Case Information
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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Boaorclblr Yarrin R. brown, Jr,
CriIdnal Dirtrlot Attornay Host ;;‘orth, Tsxrr
2sar Sir:
lrttsr of JmnmrJ lnlxi cf t&la de- ayer pay bo re- as rtrsted in pour COOat.~ dth Td@X'8?300 t0 th. PIylPODt Of the85
tares and upon rraminetlan of th8 moordr r0una thet io? thr, yr?r 193E oc t&St. ar- taxer tloulrr property mrc drlinqwm and unp~ a. f *2 Ron. Mervin E. Brown, Jr. - pa&r E
The foster@ rem onxlou8 to dl8~08b of the prOpOrfy end paid the taxer rgein for the year 19% on thlr partloular traot and there ua8 i~suod thoa rrasnrptlon reoript Ro.5436 oa Kay 16, 1939, rhoulne payaent of f4LUO.
*The pay8Wnt olado br the ;I;s8tem Raolty Ooapany on Kry 16, 1934, for the tcres whloh wm duo and owLnf ror tbo year 193fi. MB not pO8ted on the book8 or tax oolleotor of Terrant County, Que to 80~ nee.llgenoa on the part of one of hi8 an~loyeir, which mcligenae ooMl8tee of idme to Fropsrly DOBt the book8 or tha oriiar . . .*
You do not etv.te !n your lettar rhrthar or J. E. Poster and Son 0: thslr at:orney had kam;.ledee or the first payaent having been made of the rirrt re- deaptlon reoelpt harlw been 188ued. From the raotr (Itsted, hosever, ue are la.: to bellere that they he6 no such knowledge an! tblr opinion ~111 be written bsocd an 8uoh a rupposition.
In your letter you rsrer to an opinion rrlttea by Absistant httorna;l ~eneril 5. Ii. broaehurat, amid Karoh 83, 1937, eddreB6ed F!onorclblo GeOr(3e H. Shoppsrd, rr-hfoh opinioa held that whore & taxpayer maker 6 paymat for 7ssr on +hloh tax68 hate been of taxen on property prevlotml~ paid, that lluoh rsooad ptqsmnt by him 18 m voluntary papaout rud therefore tba taxpspr cannot re- cover hi8 8eoon4 puynont. The que8tlon asked Kr. Eroed- hunt In that opinion wua In referewe 8ltutloa iden- tioal with rltuttlon in your 0a8c- baoau#e in that ease al80 the tux oollectlng oitlolalr had no,$lgentlJ felled port the first DatPent on the tax rooord8. Hr. ho&d- rallod on the barb 0r city or Houston i. Ftilzer, git . f;. (24) 666.
Thi8 department 18 unable to oonour la tyhFsAon expresrod Kr. Froadhurrt a8 rdmmd to above.
osn br no quo~tlon but the peymnt In your dare waa aadn under a aletako of trot anti under a alut8ke OS lam, arrualtq of c?our80, tho taxpry8r 888 ontlrel~ Ignorant pyaent. The oourte of Texas have elway8 re- or the rh ooenirad thr proporltfon that a pupat a airtak, Th8 Suproao Court 0r of isot ir not a rolontary paymnt. Tour8 ln th8 oaao oi County of Calrceton ~8. J. C, Gorhaa, *3 -
Eon. Karrln H. Brown, Jr. - Page 3
49 Tox. 279, rtated as rOliOU8:
wWo arm of the opinion that thor have not, baoauao in ottah oase it la voluntarily paid, end It, under olroumstanoea, ir ooatrary to good oonaoienae for the oonnt7 to ratein it. It wad rolantery, booaoee it xaa rlthout objeotlon paid uuder a mlrteka of law, ii it lllegel, and thara WOE no miatako or fact in paring it, and no deceit, ?raud, or oompul6lon used in oolleotlng it, or in oeu8ing it to be paid, on the part ot the oounty or of any of it6 offloers, that pretented the will of the partlea peplng it from be:.ng rreely exercised in e0iq oat..
