Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1946 )

187
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
GROVER
SELLERS
AsrORNrY
OINLRAL
Hon. v. A. Johnron
Couuty At tommy
Tom oreen County i, .
San &galo, Texan
Dear MC. Johnron:
opinion NO. o-7469
Re: Dow the Junior CO11~430Dlrtrlct
nhieh is co-oxtensivo
boundarlor of Tee or.
have the author
intangibl. an8e
rO11inR ltOCk .?
You pnaent for the op
the quevtlon contained ln JOUP 1
vhlch ve quote a8 follovrr
Rvvlsed Btatatvr
o Junior CO11Oj3.
undarlml or Tom
Rellvay Cmpany and the
vay Company operate line6
iOr CO110gemfitrict iS t0 be
upon the $100,00 va1uat1w.
that y’atr
a&vine me aa ‘prunptly&E
ether the Junior Call.@ MAtriot tax propml~
8hould t&ppry CJ sad be collected on tbomintanglb~loarests
and the rolling rtock of the rallroab.
1238
SW. If,.A. Johnson, page 2
uhile not d.iUmctl~lnvolrwI 18 Jour opinion mquelit,
ve 4va it bdvl8abIe to fir88 di``poreof thm qu6atlott a8 to
rho-p OF OOt th. hat tht0011.80 ~DtZ’%Ot 18
the ~UXhiOr
eoutvnsfve vlth the boundarie8 or la Orem Cauut~ ha8 any
mlevantr~ to the question pn8entlr to be ooarldered, namely,
th eluthor%ty to arwar the rofllng 8tock pi railroads ln the
eeme manner au the kr oolleator a88e88e8 the rolling 8tock
of i*lllmad~SOP Shk utd aoumtJ purposoaam pmvlded la
4.h m3, v. R. a. Y., and Art: 7169, V. R. C. 5. we a.spore
of thlr quertloa br earing that fu aua vicnr it 18 of no
8lgr&Ulaorroethat the baundupt line8 of the Jualos College
Mutslot are ooextensivo vlth the boundmy llaer sf 201 Omen
httth?. PPU#, the eatin aoumt? la rbnoed Sn the Junior
Collrgo Dl8trlot, but ~vertbelo88 it b a dlrtrlst, snd
the bv gOYel3X~ district8 and not ~Oyntl~8 i8 appllaable.
qu.&vtt
hi8 IOU to have been dl8po8rd OS by the
tine or state
V, Hottmtt a s. a. HT. QO., 209 a. w. 820, rrm
vhlab va quote a8 follov8t
“hlrflett is true that the rolllnngrtock and
~latenglble propeoty o? the defendmt rellr%td acmpany
Is pawpertf and Uuable as such in the manner and place,
amd for the purposes, presaPibed by law, it by no mean8
Solleve that It 18 taxable ~JI8ald MvQatlon diatrlot
fop its use an4 benefit. The faat that its boas&rids
am the 88me a8 those of Rorris aount.g18 liaubaterial.
lhe *Harrlb Count7 Houetcn Ship Channel Dkvlgatloa
Dlet&st of Earrls Countrt hes no power oi texatlcn,
except 8uch as 18 expnrrl~ conferred upon it br the
lav of it8 creation, and in determLnin$ such paver ruch
lav must be qtrfctly construedr . . .
ISaving eoncladed t&t the amon boundarier of the
Junlor~Oollege Mstrict vlth that of Pa Oreea County la of
ttorlgnifiaanae la the 4etentnatlm of tblr question, and
that the urn doe8 not make it any more or 1888 a dl8trlot,
ve #tart vith the pmire that the dlrtriet bein(ga areature
of the &gl8leture aaa uemlao only ruch povem, trzation
or OthOriri8sl a8 o~nf#~r#d upon ft bt thb LegleLStuN either
uprerrly OF br olerroimpllertloa, Ye look first to a#.
tiethor or not the ststutr vhloh authorlree the orwatlen of
Junior College dlrtrlet8 aonfen upon them the authority to
aBDe88 end eolleot truer agalnrt the rolling atoak of rmllroed8
tritverr~ the dlrtrict.
. 189
There 1s found in Bee. 7, Art. 2815h, V. R. C. 9..
the provisloa luthorlsiag the a88e8reent and oollection of
t8X~S br Junior OOileg8 diStPiat8, vhlch iA as fOllW8t
I The issuance of the bonds for Junior Colle&e
purpor;r; &d&he provision of the ShIkbl& Sund ror the
retlreaent thereof, and the payment of Interest and the
lerying Or tam8 SOP the suppOrt and mslnteaance of the
Junlor CO11.459,Ah11 in CO far a8 8-e 18 l~llcable,
be In aocordaace vith the general election lava and the
hV8 ~OVVPB`` th6 iS#USttC# Of bonda sod tho 1OVri.Zlg
of taxes in the lndepondent School Distrlot, provided
the total emeuat of t& levied for Jueior College purposes
rbafl never exceed tveaty (20) cents on tbe One Hundred
Dollar8 of property Valwtl@a vlthln said lM8tr$ct, lmrad
oa the va3uatlon fixed by the Board of Bqualieatlon of
the Junio& Colleg8 Dlstrlots provided iurther that if 110
tcuvs have 'beala88#886d .Sndequallsed in 8afd Junior
COllbgO m#tPiCt at the tilt6Of the 188WUIC4 Ot such
bonds, then the basis shall be the valuation LQ the
Independent School Df8tri.t. If Its boundaries are not
the aarm, then suob vahks Shall be based on the
valuation fixed by the Cosuii% asloners Court SOP State and
cmlAty taxes in suoh ceytty v1tlA.A the lti1tS of the
httiOP,~O11#@8 DiStPiat+
.*
Does th18 provicion of the statute authorize a
Junior College district to iaoosi a ta?%upon the rolll.ng
8tOek OP nilroadS? '40think not. fn tPUth them i8
svldenee,of leglslatlvo intent to negative such authority
upon tha mrt of such diStPiCt8. It 18 obsemed that the
authority to levy tW58 1.sla acOordaAc# vith the @XXWB1
lav &ovemlng the lrruance of bonds and the levying of taxes
in independent rehool df8tPiCt8p and that 1t 1s to be upon
property vlthir,Bald districts. lo such authority 18 con-
ferred upon independent 8cbool districts by ysnenzl law.
