Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Q-C.MANN m.ieuuv.-
Ronorabla Cleorgo x. Sheppard, pa&r P
aal oompaay, oorpontion of esroaiation, at the tir oi makiag se14 raport for an7 saoh lnoorporatrd town olty ot aoro than ow thousand (1,000) inhabitante end lerr than two thoumAn rite huahrod (6,600) la- aooordfn& to the la8t Tadoral habitantr, cOlA8U8 next preoedlng th@ filing of reia to the Trrartwer of thir report, #hall pe the quarter br- @tuta 8n oooupet I on tax for ginnl~ on 8aid date l quel to forty-four huaaraathr (,44) or one (1) per aent 0r 8tIid go88 reOOipt8, 88 8hOwa by 88ia rO- port1 eta.@
"%lOr0 I8 nOT 801b t0 the OODlW.%3T wlthln the lnoorporated town8 a liqaeilsd petrolown gns.
Thl8. ga8, a8 a rule, 18 aellrared to,thr aon-
8umer In liquid form and in ordrr to ntaln it8
1iqUid 8t8t8, it aU8t be k8pt WidOr high prbr-
8ur8 but when mleaaed iOr the barnar tip, it tWI.I8 to 8 gar vapor. There era lnstanoer where ‘h
l tank 18 lnrtalled on a lot from whloh l nun- her of auotomerr are taken ean of by the ga8
brfng plprd to thr ho3148) in thlr oaae, a8 In
the inaitiaual 0880 e8 80011. a8 the praaenm
ir rolaasrd at th8 task the gar rapor 18 fox-reed
and piped from hOU8. house. "
tilea tall QI if the gros8 raoalpt8 tax, a ply toruoh ralrr unaer tbo above rrtirlo, wIL1 laoorpora od tona8,* wham ?a848 within the % IQB~ be 88on that the artiole JOU quote la ft letter oontainr two rrquirementr betorr an lndlrld-
rour ual beam08 liable for thr tax dilOU8S@d therein. tn the flrrt plaoo, In nlation M the question8 asked, the lnalrlauel muat operato within aa lnoorporatod olt -any gar p1ant.R Also thr same must be umd *ior looa I la10 snd d~rtrlbutloa of gall.* The tax is based upon the gros8 amount reosived from burlns88 dono in ths papant of oharger for thr galra fou havs iurairhtipr
with the ddltlOn81 iaOt8 the llguld la8 in 'qtI@S- tlon 18 a aomponeat p8rt or ~orltrtito of natural aa8 a.hiOh ir liquefied by pressure and teaperaturo. In itr natural 8tate it i8 a gba. It la ml6 to the oonsuaer
,*. Honarablr Ceorgo fl. Shepperd, pago 8
either e8 liquid or a8 a ear* Prior to it8 ocummp- tion it roturnr it0 @S.OU@ state. rho fir8t quea- tlon arlroo a8 to whet&m ot not tho ooeeodltf you in- quire tbaut [18] gas titbln t& waning 0r the above quoted YOU hW 6aVi8Od U8 that tk OCWtiit~ i@ 8 ttItUt8, Or 8 bltM0, 3itih8r a prOpQll8
Fro~ano 18 dofinod 8)f XOb8t6r a8 fOllOW8: gase- -ithOr sf tu;o iaowrio, mhi6bh, oaa bydrooarbaona, Cd Hlg, of the iwthna rerier;
l c l .-
20th 0f the abOV@ dbfinftioo6 MOO@LO th# 00~1 aoalty to bc a fe.?ecus I%b8t.WIOO. It i8 our uder6%bllbg that tD6 E0;;:O i8 li~USfi3d b'y p.36~r a&d taXp.iIMXI% ror pu~oaee or trene,norting and handling. fn this oon- motion tts Amtic Couxt af Civil A~;,tialr in the oasa of bALLA CA6 CO?.PAHY v. 8TATE 861 3,?i, lCa!J -wit oi error nt.;tob in ooh\eotlon with reruned by ttie Soprem Ccur 4, thr taxing rtatute tuxIsr hero, 80 follrmst OOn6id8r6aiOiI
"In iti8 8eaOnd &ropOUibi0n, bawd upon NJ- 0f@!Snt8 [7] Ma ii, app8lht 00~t(d?U thGt tL'.O
t6nS ‘&18’ 83 U36a b th0 #mUtO 388111 Otiy aE a8 end doen not lnolude nature1 aor*
era Oar' Trust Co.,
(Vndrr8aorlng: ourr)
T!UUI the court Civil Appsela ladioctes that thr tam 998' i8 to be broad17 aanetruea a8 to ~~37 typ of $bS.