The oollr‘t rurther 861d: *wh*o money la paid under a mutual als- take law, the mirtaka law, in and 0r itself, la no ground for recovering it back.” "A mistake of feat on part o? oue rho a 8 and d acelt or rreud and oompulaion 0 part 0r one who recelvb8, under whioh iEd+ money la paid, are eaoh and all legal17 re- Oounlzrd 06 raotr aS?T0fent fn and 0r them- 8o~to8 parrart the will of the party doing the rot, 60 thrt it oould be said and held, that the will did ~onour with sot done, therabr rallarln~ him from the roa~onalbilltr ?or and aonaequancea ot the aot. The60 are auoh laOt8 as it 18 practlo6bla judl- 01611~ lntaatigate, and iher la no great pub- 110 pollof In foreatallin~ their iarertl~etlon, when they exlrt ln a degree ~11 derlnad, end praotlaall~ oapabla of exerting a oontrolling lufluence upon aota of the part-l who ha8 paid money PO it may then be raid, agalnrt hi8 will, or at least in the abaenoa of It6 Sreo ex~rolae.a
The same dlatlnotlon was reoognlted br tha Beaumont Court oi Clrll Appeal6 in the OaBe ot host T. Yowlerton ConaollUateU Sohool Dlatrlot SO. 1, 111 S.W. (al) 194.
Hoa. Marvin 8, Browa, Jr. - Paga A
On the bar18 of the abort l uthorltlar, thla departmat ruled la Opinloa No. O-1268 8ddroraod to Xoaorrblo ?. M. Trlmble, llr*t l88lstant Stats Suporin- to the l ifr ot that I payment e mutual alatab teM80, of fast rr8 not * roluntery paysmat and, thereion, tk 8ru oould ba reruaded to th8 taxpapr. ia rumlaatloa or the 0881 rrllcd oa br Mr. EroAhurst, that or Cltr Houston vD Poltrr, Ouprsnr Court of Texem, 8upr8, ladlautr8 that that 0880 ~111 not brr: out oonolu8lon dsrlrsd there- rroa by m. Frondhurrt. The Suprema Court rtated 88 roil088 t
“The tax88 w8re palA la l dvaaoe, mad 8oem hare beta oo1leat.d iron *bout 1867 until Ju-
ly, 1889, from 811 butohcr8, but eppellea *OE+ macoi: bu8laere la 1881. This la the 8tronge8t oabs aeelnet roluatazy peyamnt the widen04 ad**, and 18 It atiilolont *artala the vor- dlott That 8 tar ioluntsrll~ p*id oanaot bo roowered, though lt bed the essblanoo of 18 ~811 rettldl and 08 *aid by an lqmlltf, l l~eatarg 3frltor, ‘wsry mea I* *uppo**tl know the la*, an& it ho voluntarily mnkoa 8 payment whlah the law hould not a~apel hia to make, he aannot aftermrA8 88rlga hi* lcaoranoo or the law 88 the reason why 8tate shoulG furnlmh him rlth lreal rcumedle8 to mower lt The aonaludlq 1*-u. of thm Court in the 8bwe papmat under a alstoke or rroo&zer quotation t&t raot 080 be retnraml. Eouwer, the Court raid tbet bemuse OS mpllgeaoe in thr partloalar 0088 the puyaent oould f.SuaAud. The court reasoned toxppsrrr oould hwr lnfonaca hiaaslt tram the reoorE8 the’. t&o pamrat illegal and, th8r*rora, h4 we* n*ellp.*nt ln not 80 Our prar*nt 088~ 1s ta be al8tl.I%@lrlmd ir- the aobg. Rouston oa8e beosurs la our oa8b a0 xrzdn8tloa of r8- cord8 wea as&a sad th@ reaorda ioileci to tsxpspr blrDlo8o to him prorloua payment. Ii them raa 8~ nagllgwaos ln thla oam It us8 on the part of county orrlalal8 sad not on the part of the taxpatmr.
