.
THEATTORNEY GENERAL
San, II.Jaw8 Karen OpinionIlo.V-l.?%?
lvlrtrk!tAtbra6y
Laredo,Texas Re: Recessity Soi voters ohr
sixty years 0S a 0 wtko Qo
not Mbldb la ci &la8 6r
10,000 fnlzabltaatr
QC ROM '
to obtain poll tax exmp-
Dbar Sir: tlon certlflcates.
Tour request Sor an opinion concemm tha
for voters
nemorrlty over sixty years OS age who do
not residein cltles of 10,000 inhabitante or more
to obtrlnpoll. tax exemption certiflcat~a,
Article 34 OS the Texas ~lectlon COdb [a.B.
‘6, Acts $Znd Lse., R.S, 1951, ch. 492, p. lOg7) pro-
9%&s ia part:
Avery peracm subject to nane OS the
10~ tiarg &irquellficationa who shall h8ve
:. at&ail the age of twenty-one (21) yeape
awl who shall, be a citizen of the United
#Wtor, au who shall have resided In thlr
.. ‘. Stat0 bnb 4 1) year next preceding an elec-
tlm, urd thb I.&hat SIX (6) months tithln
tlba cmratj ln wIilah ho or she arrert3to vote
aball be tlesabd a qualltlemd elector, provi
Wat any wtbr who 10 rubjbct to,pay a pal P
tax aadkr theI l&lWB 0r this S*tb, rhm11bavr
yaia raid tax b6rcp0osrering to vot6 *t a,wg
r&otiai la tla.lr Stats am.3holds a re81ipt~
Article 42 OS the Texas BledilOn Code pro-
VUnrl
Wary veraoh who t,m a lu?sd voter
0th~6ms6 ma vho 18 exmnpt Tr cn paying 43
poll tax ahall be entitled to vote with:hc.lt
bbag mpukrra to pay a poll tex m
*.
BOA. 1, James Kazen, page 2 (v-1382)
obtained his certificate ol’ exemption
?ran the County T C llector when same
‘is required by thixpr&ieions of this
Code.”
Article 48 of the Texas Election Code pro-
vides in part;
*Every person who Is exempted by law
Sroa the payment of a poll tax, and who la
in other Peepects a qualified voter, who
reai&s in a city of ten thousand (1.9mO)
Wt@nts or more, shall, before the first
ai Februsry of the year when such voter
shall have become entitl.ed to such exemp-
tlon, obtain from the Tax Collector of the
c@unty of his or her residence, a certificate
shoving bie or her exemption from the payment
of a poll. tax. Such certificate shall. en-
title such voter to,vate at any electloT
helcl between the date of Lts issuance and a
pe 1013?f one (1) year from the 31st dq
dSfa@uarg following its issuance; e i .
*Although entitled to an exemptian
cert&?icate. no one shall. vote who does qqt
p~ssees a current exemtion certificate.”
IA the case of Huff v, mfriela, 251 8.w. 298,
299 (Tax. Civ. App, 1923), the court 0a~I.d:
. The facts show that this voter
ha8 aot $4 the poll tax and obtained a
rmm$pt
“6 hat would have 6Atithd him to vote
la the pear 1922, However, he teatlfle&
b&d he waa born on Fehruarg 1, 1860,, and
aansequently was 62 mare old OA February 1,
1922, and therelore exempt from the payment
IA Attorney Oeneral’s Opinion O-7034 (1946),
it la said at page 7:
“The statutes recognize that in saw
rrslaaa Qo certificate is required, ae, $0
aul*h’le, ia the case 0S a peraan over 4&g&g
#b&qrr Oc lgga who &es aot reside In a cit$
6f t&n bhouaana inhabitants OF more.’
.
Han, 8. Jemer ICezen, page 3 (V-1382)
Ita a kottur epinlon written to Haa. lllbeat
1. amsrr, Coua~yAtAmlmy math 6Qay 8~$*atille,
Nxrr, date@ Jaauary 12, 1850, t:hLa ofi ee he ar
‘it la not newmary *or thoee votera
who am exempt from tie payment of poll tams
of a e, who
no 0f ty of
0 BBCUM ex-
to vote. &.g
253 83. 298 (Tax. 0%~. App.
It vial be observed that the Texas Zlsction
codi3aateS,aa no provlcllon requiring vaterr over 6ixty
uam c?i age who do not rurlae in altie of 10,000 ln-
% bltam~ or more to obtain poll tax exemption certi-
ilcatgr i,a order ta vote at elections held in this State.
Xn the abetmoe of thin provision, it is oil opinion that
the mls of law announced in the above cam end opinions
rtlll control8 and 6hP.t the parsons 1nqUfred about are
not raqtdrsd to obtain poL1 tax exemption certiflcatee.
(fiaae the City OP Lmsdo in your judicial
dirtriat har a population of 51,910 lnhabltaat~ ac-
oorQlng to the 1950 lredsrrl Oenaus, it may be helpful.
if WI pd.& out a mce#It change in th4 law ml@tive to
voter8 over stity meam of age rssiotry; tn aitbes of
10,000 tahabltaatsor wore obtalw ur;nur$ #MY.& tax
emrpptioncert1Moat4s.
