Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1943 )

.
OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable George Ii. Sheppard
Comptroller 0r Pub110 Aooountr
Auetla, Tex88
Dear dir:
mbmltted ror ou
ot Thm Amerleaa Be
free Sror ad
6plled a6 followar
arty ln the Cltr of Clebunts,
*io &i uoe ie thlo property being put at
10 well rented and after doduet-
and oo?anty tuom, inmranre and upkeep,
are about e aad uo wed In the maln-
tenanee of thr Dollar Chapter, Amerlom Red Crors artlri-
tlr8.
Eonorpble Forgo 8. Sheppard, tige 2
"2. What be your plom aa to lto iW 1~00
The proput lo on the market for oale. It
lo the 08ly plooe of property held. Uo hte trlod
to g e t l naoonable prior ?or thlo ?operty linw
it M Olqepted br 6008 Au&uet 1, 1 1 43. It the
l0a bo Bold tho )ro.o.dO
p r o p er ty will k iBtOOtOd
iB u. 8. boBdO.
“3. 'If oonronlont thlo Daportuat ohould
like you to oend a pa8phlet of the law thot luthorlzoo
oreatlon of tho looal ahapter of The Amrlo&n ZmI
Cross and oopy of the Charter.’
-ho luerlour Rod Woo8 ~88 lnoorporated
br set of Coqgroeo In 1905 no l ?ederal a&enoy.
~1
A8 we Pnderotod it there lo DO law whleh uuteo
looal ohaptero. Wo le (nrloolng herwlth l photo-
ltotlo oopf oertirylng tht the Dollar Oorott Ohaptor
Lcr, jPrlodiotioB and lo lpoelfle~ll~ authorbed to
lr r r yo n R e dOr 080 lOtiritieS and monthly r&port8
le sent to thr Amerioan lktioml Rod Croao. speoiri-
rally Red Qrooo Chaptoro ue not pormittrd to hold
titlo to rod cotate and the title to the proputy
lt Cloburne lo in the aano of tho Anerloa8 Red Orooo,
ruhlngton, D. O., l Fedorol yenoy. 8hould tho
property be 0016 by the Aaorloan Rod Crooo, the
proooodo would be turaod over ior uinteunoe or
the Dalloo Chapter. Shlla we lo not aulrq the
property in qrreotlor dlmtlr ior Red Or088 br
ouapanor, tho proooedo are king uoed for main-
tenanoe of tho Dallao Qhaptor. We bellevo that
thlo proport lhould bo uomp% from tax&ion and
le l k lB g that y o ulo mll0.~
Hanonble Gaorgo H. qheppord,. Pago 3
-. h4ro help lxpraooly
W; - In our protlouo opinion
No. O-4291 The Amorle’MRed Orooo, or any duly organized
or azlotlng chapter thereof, to be an lnotrumontollty of
the United States. O111lko the oltuatlon of unp other
inotnmaat4litieo of the Felar41 Governmenb, whora Oon-
grsso ha4 axpraooly provided for loon1 nondloorlmln4tory
ad 14lora4tu llabllity, the otatutea ara silent regarding
ouah tsx llsblllty or iamunlty of the Red Crone. Suoh being
the oaoe wa ore l~ollnad to iolIor the tact laid domi in the
reoent onoo 0r ~ravoo v. Pa0910 of %ntb 0r Jew Yori:, 306
il. 3. 466, 83 L. Id. 927, 59 S. Ct. 595:
?3110n00 0: cougroso Implies Immunity no more than
does the ol``anoa or the 0onatltution. It r01101;0 that
when exemption iroll ltsto taratim lo olaiaod on the
C;rouad that the federal gorarnzmt la burdened bf the
tex, and Congress hr;s dloolo8ad no Intaatlon rlth
rsspeot to the olalmad lmnunlty, it is in order to
oonsldsr the natura and ofieot of the alleged burden,
. . .”
n looal. nondlao$lloinatory sd raloropl tax on pror,srty
of a Tsderal instrumentality ham bean uphold ln numerous
daoiolono of 81 L. i L. 463, 57 S. Ct. 334 (property used by the oom?any
In its opartitiono on 4x oil rind gas lease oorarl~, lande of
rootrioted :‘EVh60 Indiana).