Ia dl8ourslag proporition geast8lI.y. 61 Cor- pu8 Jpcl8 980 18 of latsr88t:
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Boa. Xarrla Ii. Browa, Sr. - Page 8
“3ubJeot to the axooptloar harssftor an aatlon at low oay be aala- pointad out, talaerl raoover taxer rcbloh hare been rronefully aad lllepally a**ee*e4 8n4 aol- authorities had l*cted, a* where the toslag no pow*r to levy or aollrot the partlcul*r tax or ss~sss the prrtloulrr propAy, or rharr the rume smoxmty hod been tnioe *rseeesd 8ad trr,(L; . . .*
Ia dl8ou8sIag the dlfter*ac* betweeP * mlstak8 or 1s~ or root, 61 forpus Jurl8, 991, st~:t** a* r0110Ps;
*It Is a @noral rule tbct tares rclun- tarlly paid a rlsteku or lew, with tull knoWledge Of the isOt, oanaot recovered baok, unlors racowry 10 sxprcssly or i~~lled- ly suthoriud by 8:stute; but the rule doer made by the taxpayer hlwalt, end 18 th* r*- 0r hi* asgl*,ct *cm8 local duty, or sult %her* raots *blob mottle have l houa th* mist.ke mere wIthin his ovfa po88*seloa OF wltbln his roaoh.”
?:hIls the situation rbloh oonfronteb thr Suprwne Court or Texas ia the City or Houston I. falotr as** plaoad tnxpsymr in oategory’oi beriw aabe the papent by 8 mlstaka bus to neeleot oa his pert, 8ucrh not oaso katbor, our oare hem? fell* ia cur pr888nt sltuatloa. within the rltuetloo rhero taxes WET* psld under mlrteko wblch mI8tek8 was nude by tha r*v*au* ofrloers la the hot forai oi 8 l tut*mcat to the taxpayer sad ln the takl.n6 of om offlol*l aotloa oa Qorrsotlon of the tax rsoordr oa whloh tho tsxpoyrr rollad. Ia our os80 taxpsiyrr exasiabl tha rwordr to d stormlno whether or not tb taxer had baen peld ~4 the roaords Ql8oloseP that asa* had aot been paid but was buo and ~1% aad me a lien 8galnat his property.
ft Is the oplaloo of this depcrtnent, th*rsfor8, that the payment the turpeyar in this 0880 was u&Or 0 *6 Eon. Marvin 8. Ltrwn, Jr. - P3pr 8
ahtak~ of frot end thet ho mey rooovor the mount oi tsrea paid 88 oounty taxer iron the oounty.
Rovever, desplto d~4ouu5iOa preriourly ooatelned In thla oplnisa, tarpeyw la unable to re- taxer. hooordlA& the mount paId by him ae rt-:to oover tho teotr eet out in your lrttrr tho caoaad g.ayzmat was made on Yey 1, 1939. There ir. nr, doubt but that thlr money heo been pald Into &tots Trezwry. TM4 dqmrt- were Iilefelly mat provlously ruled tbat where ool- taxes and peld into the State Treasury the 8-e oould leoted be rafunded to the tcxpeyer beosusc of Article 8, Seotion 6, or our Conrtltutlon, vih?oh p~.ovIies that: drcnn fro=
Vo noney shall Trearury but in pursuance cf. spooIfIo s;propriatIon nade low.”
This opInIon w&s No. O-1044 sdCratsaC Honorable c40. H. Sheppard, Conptroller of f:ublIo Aooounts. A oopy 113734 IS f3nclos~d ror your inrora4tl3n. la the oplaloa or tbls departsont, themfore,
It the oounty should refund the tcxpayor the Fortion or the sooond tax pegmnt whloh ms made ror oounty tax purposes but .,that the tarpsyer say not be rerunded pay- ment oeda by whim ao st*;to tsxor, wbloh psyneot bar boon paid Into the btete ?reuiury.
Yours vory truly p?pTOPXZY CiZlWi;:iAL OF,TEXiG Illy Goldborg Aa5iatunt BCsbt