Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE AITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
honorable George H. Shwpard
catptroller of public Accounte
A-tin, Texse
Dear sir:
Your letter of Ootober
thl8 departusnt aa to the effect
HO. 423, 47th Lsglrlature,
‘Sttm applloatioa fee
with balanaes on
31, 1949, 8l-a he
Srcm vhlch the i
S the store t to total OS ~4o,550.00 8alarIe8, postage, tele- -m?r. PrbW@, blndins, 8, mntingent expenses and Store Tax Lov (Artials 11116, V.
n ahall be aoocBpanSed by a filI.ng ents each atore or mercantlls ted or to be opemtsd for the pur- e aoat of admlnietwtion of the *2 gmxwblo Oeorge H. Sheppard, ?age 2
w8tion requlre8 Slling fee8 for reaeval l ppliaatlonr. Sectimn g'provlder that the e-n808 the Captroller in the admlnl8- tntlon of the Act 8hall not exceed the anount reoeived by him .8 applluation fee8 a8 herein provided, and iurther pZWflde8 thatr .~ll monier uolhdX4d by the CoBIptroller of Publlo Ab3Wt8 wader tb provision8 of thi8 Act 8ball be paid by him into th State ~~umu7 d8ily a8 reoelved; one fuurth of ma0 rhall be axwUted to th e l o o ount of tha Anilable Soheol Fund l adtho romalader rball be eredlted to,the aacouat of the Wrieral Fmd.'
The Chain bton Tax Law beoame rfeotlve Janua~ 19%. m tht tit-9 t0 - p-8.& JOU 8trte that the total filiDg f-8 FUOd.VOd 68OUDt8 th. to-1 Pl@lUlt t0 @2,221.92, 8d tht l speaded in the eaforaaent Of the Aat i8 $131,714.49, 80 that there 18, 8t t&18 tkr, ab8lUlOe Of UU0e.d filh(J fee8 to th0 uouat of ~100,507.43. On &UboS~ 13, 19%. totl FWOiVed 48l Op%l¶%W flXU thi8 huldlng that the fillrtg reea provided top In Se&ion 2
dspwtnukt POVf8iOR8 Of Of tb &t St% not 8Ubjeat t0 alh8&tiOil UlidOF th@ oomlstent y followed 8ootion 9. We are advi8ed that you hme E 8uah holding, and have deporited rush filing ln the Oenenl YWd.
A8 we underrtead your requert, you tirh cmr advioe a8 to vhether the f%llng fees neeited under the rovi8lons of the chain More Tax Law 8hould k allooated betveon t L Available sohool mu&d aad the Oeneral Ilevenue Fund or vhether all of mob fee8 shouid be depeslted to the oredit of the Oaneral Fend, md a8 to the meaning to ba given to the phxmet "together vfth balaaces an hand,. as u8ed in the paragraph OS Benet Bill lo. 423, A.ots 1911, 47th l&g- i8latUre, above quoted.
