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The Attorney General of Texas
September 18, 1979
MARK WHITE
Attorney General
Honorable Gibson D. (Gib) Lewis Opinion No. Mw-58
Chairman, Committee on ’
Intergovernmental Affairs * Re: Effect of a proposed charter
House of Representatives amendment which would inhibit the
Capitol Station 2910 taxing authority of the City of Fort
Austin, Texas 78769 Worth.
Dear Representative Lewis:
You have requested our opinion regarding the effect of a proposed
amendment to the Charter of the City of Fort Worth. The proposed
amendment, which may be submitted to the voters at the general election to
be held on November 6,1979, provides:
723Main. S”iw 610
“Ousbnl. TX 77002 The ad valorem’tax rate of the City of Fort Worth
7WZ8-0701 shall be divided into two separate and distinct tax
rates; those being described and named Bond Rate
and General Fund Rate. Further, that the Bond Rate
shall be set for the Fiscal Year of 1979-1980at that
rate which shall provide for the retirement of legal
bond payments as prescribed for that 5scal year, and
no more, and that subsequent year% rates be set
accordingly. Further, that the General Fund be set
for the fiscal year 1979-60 at the rate which shall
produce $26 Million Dollars revenue, with no
provision for delinquency or uncollectables, and that
in subsequent years, shall be set at that rate which
will produce a growth rate in Ad Valorem taxes not to
exceed 5% of the previous year’s revenue from Ad
Velorem Taxes.
At present, the city charter requires that the tax rate be set by the City
Council prior to October 1 of each year. You state that the adoption of the
amendment would require that the 1979-80 rate be set at an amount
substantially lower than that which will be set by the Council prior to
October L YOU ask therefore whether the amendment may lawfully be
applied to the 1979-60 tax rate.
P- 183
Honorable Gibson D. (Gib) Lewis - Page Two (Mw-581
The question presented here is ln many ,respects similar to that considered in
Attorney General Opinion MWjl (19?91. In that opinion, we held that legislation
implementing a constitutionally derived tax exemption could not be awlled to tax
liabilities which had become “5xed by levy end assessment” as of the Statute’s effe&Ve
date. We relied in part on article Ill, section 55 of the Texas Constitution:
The Legislature shall have no power to release a extinguish, or to
authorize the releasing or extinguishi, in whole or in part, the
indebtediieas, RabilIty op &ligation of any corporation ce
individual, to this State or to any county or defined subdivision
thereof, or other municipal corporation therein, except delinquent
taxes which have been &e for a period of at least ten years.
Under the circumstances you have described, adoption of the charter amendment would
extinguish, in part, the liability of individuals to a political subdivision of the state. Since
8 home rule city may exercise only those powers which the legislature itself could have
exercised, it follows that a city may not act to “authorize the releasing or extinguiihing,”
in part, of the liability of individuals to the City of Fort Worth.
Under the terms prescribed in Attorney General Opinion MW-4 (l979), a “taxpayer’s
liability hisfixed when these two requlirements are met, the assessment has been made and
there has been a legal levy.” See Cracker v. Santo Consolidated LS.D., llfl S.W.Zd750
(Tex. Civ. App. - l&&land 1938,rit dismQ3L vLe@ refers to the City Council’s act in
imposing the tax and fixing the rate, Clegg v. State, 42 Tex. 605, 610-ll (1875), while
%ssessmenta describes “the administrative process of applying the tax rate to an
individual’s property end thereby determining the amount he owes.” Attorney General
Opinion MW-4 (l9791. According to the present requirements of the Fort Worth City
Charter, the tax rate must be levied prior to October L Since assessments will also have
been made prior to the date of tlte charter amendment election, the amendment may not
constitutionally affect the 1979-80 tax rate. Such a construction would not render the
amendment totally ineffective, however, since it also includes a valid provision limitii
the annual growth,rate in ad valorem taxes to “5% of the previous year’s revenue from Ad
Valorem Taxes.”
SUMMARY
Since the tax rate is levied and assessments are made prior to the
election of November 6, 1979, a proposed amendment to the
Charter of the City of Fort Worth adopted that date will be
ineffective to affect the 1979-80 tax rate. The amendment would,
however, limit future taxes to a rate which would produce a growth
of not more than 5ve percent of the previous year’s revenue from
ad valorem taxaticn.
MTRK WHITE
Attorney General of Texas
P. 184
Honorable Gibson D. (Gib) Lewis - Page Three (.NW-58)
JOHNW. FAINTER, JR.
First Assistant Attorney General
TED L. HARTLEY
Executive Assistant Attorney General
Prepared by Rick Gilpin
Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
C. Robert Heath, Chairman
David B. Brooks
Susan Garrison
Rick Gilpin
Myra McDaniel
William G Reid
Bruce Youngblood
P. 185