Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
8UhWc.- A--
IIOnOr8ble ckorp 8. ."lhappard
Coaptrollor ol Publlr Aooountr
Aurtin, T.-r
Dear 6irr
we quota rroa yo lt to hlo pl8os of nd nturnr in thr or c0i0rOdo.
cat8 '10 thr rrflnrry or thl8 motor furl rWUir*4 to, p8y the rJt8te tax, rrrlnory ruthorlzod Sue1 to th* C010rr60 puroharor to &olir*r the a&or tax fro@, ii ho keep8 reqUir86 rOOotd8 8hO~iWl *2 Bonor8blr G8org8 R. %ep?rrd, Pago Z Of the tr8n88OtiOn 88 8XQOrted motor
th8 d8t8fl8 fU.l?
*A per8on divine in th4 st8t4 Of Tar88 op@rat4# and ll8illt8ill8 filliWJ 8t8tiOnB in th, ?t8t@ Of COlo- r840. 88 8180 OpOr8t88 tiilkL& 8t8tiOli8 8Zld 18 8 de8hr in metor tu41 in r8X8ee t?4 6OOfr88 t0 QU.~h880 motor tU41 fro&II 8 r8ffn8ry fn th4 st8t4 Or Tax88 8nd trrnrport ft, in hlr own truok8, to hi8 ~1808 of b'JS10088 in th4 ?.t8t8 Of COlOr8dO. By 8gr44ffi4t‘t with the r8fin8ry bUrin888 Or cOlOr8dO in the tmoks belong@ to the person In cOlOr8dO but 18 tr8ll8QOrtd to the St8t4 thB lOOtOr iU81 bill8d t0 th8 p,.8C8 Of llrlng In T8X88. "18 tba r4ffn8rJr r8qUir8d to ::Cy the t8X Oil
ClOtOr rU81 80 billad t0 th* OU8tOI24r ill ColOr8d0, or may it 8811 t&LO &otOr fU81 t81 fPB0 88 8X?Grt86 proper rooordd?" motor fU4i by k88pinr tUTll8 A DrOWr d8t8TLdIlatiOll C$ the 8bOV8 qU8&.1On8 0r motor f-u81 iron eo muoh uQon rht ther not the4 tranrportotion into COlOr8dO undrr the f8Ct8 TtI88 is hittrf3t8t8 OOmEGrC8, &V8n, 80 a8 bring on88 wlthln tha prot8otion instant Of th8 COlW:WC8 Clause Of tht f,e'.%r81 COlletitUtiOD, Md the d801810118 OOnC8rnhe 88lFA, but l'tth8r tUrZJ8 UpOn whtthsr 8 tax- salr" tran8pirrd in Texa8 prior to the baginning 8bl8 wiir8t Of 8Ily pOSSlbl8 iEltAr8tat8 COHZ.8rO8 IIlOVt~tUt, SO a9 to 8CCrUt tax egainst thb inVolVed. refin8rits
Ill this 18tt8r r88QSOt, Stotlon.1 (0) of Artlclt RaV188d CiVil :‘tCtUtC8 Of TtXa8, ?0668, V8rncn’8 Al.lliot8t8d
h8r8lOait8r Cfted 8S ths xOtOr FU81 T8X d8fin8S tiW Of %X88 *dl8trlbUtOt" 88 fOilOW8: "Dletributor' 8,X,11 IG8OI.l IU-IC! illClUd8 8V8ry WhC r4ih8, Q4r8On in thfa stat8 BlBnUfeOtUr88, Pro- Or OOItIQOUIid8 EIOtOr fuel, dUC88, bl85dB Or in anr ‘bthr mame,' 8CqLh38 or PO8888888 ‘totor fuel ana U&&OS ibet 8d8 Of tfre CWC8 in tkiia %at8l and it Shall 8180 include every parson in thf8 State who @hip@, transpOrt8 Or fmports any motor fuel into th18 jt8t4 rnd m8kes th8 ffr8t 13818 Of 88m8 fn thl8 St8t8. * *3 0tOrgt E. ::htpperd, ?egt 3
Honorrblt
"ylr8t 8814" 88 U8td 10 th8 fOrt&ol.& dtflnltion end in oth*r 9ortbXH Of tilt MOtOr PU81 T8X bW, 18 d@fin@d by ~eotloa 1 (d) thtrtof tt fO110~18:
“‘Firet tilt* 8ht11 a88n ati lnoludt tht fir& di8trlbutlOu OT U84 in thi8 8814, ftatt of notor fuel rtflnta, bltndtd, irpporttd Into, or in 8uy produotd In, 8cquirtd, porstrtta or oth8r aanntr brought into this 3t8t8.”