Honorable Ueorgr II. Sheppard, Pago 4
On thiothbr band thors arb many authoritlbr hold-
ing th4 sank4 t/pe 0r tti ~016 by rbason or th6 tu being l
dir o o t burdsn on the Unit4d Sbstbs Gorbmmsnt. Clallam County,
Uastln&on, V. UIlitSb State8 6Sd Unltsd StbtbB SprU44 ProdUo-
tlon Corpolrtlon,263 0. S. 3U (Property a4 Lirbd and la4d ror
w4r produotlon); tilted Stat.48V'. Coghlan, 2 8 1 lr. 425 (propbrtp
owns& by Fbdsral Shlp;in(lBo4rd Emsrgono~ Flbbt Corporstion
and uaod ror war produotioo); lUng Oounty, ‘Uarhlngton, t. aitbd
sthtss Shipping Board Fleet OorpOrotlOn, 262 ?. 950 (sum ract
lltustloa as In Ilnltbd Stst48 v. Coghlan, supm); tilted States
~ouaing Corporation v. City 0r natartan, 113 8. I. Ylsc. 679,
166 1. Y. Supp. 309 (land 84qUlrOd to hsu~r workbra in 488on-
tlal indurtri48 during world Iur One). It is to bb noted that
in saoh of the a“48 oltbd in thi‘ paragraph the Fbd4ral Oovern-
nent own06 rll the rtoek,or the bntlrb banr~lolal intbrbst in
thb stosk, Of the 4OrpOrStiOn8 SOu@lt to be tUbd.
We bbliOV0 the proper teat ia found In Coolsy on
Taxation (Ith Bdltlon), Volum4 2, Seotlon 607:
*. . . The teet is :whbther the tax doprlrbs tha
parsons or oorporatloas taxed, in truth, of power to
aarvb thb go+brne.ent (ia they were intsndbd to aor~e it,
or hinder the Orri0ient sx4rolob or their power.
“It rollowa that a atete
ta% upon the property or
sn agont or the redbral gorbrm4nt
la not prohibited
merely bbOaUl3e it is the property of suoh an agent.
*Tu8tlon or the agonog is taxation 0r thb EOmsi taxa-
tion or thb property of the agant 18 not alws~s, or
gmnsrallr, taxation o? the man~.~ A tax upon the
'pr4pbStr' Of 4gbIlt4 4? lgOll4ibS Or thb ib64r‘l gOtOm-
moat dobs not nb4e4s8rily drprltb them or thblr psuor
to ssrvs suah gorenmsnt nor hinder the rfflolbnt usr-
4184 or the power, and hens@ may be rightrull;r laid;
bat a tax upon tholopsrstionsl Of suoh s&bats or agsn-
4188, 1. b., an ooaupatlon or prirllege tax, being a
dlrbet obstruotlon to the lxer4184 of fed4ral pmef,
18 lnralld. But where the proprrtp 0r a aorpmmtlon,
eaga@d in exboutlng a rederal agsnoy, is itablf the
means by whiah suoh w54noy i‘lx OOUtb thb d,PrQpbrty
is not SUbJ6Ot to State or loeal taxation.”
P5U
lionorable aUborgrE. Sheppard, Pegs 5
Se. dS0 Indian idOtOI’SgOlS CO. V. &ited StStbS, 283 YJ. S.