20 believe that 16llFWg8 Or the to% 3tltUtU *4 xonorablb (korgo 8. 8hqqUd, pago 4
la ~ur8~lOIl is bror4 waough to Inuludo butaaa 884 pro-
pan0 pm whothrr a014 in llquld or grr*ow Itate, Tbm
A&a In theensrgonoy olaasa of th@ mboro wotsd Hated II follwat Aat, the teglrleturo
*ZSoo, 6, The fret tha% la the pert few - nekr hundreds of lives ban be lort tm dua to eroap G& or ad-
oauser rggarentl
latoa w rxp1011 ~a#) rad mserou8 uoh
,., ‘788 Xonorablr Qoorga H. Sheppard, Pa@ I;
an l merg ena~ + l * .I
It la our opinion aa anauer to the rlr8t quaa- tioa that llquld p&roleun gas la gaa within thr maanlng of Ar6lola 9060 as l meaaaa by xour r Bill 8, Aotr or the Forty-aarenth Laglrlature, 19U.
Ia answer to thr rrooad quo&ion, ua are adtla- ed that lndltlhala or 00 oration8 that a&l thir ‘s
transport thr nnm l thar by maana ot plpa llna mana sf fsuoka oarr~l.n& tamJt8 oi tlm atate, The quaatlon l rlaa# aa wheth- er the oparatfon OS aueh wthod of transportation puts the Individual or oorporatfoa within thr oate6orT ot op- arating a “gas plant= aa that term is used In Artlola 7060, aupra. The Auatln Oourt oi Olril Appaala in the aaao of WPILITI75S NAlURAL CA3 00. ve STATIC, 118 S.W. (24) 299, in dloouealng the definition of the term “gas plant” within tha meaning of Artlale 9060, rtated as folloua1
“The 801s oontantlon of appellant ir W&at It la not a ‘gar hat@ within the maan
t&a term as used % the atatuta, baoauae t only
owaa and operates- a da& ~~1 line anawla~- .-- ~-’ t;;,;o only one ouatomer with the olty oi Vlo- Iii-.
We have raaohetf the oonolualon when tha aixdute in oonatmad ?ron its fopr oornara
and ln the light of tha purpoaa of its enaotmnt, it oammot be so liaitabr
*It la true the atotuta designates the tax as *en oooupatlon tar’, but It alearlr ap-
paara from the language usad that the la tar laid on bualneaaea 'owning, operatlalt an rxolss
zr,y;finnor ooatroll.ln(t any gar I) * 1 plant
any lmeorporated town a tr u for looal sale and dlatrlbutloa * e + oi a.*
Grog No, 1 011 00 f* Sheppard, Tat. r U v* -
App., [89] 8.W. (e*)%fi1, 0-r rei,{ Trustwa
of Oook’a Nat&e 1. Sheppami, Ter. Oivr Qp.,
89 3.~. (2d) 1026, error raf., affirmed bytho
789 Eonorebla Osor@ lL Shappard, Page d
in ray manner tha km *&a8 ~laa$* as indlaatlro
of the buai.naaa sought to ba taxad. Paarloaa
“‘In S BOW. Law Dlot., Rawla~a Third Ravl- elan Q. ?W9, word or form lantl la da-
fined as balag ‘the furalturaa a ai toolr aeees-
ear to aarrf on any trada xnaohanloal bualneaa.~
A I h ghlq oamplax SC l laborata SYStSm la not aaoaI- aaq, but tha moat l .impypm
wharaby the baa- lnoaa of alllng and d a 1 ding 668 to looal laaorporataa oltr or tow31 will
~trada wlthin n&or “y; t a taxing l tat~ta q ak~aa plaat. aufrloo
Under this ml8 the pip lina SyStM and a parataa
of appallant looataa in tha oft7 of tlotpr a, s * whrraby it aalla and d811?8~4 gas lull trade, aonatita$as its gas plant br aad thrcugh whlah on ltr &as bualaaaa In said olty, ana
it aarrlea
a~~,,“. tha bualaaar intended to ba temd br tha
“lb**.