%OtiOn (8) Of the Voter Put1 Tax Law oau848 tht 4xcf84 tax In qutetlon to aoorut upon 8 *first ralt- as h8rt- intbOV8 defined, by ?mvldIng "the 8814 tax 8bsll 8coru8 and be paid 88 hereinafter p~ovldtd ~011 the firtt ttlt in ~4xtt.m
Stotlon 2 (b) of said itot declare8 the lt~ltletlvt Intent and purpost that 88id tax tocrual shell be 8t the fLuroe of tht motor futl in Ttx8e providing: "The tax shell accrue on tht first 8eh 80 that e sl~;lt tar only will b4 colltottd on the 8eze gallon of z.otor fuel, it being lnttndtd to kpooe the tar at its souroe in Texas, Or es aom thtre- after as such Lotor fuel my L,t subject to bein+: tared.”
Fror. the fcreF0i.c provlsloris it 16 readily eppfirtnt t&t tke controlling lesuo before UQ la wtttktr or not a "first 8014" is conatltutad by the transections iieecrlbtd in your latter so a8 to oonstltutt the refinery in question 8 "di8tributorH of motor fuel in TtX8s, arid thtrerort liable for the ttix w?.lch le caused to accrue upon the "first salt* of motor fuel tven thou@ tkt person or dtaltr purcheelne eez.8 substr,utntly carries it btyona the conflnt8 of the '3tett of Terar 80 au to stez? transportation svlth the chsmcttr Of '!ith tht- isSU8 thus limlttd, our OpiniOTi interstate comerot. should not bt oonstrusd a8 dtttrmlnln~ whether or not lnttr- ststt comtrct le pestnt lc the 1nstar.t 0884 by reason of tix treneportation Of EOtOr fuel frOE ‘bX68 t0 Colorado.
Althowh tbt lnvolved 1a:ut 0r lnterstett corztrot 1s thus rtad out of tte ca84, there rtmlnr tc,ueUY cm- plcx 8ti difficult question Of wh8t Um8titutt8 8 8alt of personal proptrty. Central d8flnltloas and prlnclpl8e ~ovtrn- lng thlr matter hart bctn rtp8attdly 18id dcm by at murte but’ t8Ch lndlvldu8l cast must. r88t utpon it8 own Rtcull8r f8ct8 and OirCUJUt8nO48 to dtttr~lnt lf, when and wbtrt a of gtrronal property 18 flnellr conaumm8ttd~ Howtvtr, In 8R- preachlo@ the instant qucrtion, wt mu8t bt8r in mind th8t tht
f!oaorrblr George H. ‘trp:rrd, Fag. 4 Le hlrfuro of Tern8 hr. rlroted &dine l *firat 811~~ 88 re 8t8a to th8 8OCrtu1 Or th8 BOtOr ?U@l uX f 8ad rUoh 8&- utorr definition mU8t 8UPOF8Od0, b80?8r iKiOOn8i8tOnt 8OOeVted dO?initiOn t&8 OOme&181 thr o08I~OnlT Of 8 8810 in 4811TOTJ Of tb ntbjoot lvtter 18 One of th. 8ollIe. ml18 PrlnOiV*l dOtOrain8ntr Of tb OOIUpletlOn @ 8 8818, 88 th8 tom i8 ordln8rlly lUidOr8tOOd and 40rin06, we think, fro= 8 Of th8 ?OregOifig 8t8tUtOW pr0~1810n8 rnd beti- Oon8ider8tiOn dtiOn8, that 8OtU81 d811~@~ O? th8 motor f’~el to tb ?Ur- 6Iid OOUlpl8t88 a t8xhble 'flr8t Oha8er in %X88, OOn8titUte8 8810" 82ld, in ?8Ot, 18 the 81nO qU8 11011 t0 ruoh "flr8t 8810." In e8oh in8tmOe derorlbed in your lrttor, drllrrry Or the motor fual lnrolred bra8 c.adr direotly by the r8finOry in %X88 to the WrOh88.r ln TeX88. 1x1 th. fir8t in8t8nOe, the puroh888r, 8lthouRh PurportlnF to be 8 resident of the ?t8te Of COlOr8d0, WI8 8CtUflll~ in ‘bX88 8t the tlma Of the dollrory Of the motor ?USi, by 8Ild hi8 remit, who tfrou@ took drllrrry in puroh88er*r truck at thr loading rook of th8 Tax88 reflnory. In the eaoond feOtU81 8lturtlon, both pArtie t0 the trln8OOtiOn 8re rrsldent OltlXen8 of TeX88. The motor ?UOi wR8 drllvrred into ths trUOk8 O? the pUrOha8ing dealer st the loadhe Saoilltite of the Texar rrtlnery end we8 eventually trrnrported to the :'tate of Colorado.