570, 75 L. 166. 1277; lox Film Corp. f. Doyal, 286 U. s. 123,
76 L. Ed. 1010.
In our oplnloa the property
of Tha Anbrlaan Red
Cross la not in ltaolf the moana by whlot Its agenoy ror
the. Onltad Stetee Gotom.bnt is lxboutod. The Cbderal Uotbrn-
mat does not wholly own its stook, alnor there is none. Al-
though the 4orporatIon la rather strlotly aupenlsed by Ita
ormtor, and 1s assisted In lta operations by substantial
SWSJSdireotly ap~roprlated fro- the national treasury, the
peop1e of this netion. are large& responsible ror its support
through voluntary oontributlons. Too, its purposea are not
all strlotly goternmontal In ohuraoter, 6 a rhown by Subaeo-
tlona 3 an1 5, Ssctlon 3, Title 36, II. 5. C. 5., rhioil read
85 r0n0ws:
*The purpoocisof the oorporatlon ar6 and ahhli bb -
nFlrst. To fWi8h.tolUteer aid to the alok and
woundbd or armles in tin4 or war, In aooordanos with the
spirit ana oonditlons 0r the oonferenoe or Gbnbta or
Ootobbr 1863, and also of the treaty of the Red Cross, or
the treat; Jr Ganava, oi August 22, 1664, to whloh the
Vnlted Stat.68 of Lmerlea gore ita adhesion on %13rOh 1,
1882.
". . .
"Fifth. iad to oontinue ma 0arrJ on a rystem 0r
national and internatlonalrelief in tla4 of peaoe and
apply the sa:m in mItlgatln& the suitering ssuoed by
pestllenoe, famine, ilrb, Sloods, and other great
national aalamitiea, .and to hric;e and carry on meamres
ror prbventlng the aame.w
You will note that tbe parpO8b8 rO? whfoh Thb Amrioan
Red Crosr wa s lnoorporuted llluw it to rblie+e di.stre88 In
rorelgn lands. We b41lsr4 thsn that its sltustlon la dirtin-
gulehable from that oi inotrumentalltlea wholly owned and oon-
trolled by the ?edoral Oorernmmt and whO8b propbrtiee are the
means through rhloh the Psderal powera arb exenisbd.
.. - -
Honorable Uoorge H. Sheppard, Page 6
'IO the&fore 00n4iud0 that ad ralormai trxos laid
agelast The As4rloan Red Ok88 under the prbasnt olroum-
stances would not oonstltufe a dlreat burden upon the United
St8 tbs.
The purpoaes of The Aamrlean Red Cross 80 set
rorth In Tltlr )6, Chapter 1, 3eatlon 3, U. S. C. A., show
it to be a ohultabls organlsatloa. This b4lng the ease,
WI gust now oonsldu the poeslblllty of the building being
cxeapt iron taxation by reason or our state ConstltutscPn
and rtstutes. We r,rlotra portion of Attible 7150, V. A. C. S.,
4~ r0ii0as:
*The rollowing propsrty Uh81: be exe?ipt mm taxa-
tion, towit:
“. . .
"7. Fubllo charities. - All bui1Jings belonging
to lnstltutlons Of purely public oharlty, together with
the lands belonging to and 044UFIed by suoh institutiona
not lorsbd or ottbrwlae udbd with n view to prorlt, us1088
such rents and profits and all moneys an4 orsdlts are ap-
propriated by suoh inatitutiana solely to aurtain 8U4h
Institutions. . . .*
would aem fro3 the language
It qsotsd that the I
property oonseraeb
hbrs vary erftitivel;
t;ere w0tid
ntiiirbd
* lxampt. I;O.:bYbr, our courts
this protlslon 0r the statute ._
J
by their oonstruotlon of Artiole 8, Seotiou 2, or our State
Con8tltutlon. A hoat of Texas dealslona are In aoaord on the
propoeltlon that the propsrty mat be owned and used *uelu-
alrely* by the oharltable organiaatloa. The latrat expresalon
by ow highest oourt on this point Is round In the oass OS
City of Longtiaw v. Markham-%sRee Mezsmlal Hoqpltal, 137 Tex.
176, 152 S. Yf. (26) 1112.
Slno4 tht use to whloh the bnIldIng la put admittedly
18 not Nexoluslven, Fhb hmerloan Rad Or088 la liable for the
a& trlorea taxa laid against thr property inquired about.
woo&row Edwards
As8lDt‘nt