Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

.~, TEEATTORNEY GENERAL OPTEXAS~ AUSTIN 11. TEXAS PRICE DANIEL #.TTORNEY GENERAL Novamber 17, 1950 Han;. S4m Lee Opinion No. V-l 123, Cmmty Attagneg BtwAosia county Re: Legality & accepting do&n- AngIeton, Texas queqt rchool district 01) roul district taxau when the teller omits Wces &Fred by lin&ta- l3ar MC. I.&M Mcrr, Your rsqueot lo* rn opt&m pwans&* Uu ttilajq q-r- (bans :, “(1) kuet the Tax Collector ef B~aaosb County, Texas, teccive a tender for payment of delinquent taxes whore the same or&s pryment of those trms which are barred by &tmitation u&M Article 7298, viz., road district taxes 4nd school district taxes mert than ten years delinquent 7 “(2) In the event ti~&tit is held that the Tax Cal- lector mugt accept this te!nder of tax moneys, must he hue a receipt to the taxpaydr for the same? “(3) In the evant he must accept the tax moneym 45~3 issue a receipt thorefar, would the t4xp6yer be en- titbrd to a redemption certificate if all of the taxes were paid by the taxpayer with the exception of tha common school district or road district texes delinquent for more than ten yaars 7 n Your first question has heretofore been answered by this office in Opinion No. O-4495 (1942), a copy of which is herewith enclosed, Tha conclusions reached in that opinion compel a nega- tive amiwer to your first question. Since OpWon Q-4495 (1942) was rendered the Supreme Court ia 1947 in the case of Sam Bassett Lumber Co, v. City of Houston, 145 Tex. 492, 198 m) d f’ It 1 ttl d m that Article 72911, V.C:Sf, is a stat& o: ifrn%ti% wehicthh goes only to the remedy available te the taxpayer in a suit for taxes, and does not have the effect of releasing or extinguishing the tax liability, Hon. Sam Lee, Page 2 (V-1123) It is quite true thaat under the 1932 amendment to Sec- tion 55 of Article III of the Constitution, the Legislature could, If it desired to do so, release or extinguish this tax liability; but Ar- ticle 7298, last amended in 1931, fixing the ten-year statute of liai- tation as to school district and road district taxes, doer not kve this effect. The Legislature, however, in 1935, pursuant t@ the au- thority granted by the 1932 amendment to Section 55 ef Article fgf of the Constitulion, did release and extinguish all ad valorem Wce$ due the State, county, municipality or other defined suWivislon that were delinquent prior to Dec,ember 31, 1919, by the etractmarU of Section 1 of Article 7336f, which reads as follows: “The collection af all delinquent, ad valorem taxes due the State, County, Municipality or ether defined Sub- division that were delinquent prior to December Jlst, 1919, is forever barred.” The language of tkis provision ef the statute is wtte different from the language used in Article 7298, fixing a tan-year statute of limitation as to school aad read district taxes. The lan- guaee of Section 1 of Article 7336f is, “The collection af all dalin- quent, ad valorem taxes due the State, County, Municrpality or other defined Subdivision that were de’tinquent prior to December 31, 1919, ia forever barred”; whereas, the langua, e of Article 7298 is, “ao it hall be bkought fer the collection et delinquent thxes of a ScEaaol gst:ict Or Road Distri,ct unless instiNted within ten years firm the time the same shall beclme delinquent.” An examination of the iti1 mntext of prior opifiose of this office, referred to in your re$@est, do not conflict with our OQlW ion v-734 (1948), pertaining to drainage district kaxes. Thfs opirnion was confined exclusively to drainage district taxes. As held in that opinion and the supporting authorities cited, “Such districts are cre- ated by constitutional and statutdry authority, and exist seprate and apart from the counties wherein thdy are located. . . . Ia the abaesce of some statutory authority requiring the taxpayer to pay his draina@ tax, which is a separate tax and secured by a separate lien, at the same time he pays his State and C@unty taxes, such a requirementis unauthoritied, notwithstanding his d,rainage tax is upon the same tax roll as the State and Ceunty taxes.” Our negative answer to your first queotion makes UINC- essary an answer te- your scccd and thfrl questfogs. WIom Sam Lee, Page 3 {V-1123) Article XW8, V.C.S., is a statub crf ~bktotbn that goes to the rswedy available to a taxpy@ in a suit to collect school and road district taxes, and does not have the effect of releasing or extingukhing: such taxes. I is tkieyofme proper for the tax ce%l~~tor to tiej;tuae ta accept State mid county taxes WNhaut ‘the pay- &b&%$@ af s,qhai%l and road d&tricF taxes aesessed otl t&e 4&m@ r&l, e+.Ws bhauglr thib latter are &liW+w&$k fat tstil ycats 194 fwie. PRICE DANfEL Attorney General, APPROVED: I$. P. Lollar w. v,, Geppert Assistant Taxation Division Eve,rett Hutchinsen Executive Assistaht