It 18 our OplniOn that eoh O? the8c tran8aOtiOn8 "f ir8t 8h18", and conrtltutsr the retlnerY in eroh ~880 8 "dirtributor" Of motor ?uel In thlr 38t0, wlthln thr stat- utory doflnltlon o? each of 8814 term8, above quoted. Ssld w?lr8t x88 con8wm8tod in osoh instanoe within the bor- 8010~ dOr8 o? TCX~I, the pUrOh88.r taking dollrrr~ of the motor. fuel In hl8 own trUOk8, rithar pOr8On8lly Or by 8gOnt. Title to the motor iuel dOUbtlO88 parred 8t that time, 8nd this lr the controlllnp tert of a ralr 0r porronal vroverty, ln 8On8.o The trot thnt ln either the 8t8tUtOrp Or OOWrOid the fir& oaea, nsgotlatlonr for the 88lc wore bran 8omr- time8 by the purckarer 8nd 8OmOtime8 by thr reflnrry or 8011- er and ware handled by telephone or talegraph, 8nd, ln the eeocnd lnstanco, that the motor fuel w~8 billrd t0 the PlaOO of bU8inOE8 in Colorado ~grr8~nt, 8lthouCh v-w-ly to in Cetrrmlning whether the 8el.e tren8plr84 ln be oOn8idOr.d T~X~JS Cslorado, doea not, 1~ our oplnlon, outwolgh the det~~lnrtlra foot th8t the 8UbjeOt matter Of tb 8818 ohw*d hand8 between 8e11Or 8nd pIlrOhJi8er 1D TeXe8 bt aotu@Il dellvery between part188 who were in the State 8t the time* *5 . 410
Aonorablr Caorge HI. .?happord, P8gr
TO hold OthOlWirO W3uld Uphold form r8thmr tbn 8nd d8fr8t th0 daO&r@d 9IW908e Of th8 bgi818tUra
8Ub8t8n01B "to 1mvo8@ th8 t8X l t it8 8OU:rO* ill tOU8," UpOn the *?ir8t #ala," 8OOOmp8ni8d b7 d.liVet~, To trert thr rntlre tmnuo- rrther tion 88 80 intOr8tdO tr8n88OtiOIi, thll 8 “?ir8t ~1a’ in T8x8r msrrly upon the lntrntlon of the partler oroat@ 8uOh 8n intrrrt8t. tr8nrrotlon, rupportrd br form81 bookk.,v- lng l trlrr, or upon the mere drolrrrtlon or thm puroh880r h8 lntrna~a to trrnrport the vrOdUOt8 OUt8ldr th8 st8t8 th8t Of TOxa8, WOUld br 8 vrOli?iO 8OOUTOO Of t8X W88iOn l d rub- trrrugrr. or th8 raqulramont or &otlon 110 ~6 not unmlnarul (0) Of the bbtOr Fual T8x Uw that "no trx 8hall bo lmpO8ed
on my motor rud, the impo8ing o? whloh would oonrtituto in unlau?ul burhan on intor8t8to oomm~oo, 8nd &loh 18 not 8ub- jeot to ba tax04 unarr the conrtj tutlon o? the st8tO or Texa8 and the united L:tates.- But we say that lntrrrtato oommeroo, it it doer rxlrt fn the lnrtant oa60, dM8 not oorni~enob until 8 time 8Ub8,~Uent t0 the OOn8UUlEX3tiOn O? 8 tox8bh "fir8t aalo" ln Tex8r brtwren the rrflnrry rnd the purohe8er, and it 18 8etthd 1aW that 8 8tatO luy tSX PmpOrty OI' FrlVilO608 prior to ths lncrptlon of lntorrtatr comniero8.
Howrvrr, if the lnrtant oam doe8 not fall within there principlea of taxation, it mey b8 ;ointed out that no unconatltutlonal burden 18 oooarloned hero the ltry and oolleotlon cf the tsx from the reflnorp, becaurr Srotion 2 (c) 0f ths A0t vro~'iae8 thst w any alrtrlbutor, or oth*r preen, shall export or 1080 by tire or Other l o oiaont, any motor furl, 80 that tb 88sa uny never bm and@ u88 wlthln thi8 8t8t8, 8rtOr the thx h88 beon P8id On 8uch motor fuel, clrlm for refund any be m8do ln the m8nn.r hrrrln8itrr Fro- rided, or a8 ths Comptrollrr MJ dlreot." Thur, thr purchaser in 8oh of the 08Ie8 Oit@d by rou Will h8Ve bWMflt of tha foregoing refund prO~l8lOn for tax08 paid undar thi8 oplnlon, upon motor fuel 8ihgOdlY going into lntWrt*t@ commeroe. tkn forogolng fully 8n8wer8 vour lnwlw, TrU8tilIg
we 8re