the extent OS one-half thereof, and the other one-half themoi', being the remalndsr, shall be due and pay&b to the State of Texas.
one-ho3f
A 18ttOr m Ott0 Sta8rhr,.&%&ii8tn~ Of .a 8atat8 or IL L. Walker. a tiOg;r 0rwhhh 18tt8T yOu sent to uo, estates that the reaaon far the sxeautlon of tho lease dated January 19, 19357, was:
%eaause of per&nag Utlgtstion girlzig the State partiaipation ia oterridiag royalty or oil payxmnts, th8 Attorney IOr Robert Field8 f18S888) iarrl%t8d that the 18~8 be rrrrritt8n and 88t 00s the Stat8*S int8r8at to 'be l/2 Of tha rOnI- anU ov8rrlding."
The OOIT88&3Olld8ll88 whloh.pU Sent t0 US fkWth8r lidlaat8o that tlw landawmer la ala-g all royalty and' We~~idillg rOwtr for Under th0 18as8, W$th tbs prOTid8a *3 Bonor*ble i%~com Glles, Page 3
exception of a l/l6 royalty which he agrees should properly be paid to the State. You request the opinion of this DepartmentF under ._ _ . --. . . ._ . . . . . .
tne above smtea raoc sltuemon, a6 to wnetner or no5 me Ltate of Texes "would be entitled to par':lcipate in the adCAt.ional peyraents and royalties set up (in the foregoing lesses), notklthntsndiuf the court's decision in the Winter- m:9 oaae to the contrary.”
The lamd hariog boen mold udor tb prmrl8ioma of Chapter 29t, Aotm of losl (Art. Mela, Vornon'm Aummta- ted Statute@),the right8 of tbm Stat8 and of tb 8tat8*8 V8lld~ am governea by that A8t wlleas thorn0 right8 ha70 been 8ftFKltiV8.~ ohan@ w thr, l8a08 in qUOStiM. & S80- tlon C'of th8 1931 Aat8, it 18 provided as foll~r
'All 1a~M shall.'k 89x6 rithout qonUt%on viith.8 tsm*rratimn of cmm-•$rtmmath . . .~,~ttlamti,~oa~I .gp 6) oi el3 mlnereX8, ,v a ine~myalty Zo Shs $0, whlo&.two ooadftibms &a&l be rsprmmsod. bye: ~1' t~~appllaa~~oa to puxmhase and * the not&a8 of award, the atr&wla prti8 to betiLed by the 4or- to be baa thau fM8 Dolhr mbaioaor an4 la no 8en ($1.00) ati aam. Provided, that ome-m&hth .(1/S) of-all suXphur .and otb*r~~eralsubbtamo8s m whioh mmlphur may bm Q&rlrmd :iir pmduaed -&all be reserved as a fme royel.ty to the State.*
- The award land patent to the pumhaf~br of the land in qlestion 88ntaia the tQllmmillg'ain8ral l-8S8l'WtiOll'pl'O- ~vlslon,
*One-8ighth of the stiphur and one-mixtdanth of all other afnerals In the a??ove dssaribed land are reserved to the Stats, as a rme royalty.*
ln W3ntermann v. HoDonald, 102 8. W. (2d) 167, the Suprenm hurt had befor it ior dealsion the qU88tioU as to whether th8 Land Co@msioner of Texas 8hoalU be r8qUired to ISBU~ an awar&and pa@nt to a prwhaeer ti8r Chap$ar 271, Aots Of 1931, providing for a Temer~a- tiOn to the State of Odljr l/l6 of all the IIIb%8r+Xl8 8XUqt *4 Honorable Aascom Giles, page 4
sulphur ae a free royalty to the State. The Land Gom- missioner in suoh case contended that he was entitled to Insert in the award and patent a reaerratlon of all or the minerals to the State, and that the aale of land under Chapter 271 should be governed by the terms and prorislons . of krttcles 5367 and 5368 of the 1926 Revised Civil Statutea, aommmly known as the RellnqtiMment Aat. The suprelas Oourt held that the award and patent should be issued with a re- oervatlon or only l/16 of'* oil and gas to the State as a freeroyalt7.' The fellowlng 'language wu ~804 ln tb epmoMr
Honorable Basoom Ciles, Page 5
In the k'lntermann base, supra, the-Supreme4 Co-t hss definitely settled the question of the'.mineral interest whloh the Stets is entitled to rese;.ve j.n land sold under Chapter 271, Aots of 1931. That interest is a rres royalty of l/l6 or the oil and gas and l/g of all aulphur and other &oral aubstsnoes from whloh aulphur msy be derived aad produoed. In the Wintermann oase it was further dlreotly held thst the Land Commissioner ooul4 not legally -iat up- 0a iasert~~an~arQudlpa~.~mrdvthe195lAata greater .maorva*lon of oil aad gas tha8 tha l/l6 * rg- altr '%uernItlon ap3elfie4 by the statute. .
