Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1948 )

NEYGENERAL
TEXAS
Hon. Gee. Ii. Sheppard Opinion No. V-543
ComptreLler of Public Accounts
Austin, Texas Re: Basis of allocation to
sr$ool and road dis-
tricts of funds paid to
the State by the United
Stntas from moaies re-
Ic;eiwd by the United
States from the leasinS
of lands required by the
United States far flood-
control purposes.
Dear Mr. Sheppard,:
You request our opinion as to the pmoprr method to be used
in allocatinp the funds on deposit in the “‘Flood Ara5 School and
Road JFu&’ to the sclw@ and road dQtri&s located Within, ti p*rkiy
within, b flood control district *Is fiord c@rMat ~d& Thee fun&
were paid u1 the SPrte of Texas hy the Se#retery sf ihe Treasury of
the UnIt,& Sates in ursuance of the provisfons of the Act of Con-
gress, Augus%M, 19B1, Chapter 377. Sec. 7, 55 Stat. 650, as amended
33 U.S.C.A. Sec. 701ce3 which reads as follows:
“75 per centum of au moneys received and deposited
in the Treasury of the United States during: atry fiscal
year on account of the leasing of lands acquired by the
United States for flood-control purposes shall be paid
at the end of such year by the Secretary of the Treasury
to the State in which such property ir: situated, to be ex-
pended as the State kgislature may prescribe for the
benefit of public schools and public roads of the county,
or counties, in which such property is situated: Provid-
ed, That when such property is situated in more than
-diie State or county, the distributive share to each fram
the proceeds of such p``p@rty shall be proportional to
its ax ea there in,. ”
5. B. No. 343, 49th Legislature, Chap. 250, reads, ‘in part,
a6 f+llows:
“Section 1. The Comptroller of Public Accounts of
this state is hereby authorized to receive and receipt
, Geo. H. Sheppard, Page 2 (V-543)
for all funds due or payable, or hereafter to become
due or payable, by virtue of the Act of Congress of
August 18, 1941, Chapter 377, Section 7, 55 Stat. 650,
33 U.S.C.A., Section 7Olc-3. All of such funds shall
be placed in a separate account entitled “Flood Area
School and Road Fund’ to the credit of the Comptrol-
ler of Public Accounts and shall never become a part
of the general funds of the state. The Comptroller
shall annually pay over such funds to the school dis-
trict or districts, county, OP other political subdivi-
sion, as hereinafter provided, to be expended for
school purposes, or on the roads, as contemplated
by the Act of Congress.
“Sec. 2. It shall be the duty of each school dis-
trict tax collector, county tax collectoF, or other per-
son charged with the duty of collecting school taxes or
road taxes, the territory of which district, county or
other political subdivision is within, or partly within,
any flood control district, or flood control area, created
or designated under authority of law, to prepare and
file with the Comptroller of Public Accounts of this
state a report under oath showing the total number of
acres of land acquired by the United States for flood
control purposes within the boundaries of such school
district, county, or other political subdivision; and the
tax rate per one hundred dollars of valuation for school
purposes and for road purposes levied by such district,
county, or other political subdivision for the year in
which such report is made,
*Sec. 3. On 01 before the 15th day of September
of the year 1945 and each year thereafter, the Comp-
troller of Public Accounts shall pay to the school dis-
trict or districts and to the county or other political
subdivision colle‘cting road taxes, their proportionate
share of funds on deposit iaa such ‘Flood Area School
and Road Fund’ which were produced by leases upon
..
lands acquired by the United States for flood control
purposes located within such school district, county
or other political subdivision, the pro rata to be al-
lotted to the school districts and to the road taxing
entity to be based upon the proportion which their re-
spective tax rates bears to the sum of the two rates.
The Comptroller shall Zdd the school district tax rate
and the road tax rate together and the school district
shall be entitled to receive such a percentage of the
‘Flood Area School and Road Fund” as their tax rate
bears to the sum of the s:chool tax rate and the road
tax rate; and the county, or other road taxing entity,
- -
Hon, Gca. H. Sheppard, Page 3 (V-543)
shall be entitled to receive its proportionate part
of such fund based upon the proportion which its
tax rate bears to the sum of the two tax rates,. . .”
The emergency clause of S. B. 343 reads, in part, as
follows:
Y
. . . and the further fact that the acquisition of
properties by the United States in areas in this
state has worked a hardship upon the school dis-
tricts of Texas in which such public works are
located, and that their tax funds have been depleted
by the acquisition of properties by the United States;
II
a. *
If the Legislature had intended that the basis of alIocation
was to be the amount of rental received from lands within the school
or road districts, it doubtless would have indicated that intent by
making some provision for you to obtain that information.
Your office has informed us that the Federal Government,
when it pays this money to the State, allocates it as between the
counties entitled to receive same.
You will note that Section 2 of S.B. 343 provides that the
tax collectors charged with the duty of collecting school and road
district taxes shall file a report with you, showing the total number
of acres acquired by the United States for flood control purposes
within the boundaries of the school and road districts, and the tax
rate for school and road purposes. Section 3 of the Act provides
that the funds are to be prorated on the basis of the tax rate, and
does not mention acreage. However, if the amount of acreage own-
ed by the United States located within the various districts was not
to be considered in the allocation of the funds to the districts, the
provision directing the tax collectors to report the number of acres
would be a useless requirement. It is evident that the school and
road districts are deprived of taxable property when lands within
such districts are acquired by the United States. This is SO, wheth-
er such property is leased by the United States or not. The purpose
disclosed by both the Federal Act and S.B. 343 (see portion of Emer-
gency Clause quoted above) is to reimburse the school districts and
road districts for the loss of taxes on lands acquired by the United
States whose property is tax exempt.
It is therefore our opinion that the funds allotted to each
county should be distributed to the school and road districts accord-
ing to the following formula:
Hen. Gee. H. Sheppard, Page 4 (V-543)
A = Amount of funds to be allocated
R = Tax rate of school or road district
N = Number of acres acquired by United States within
the school or road district
R x N = School or Road District numerator
S = Sum of the numerators of all School and Road Dis-
tricts in Flood Control District
RxN
-s- x A ~=Amount to be distributed to each School
and Road District
Only the land located within the particular county should
be considered in the above formula, although the School or Road
District. may e.xtensL inta an_ a&** cm@ _I
SUMMARY
The funds allotted to each county and so paid to
this State by the United States from monies received
from the leasing of lands acquired by the United States
for flood-contrel purposes should be allocated to the
various school and road districts according to the
following formula:
A = Amount of funds to be allocated
OR : Tax rate of school or road district
N = Number of acres acquired by United States within
the school er road district
R X N = School or Road District numerator
S = Sum of the numerators of all School and Road Dis-
tricts in Flood Control District
RxN
--S-- x A = Amount to be distributed to each School
and Road District
Yours very truly
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TkXAS
ATTORNEYGENERAL BY
W. V. Geppert
Assistant
WVG/JCP