Tha 8our$ further stated that tha aala bl th@ %onorsblr oeorgr H. Sheppard, Page T
Vtllltler ZJatonl Oar Gon~q by pip, ISno to 0n.l~ OM oustonnr ln the olty of Yiotoria amounted a dirtrlbu- tlon of the gal in raid oltf within th8 meaning of tk8 tax rtatuto. The 00nn~la010t1 0f bppeLil8 rWer804 th8 O? 01~11 AppmlD in an 0pin10n mpOrfed in
Auotin Oourt 12S 8.8. (26) 115% The Oomzairrion aid not qnunl with the definition of *gaI plant* stated by the Auotlu Oaurt of 09.~11 hpgealr, but the Oommiralon of Appeal8 held that the 8alr to a 8ingle ouetomer ia ths olty of viatoria did not amowit to W8e for looal asle b.dl8tributlonm of gas l.n the city 58 the statute contemplated. The Oommir- oion of Appsclls aonoluder as fo~ow81
REut oonsfderod in the light of the prorl- #ions of tho statute, ar a whole, ‘wo have no doubt the slmplo fact that h del$rury of gas is made In the olty, by meens of enid pipe llna to
a alngle oustomor and to noboQ else, wea not ln-
tended by the Legislature to ke oomprehended by
the term qdlstrlbutlonS a8 1.~66. This term a8 a6eQ doer BOt men the tranRfer, Of the ~0884!38iOn of gas, by mean8 of the plpa line, to a rlnglo
purohasor whefl 8uoh pwoilauer is the only oua-
tomer to whom the gas oomyany sells ear La the
alty. It -3nr the tranofer 0r p038ee0ion 0i
.gea ti rarioua individuals or OOnOerB~ in th oity.,~ An7 other ooxattruotlon of the term would,
In our opinion, involvo a 6.uprrtTjre Srom th*
leglulntim Intent. SiEoqp therefore, the ~130 .
of ‘ear-works,’ in c olty ,~r to+n in thlr State,
for distribctlon ci giils in Doid oitr of tom is, by rtetute, ;nrde an, essential oharaotarlrtle
of the bueiners tax&l, it followa that the bur-
lneeo $n which tho plaintiff in error i8 engagrl, 80 dlmO88d by the IUdlS,%te& ia#tE, 1s not
aubjact to the trx nhtoh thi8 Statute prOvib8~"
It ir tb.0 oginlon cf this Eepartmant in line with the above quoted oa8e8 that an7 lndlildual oorpor- ation srlllng or aistributln~ liquid petrolau gss to more than one oonhxzer in ay Loorgoratea alty rithti the pop- ulctiou brcrokete stetec? i,n Artlole 7000, $9 ameesnded by
Honorablr OeOrga IL Shapperi, P8ge 8
Houe6 Bill 0 Aatr of thr Yorty-roronth tsglrlaturo
1941, would k aubjrot to bha gross rroolptr tar 1erf.d
Yours vary truly