A fev 02)SeSxl11 wrice’t0 support OUl'po8ltlon.
In the 018e of Bell County v. iiiner, 219 S.W. 556, (U.B.R.)
It 18 saldr
'Appellant admits, aad properly ao, that the
Intangible a88et8 aad rolllng stock of a rallvay covtpan~
are not sub.jectto taxation by a special road district.
150
Anothw caaa ia point, amapt that the autboritr
of the city to tax tha rolllag #took ef a sailway oapmt
involvad la olrlf,Colomdo 4. Co. v. Qltr of X&llaa,
3
1 8. Y (sdj 292, tea. App.)c
%IO Ugiplatw origIDdllr (Act.-Aug. 21, 1876
(Lam 1879, 8."157, 119)) l ubjaet4 roll atoak of
railway capaa~aa to kxatien br oitlaa 23 touaa by
tha apgo~tivnuemt m&hod, aad subaeqtmnt.1~npaalod
the lm SE tha rdoptlan of the Rwlaad 8ktutaa of
:8 , 8ad I&tar, by thS ~88868 of the lot of kr& ~8,
8G (LS~S 1885, 0. 63), axpnralJ “aq?``wB~
oapurioa fra tha woarait~ of up:
its rolling stock to iacoqmrrtad alt
“r .I and towns.
Ha tbiuk mm8 iotlon nogat~na tha grant of autborltr
to tha aitr of IlrllarWI&&I IS SlS%mSd t0 6Aat in this
c a a * lt48k of a niluay
to ta xth er o lling 06mpa4,
lrenttkough thm same ma aituatd vltbim t&a oltr on
Jamu~ lat, and so narieed for a daflnlta tiao.
%h8 La$ir&tun ao doubt ooncludad that It would
not ba the axaroira of a mand policy to atibjaatrollLug
lteak of a milrn~ oaplpra~to taxation br oitlor and
touaa al- thati llaaa baqmaa of tba confumien wblah
rould wault frcm affortr ‘cMdlffelsnt WIuni8i$%S~iti~8
to datondno tha aitua of tucth jwoprrtf due to its
trum1tory Itrtllm. Uhf18 witch aaglaaa my bava mora
paamanaaoy ia thair location thu? other ~ollimg mtoak,
ymt all locaotivaa balcmglng te a rrrllua~ccimpanrarc
of neaearlty a pmt of Its rolling stook, the location
of WhLoh la aubjaat to ba c&wagedtra tire to the.
WI. litua of so mob of mlllng stock balan&ng to
railuay oapnter v&a indeflnita and ~ac8r~l.n that
tha Laglalrtuxa vaa juatiflod in u&iaaing it all aa a
uait ror p``poaaa of taxation.’ It wqueationsbl~ h8d
tar authority to dotexmlao tha rttw of rolling rtock
fee purpo888 of rmpLs;prl taxation. Tha fact that
isolated mlling stock right In aaaw lnatanaaa apar
to hays a flrod loeatlwr fr not ruirlaidi to Invalidate
the elaaaifitatlen thus mada.
“In tba abaoaoo of a rtatuta deflnlag the tambla
aitua of thla pmpwty sthanira, 10 uai mly kxable
at the domicile of the vallvr) capan~.
. I.
1%.
Xa& Y. A. Johxiaoa,*go 5
li8baliava the tongoing lufflmlant to indie.aCatha
lbmaaeo of laglalrtlva lntant to rutborlsm Junloo Collam ,.
-
dirtriots to lmpoma a tea upon tha rolling stock of nllroedm
travarmlng the dimtrlctm, and this re~ardlasa OS vhsthmr or
not the bouadaziaa of thm dlmtricta a# the: man as tha
aouatl*8.
Io lpma th a r ufo lndvimrd that it la tha opinion
af thfm dapaotmont that Junior Collage diatriotm do not have
the power an4 8uthoritl to levy and molloat tuam upon tha
rolllag stoat of railroads travaralng the dimtrlat aad upon
tbalo latm@bla uaata.
Us appnolato ~ourocinfoning to tha 8tUutar in
mulalttlag a brief vlth row opiolon nquoat, ubioh baa baan
halpf'ulto us in tha prepantlon at this opinion.
Vary truly fours
ATYORREY
GXRRRAL OF lmila
FiElSTASSISTANT
.&TToF+.NEY
GENERAL