You hare requastod the opinion or this di- partment as to whether or not the Commiaoioners* Court of Hidalgo county is legally authorized to lery a gen- eral fund tax against roperty in Hidalgo county which has been preriously Q mf tted from the tax rolls by the Hiaalgo County *lax Asaasser-colleot~r by reason of the homesteaa exemption provision contained in Seetioa l-a, Article VIII or the Constitution et Toxaa, (adopts& l l- ection August 26, 19%) it bei- your~aoatentSoa~thaf~ such exemption should not have baon perfittad iaauuch as Hiaalgo County was granted a remirricn or Stat. ad valorem taxea for general reveaua purposes by rirtue of House Bill 101, Chapter 401, A6ts.ylret Called Seaaion, Forty-fourth Legialatun, 1935.

Seotian l-a, Artiole TIII, of tha Constitu- tion of Texas, ,which waa adepte& August 26, &&%J i8 ia part as follows:

“Three Thousana m3ll~ll ($3;000'00~ or the assesnaB taxable value of all k- idenca homesteads as now aafimed by law ehall be l umpt from all taxation for a11 State purposes; proTided that this examp- tion shall not be applicable to that por- tion of the State ad ralorem taxes leria(.

for State purpoaos remitted 33!sT%s

political su r4abiasion 0t State taxee, oh or dueh Derioa or re- mission, . .-.” aaba) ikphasls

Section 1, Chapter 401, Aots Forty-fourth Is islature, First Called Session, 1935, p* 1594 is as ib ows: fl

"Section 1. That all State ad valorem taxea for general revenue pur- poses levied or to be levied on the property in Hidalgo County, Texas, for the years 1924 to 1935, both inclusive, inoluding the rolling stock of rail- roada, be and the same are hereby re- mitted, released, granted and aonatea to the inhabitants of and property in Biaalgo County, ana to Hiaalgo County, Texas."

Chapter 401 beoame erfective October 16, 1935, or more than two years after Seotion l-a, Arti- cle VIII of the Constitution was adopted and became ef- fective, and hence Eidalgo County does not fall within the classification set forth in the amendment since it was not a county *n.ow reoeivinq any remission of State taxes. . . ."

In a prior opinion of this Department, Opin- ion No. O-1132, approved August 15, 1939, interpreting Section l-a of Article VIII, it was held in part as fol- lows:

"From the express wording of the Constitution it clearly appears that a oounty 'or other political subdivision is dot to be deprived of the homestead 6x- emption, unless at the'time of the adop- tion of said Article 8, Section l-a, such oounty or political subaivision was re- oeivl,ng a remission of State taxes. 7% have already seen that San Patricia Coun- ty, as such, was not receiving such a re- mission, We are clear in the opinion that 80 much of that County as lies without the boundaries of the City of Aransas Pass oannot be aenierl the homestead exemption.W

This opinion shall not be construed as pass- ing on the validity of Chapter 401, Acts Forty-fourthLeg- islature, First Called Session, or any portion thereof.

Biaalgo County may not levy a gen- eral fund tax on property locatea therein which has been exempted under the home- stead provisions of Section l-a, Article VIII, Constitution of Texas, since such County was not receiving a remission of State taxes at the time of the adoption of the constitutional amendment. Yours very truly ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS BY C. K. Richards cm/ lhhb Assistant

APPROVED APRIL 10, 1947