Zn 1945, tAt3 Ia ialature amaM#
V.Q&. (Acts 49th ,kg.# 184 5, oh. 39, 0.
provide in part:
“Ycve~y p:rac& who i8 axaa@eu by law
?rom the pa-at 0% a poll tax, i3mI who 18
in other r4epeota 9 qualWl4d Wter, vho ru-
sides in a city ot taa thowerd (1~0,000) in-
habitants or am-u, shal.1, bsfom the first
dlrf of February o$ tlm year w&u* *aoh votsr
8hal bw4 awam4 4ntftlee t,o rwb emaptfon,
*tesn tror t9rw Tax 40llectar 0r tha cwty
ai b*s or her reaU.dence, 0 certltlcste mhov-
Lrql; ;"*U& i84r 4X4@SiOll iFPa tk4 &Jlb#belltOf
epw Mu .
*auoh exuspt person shall on oath stets
%OS8.%. James Kaeea, page $ (~~1-582)
occupation, the length of' time be has reslbeb
in said county, and the length of time in the
city, -and the number of the ward or voting
preointit In which he rOBides, and shall also
state his street addresc by name and number,
Li ambered, an8 the grounds upon which he
g&mm ewrptlon from the pa-at of a poll
a'. . .
‘All certificates of exemption sha~ll.
be renevetl or reissued annually.”
In Thomas v, Groebl, 147 Tex. 70, 212 9.W.213
625, 532 (194q the court held that. the Legislature in
enacting,the ab& amendment *did not intend that voters
exempted from the payment of the poll tax, who have pro-
cured certificates of exemption as required by the first
paragraph of the amended article, shall 1044 their rtghts
to vote for failure to procure renewed or r4lseued c(brtl-
iicetes for the current gtiar -”
However, in this connection the court said at
page j29:
“If that had been the Intention of the
1eSislature in rewriting Article 2958; It
could very lashy have been expressed, ae vem
alearly expressed in Section 2 of Article VI
of the Can&itution, the intention to me&
the peym4nt of the poll tax before fibruU?y 1
.eaoh mar and the DrocurIIU? of a reodiat show-
Hon. X. Jam& bzen, page 5 (V-1382)
fail, bJ the UEB OS plain terms which easily
coul8 Rare been employeb to maIs+ the procur-
ing ofis Peneved 0~ reisausb certlfla*te a
condition to the exerciring of t’he right to
vote; it does not even we in comeetlon wl*
the provision a8 to annual runeval or reia-
nuance of the certificate, or eleevhece, such
vordr 81 ‘of the yam in whlslr he or rho of-
fers to vato’, which ace use4 in Art&ale 2$68a,
oc suah vorde ee ‘before. . . he OP she of-
fers to vote,’ whtch vere ussd Ln ArtUile et%
before itr amendment la 1930. The amen~e;
of 19&S contains merely the stabemantr
certificate8 of exemption ehall be renewed OF
reissued annually. Ia
tution of the following prrvisionst
t * Such certlfloate shell entitle
mmh v&*to vote at say electionheld be-
tvebn the dete of Its ireuante sad a riod
of 0134 (1) ear from the 3lst Qay of r amary
foll,ovliy( i t 8 issum8*. . * .
The 52na Le ilrlrturs la prmurwd to have km
full aware of the ho !!
ala& in Thmal v+ QAW
By d,’e uee of the plern and ,uaequivoCW’ Lm&e%&
quote,d, it alearly eviQmce4 an 0itrntlonto chaagethe
tav $0 a6 to requ~irs robrrr ow& rixtp pace of age m-
rld%r in citkr of &O,QOO%nhebitrot#or more to obtain
alawf 1 1ta xla to q tio n
eertltlcrtesbefore the fir&
4~ of ~bruwy of each fear ia oMer to be quallffodto
VOL at 4o~otlonr Ike14 %n thie State.
Voter8 over sixty yeare of eec who do
not reside in citlea of 10,000 inhabitante
or more are not required to obtain poll tax
Boa. E. James Kazen, page 6 (Vk~82)
4me tion aertificates in order to rot&
et “
03eeations held in this State. Huff v.
pfflsla, 251 S.W, 298 (Tex. Clv, hoi,.TV23).
With reference to voters wet six*
yeapa of age ~whoreelbe In cftler of 10,000
inhabitantsor more, the 52nd LagislstPre
amentled the law 80 as to make It men$Otory
that they obtain poll tax exemption aertl-
ficatee mm&ally before the first day of
Fee;uaw of eech year in order to be quall-
vote at elections held In this State.
Art. 3 , Texas Election Code (X.8. 6 Aats
a, RoS. 1951, ch. 492, pv lo&, 8B
Yourr very truly,
AP?ROVBD% PRIOB DAluBL
Attorney ffeUWel/
Everett Eutohlneon
Xxrcutlvr Aeol8tant
Price Daniel *e.EltzlhJ,
AttO?my fJfH@ral C, Ihvls. Jr,
Aorlrtdt
JoDml