In the ea8e of Burt ~8. 110 8. Y. (ld) 896, the eOWt di8OU88e8 tV0 different lOVie made by the -in StoN 'hx Law in this languager
"It 18 8w8tire8 dlffloult t0 deterrrine Vhether rhould ba Ula88ed 8s a regulatory give&l 8tatUte
nea8ura or a8 a tex nee8ure. The prinoiple of dir- tin&iOII gewrCrlly recognired 18 that When, irCrr oon8ideration of the 8tatute a8 a vbole, the priury purpo8e of the fear provided thoreln I8 the rebi8&1g *3 sono-ble Qeorh3e xi. f5hqward, nbg44 3
of avenue, then 8ttch Seen ax-8 in faat oaaupatlon taxe8, and thl8 ZWgaFdl4388 Of the nBme w vhloh they "Applrlng this prinolple to the Pot in quertion, ve, experlentre no diffleulty ln reahing the oonol118loa that the 80-called liOe3b8e leVied them&y an ;;z;lly OoaupatiOn tUe8. s acrt naker tvo reparate
One i8 a levy of a fTI%ng r ee.or 50 BOAt8 ror
G5zi%om, and a8 to?m8 levy it provided tut 1k The other la 8 levy or a llaea8e fee ior e&eh 8tore fro8 Vhloh muah revenue Vm be re8flred. %%ie aot ap- %&able 8crhoo1fWid thm is eY$%teL rtated for the 0r an eme2-genw thpt the rtate 18 bully exirtenoe in need of additional revenue." (Bpba8ls otw8) i8 oazd¶.nal rule of 8tatl%tOrJ wnrtruQtloa that all St part8 of a 8tatate mu8t be given effedt, lf lyo8uible. Seotlan 2 of th8 Chain store Tax Lav deolare8 the purpo8i f&o tlllng fee to be t0 dsfrq the ao8t’ of admini8terfag the Aat. Su8h fees rere not ngarded by the Legirleture a8 "revenue" to be pmduoed Seotlon 9, hoverer, provide8 that gellmarrie8* ool- by the lot. leoted by the CQlptr&ier under the prOvi8iOn8 Of the Act 8h11 be apportioned between the Avallrble Sehoel Fund and the Oeneral Reve- oaae Hurt nue Fund. The Ccmmlr8lon of Appealr, however, in 18. 8upzu, in 8n opinion adcpted by Supme Court, by infecenbo, aom:prreG th8 pbmme "all money8" to meau all the ll- sea88 fees oolleoted under the provlrlonr of the Act. Thlm drprt- Ieat, ln an opinion by Rcmoreble Jane8 R. Reir, dated Janubr~ ;;32,9"" addlW88Od t0 YOU, phbOed a 8ipihC OO&l8tPUO&iOll On SeC-’ . We tElnk that rush a aonstmotloa la aorreot. To hold othervise end ray that 8uch flllng fee8 are to be allocated to the Available Sahool pzrnd and the General Revenue Bund, er provided the other aollectlon8 in Seotion 9, mould render section 2 of Act meaningleer. The provirion the expemes of adaini8- tmtlon of the Act shall not exaeed the mount of filing fee8 I
432 p-0 4 s0wmble O-wte x. shewd, straply provide8 a 1ipitPtion or wimtm umt# beyond e~lle~t~ aoh the Canptroller may not go in the enforament of the Aot.
Cog&8eqwntly ve hold the filing fee8 uolleoted under Sea- 2 and 4 Of chain atom Tu WV ab0 IhOt 8UbjeOt to al- ts- l-tlon under the provisions of Section 9.
Artlale 8, Seotion 6, of Our Coa8tltutlgn provlde8, in part, that:
*Ro a0ney &all be dravn fror the Tree8ury but In pursuance of 8peolflo sppropriatl0+8 mbde by &vt nap 8hell any 8ppropriatlon of meaey,be mule foor 0 longer period t&m tvo year8. l l l
B vfev thir ComtitntioM1 proviriou, ther8 aodd be x&o %al- alI008 on hand" in thi ordipe~ 8en8e of th,'vorda. He m ooa- rinQed that the "balanoe8 0a hand," referred to in senete Bill so. &a, tit8 1941, 47th Legl8htun, Ieaa the dlfferanoe ktwen the kul mount8 flll8g 'hu oollected w the &mptroller, aad paid late the General Pund, and the total emmat expended by the oarp- Weller fn the enforaement of the Aat,at Augtmt 31, 1941, 8nd dlfferencN betveen ,31, 19% re8peotlre4, AugWt th8 and thet tOtbl WOWit bf filfIl8 fOO8 80 eolleoted and the tOti Uo\rat 80 expended, a8 Of ARgUet 31, 1941, VI8 a pri@rbted $'Or use in &O enforauent of the Aot for the year 19 2, and that the di$femnoe bOtVOen the total reepective Paounts oolleoted es&expended a8 of 31, 1942, v88 expropriated for u8b in the •ddd#t~tf~ of A-t th8 Act durin@ fir081 ye8r 1943.
'P-St* tbatwhave fully ba8vendpus lnquiry,ve me