. .
THE ATTOR~TEYGENEW
OF TEXAS
July 25,.lg6o
Honorable Franklin Smith Opinion No. w-894
County Attorney
Nueces County Re: Levy of taxes by rural
Corpus Christi, Texas fire preventiondistrict for
year during which district
Dear Mr. Smith: was created.
Your recent letter informs us that a rural fire
prevention district was established for Flour Bluff, a Nueces
County community, In March of 1960, under the provisions of
Article-2351a-6, R.C.S. You then request the opinion of this
office as to whether or not taxes for support of the District
may be levied for 1960 since it was not in existence on
January 1, 1960, the date for fixing property valuation for
taxation purposes. Chlldress County v. State, 127 Tex.. 343,
92 S.W.2d 1011 (19361; Humble Oil & Refining Co. v. State,
3 S.W.2d 559 (Tex.Ci~.App. 1927, err.ref.).
It Is our opinion that the District may levy the tax
for the year during which it was created.
.Section 8 of Article 2351a-6 provides that the
Commissioners Court may, upon the granting of a petition
(Section 2), call an election to confirm the organization of a
rural fire prevention district and to authorize the levy of a,
tax, not to exceed three cents on the One Hundred Dollars
valuation. Sections 10, 12 and 17 of the Article grant the
district authority to levy and enforce collection of such tax
against the lands and other property wlthln Its bounds. Section
12 also provides that the County Tax Asseseoa-Collector shall,
upon certification of the levy, assess and collect the tax
based upon the values of property in the district as shown on
the county tax rolls.
A question similar to the one you ask was treated
In the Article "A Discussion of Tax Exempt Property in the State
of.Texas", b W.~V. Geppert, Baylor Law Review, Vol. XI, p. 134
(Spring 1959 7 , at page 147, from which we quote:
"Newly Created Water Districts
"In recent years the following problem
has frequently vexed the assessor-collector:
Bonorable Franklin Smith, Page 2 Opinion No. wkk894
“A Water District is created after
January 1st of a given year; does such
district, although not in existence on
January lst, have the authority to levy
a tax for that year and Is the County Tax
Collector required to collect same?
“It is the writer’s opinion that such
newly created water district has the authority
to levy a tax for that year and that the County
Tax Assessor-Collector should collect the tax
as provided by the statute. This opinion is
based on the case of Cadena v. State, 185
S.W. 367 (Tex.Clv.App. 1916 err.ref’ ti-
N.R.E.)f, which holds that here an inie-
pendent school district was created after the
1st day of January of a given year, all pro-
perty within such newly created district,
which was owned by the taxpayer on January 1st
of that year, was subject to taxation for’ that
year. There Is apparently no reason why the
same rule of law should not be applicable to
newly created Water Districts.”
The opinion in the Cadena case states the following
rule :
“All property owned on the 1st day of
January is subject to any tax authorized by
law, whether such taxes have been authorized.
theretofore or may be authorized during the
year, and can be levied by the body given the
power to levy at any time during the year.
Laws natnlngthe time for the levy of taxes
are merely directory, and legal taxes can be
levied whenever the necessity arises. Laws
authorlzlng taxes are not retrospective so
far as the year in which they are authorized
Is concerned.”
This rule is also applicable to the situation presented
here involving fire prevention districts.’ You are, therefore,
advised that a tax may be levied and collected by the rural
fire prevention district you describe, under the provisions of
Article 235la-6, for the year 1960. It is, of course,
necessarily assumed for the purpose of this opinion that such
district was duly organized under the procedure set out by
Article 235la-6 and that the requirements of that Article
relative to lmposltlon of a tax have been observed.
Honorable Franklin Smith, Page 3 opinion No. WW-894
SUMMARY
A rural fire prevention district may levy
and collect taxes, as authorized by the
provisions of Article 2351a-6, R.C.S., for
the year during which it Is created.
Yours very truly,
WILL WILSON
Attorney General of Texas
JRI: jip
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE:
Gordon ,Cass, Chairman
Linward Shivers
w. 0. shultz
Tom McFarling
Glenn Brown
REVIEWEDFOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
By: Leonard Passmore