oflan4who inh3.6 mt-baQ*bemQ tohidmdfin?tudl~dl l/e~~tin~totbsroJrl~~~aand~.aitb
oiLan gas ai at&w mm.6, in .gb or audoP the ln8& graRteu was elitit$ia fo rso,lr* 17s OS thb,btmq ti.-reatala raoelted from M aSI +I& ~~a-lba6e~ere6ute4 pr hl.6 gnaw.
Ink>hat.~e &antor,iotwithatm4lng hl6 I re6erratioB o? l{n! oi the mtr rltght6, ~66 nat entitle4 to zany 0r the bonus a64 .re*616 se6elrcr4 Br tha gant6a from a aubaeptrmf leass, the oerrrt 66tQdr
: *A reaemtlon ei %?yalt~~ err all ofi gas an4 mluerati whioh may be prOdtIp moukadl~ lmpllea that the grantor oo~ntakuplated Wka 2oaalag or the ran4 for prodpatloe, .Xie raaarved a0 right or leasing $0 hlmolf an4 eonaequaatl~ &he grantaa posseaaea suoh r3@t.*
may uleo rese:we royaltlea, t~onusea, and rentels, either one, w~ore or all. iiere :r% have 6 rcaerra- ---aon or Only *rayelty rights.' It IS obvfous, it
5ecmatcua. that this dscs not lnalude a rwer- vtttlon or bonueca or r6mtzil8, but only or M in oil. fefi, or alaersls paid, Interest reaefrsd, or realized as *royalty* under any lea33 erlsting on t&c laad et the tine af the resorvcrtian, or ~~fP~~~Q~~ai~~,hla~ra~ Tb &A* olkl kum sn ewx Dginl havoacl
naano84aa4aatsle4thaitii~thatt&8kteuf entitled to 00 ma-8 thaa a l/l6 frao wraltf lstorogt uaaSa 3 043 ~6 gas ir les4 molU nsbrtb provi*lone of thm '1 zr AOat. Thm ooaa&uar;lon uua rn~lty uhloh fb state a l ntltled to amma irf~~rd umlta6b ~sho 1951~ l ta?iRtman4 olu~thaswu4eR4 pa~ L l~6aC~oU.ul~au~.im~~lt~.~~~~~
la rormaintha 8t*tutoto ~~uralakeo~o~ by '%W4lfsp;s.mhl~u3.ll rdn m'Sereeabla,.8#i4.nst.ur-ala- rcqung laWoknar,‘o alairr4 the State 0r a riight to partloipeh ia xwplty, banw ur matal* to a greater or ror my porthi:~ar 0ftiih that 6 aJut rm royalty* thebenuapd4 tar thaloam.
Tb ooaolnaion II, hvo ruobe4 %a this optnmion la in aoaoold with a pr0rl0W opbloa ot thla Roprtrsllt, ddted hpfamb*r t. lQS9. a4dr85ac4 to Ea. 8. ibmwlalQ,- thea Land Wsmslaaioner. 9s QasOtc tra that opinion as r0n0w :
-* l + It ia oar *plnlon thct u&or tb8 aosc ot alRter?eana Y. 3iDmaald, 102 3. 10. (zpl 169. (potion tor nbaartng. Lo4 6. x. (84) 4s d!m-. lad is BQ14 uRd6r thaptm 691 oi fk &ota ot tha a-- l.ar Session 0r tb 4&Q ktfalatum tVeman*a s-adltu, Artlola 64818) the rraerv~tlea ot l/16 or the ninemla a~ b tr+a soyalty, axeast l/S the 3tut5 is not entitled or e~lphpr, to reeoire; *7 Honorable Bascom Clles, Page 7
any part of the bonus or rentals received by the lessor. It waa our oontention In the Eiinter- mann ease that the &ate was authorized to reserve all the minerals end that leases on the land were made under ths RelInquishme& Aot, so as to en- title the State to reoelve l/2 of the bonus and rentals as well as the l/16 royalty. This oon- tention WYS overruled by the Supra~lir Court."