Honorable G. E. Rigby
County Audi'tor
Uvalde Gouhty *
Uvalde, Texas
Dear Sir: Opinion'No/O-4299
. . Fh: Under the facts submitted, is
a taxpayer entitled to a remls-
sion of penalties and interest
unilerHouse~Blll 76; Acts 47th
Leglslatirre,I~Regular
Session,
where'euch.tqes are paid after
November 1, 19411
This department has received and considered your written
request for an opinion. We quote from your request: _
“A taxpayer of this County went to the office
of the tax collector to inquire about the ,amoOntof
her taxes. -At .that time, the tti collector told her
that the Legislature had passed a bill remitting
penalty and Interest, under certain conditions, pro-
vidingtaxes were paid by November‘lst; that that he
had received the law. Thereupon, the tax collector
told the taxpayer, that upon receiving the law as
passed by the Legtslature, he would figure the taxes
and send her a-tax statement, and the taxpayer stated
that she isouldpay the taxes upon receipt of the
statement.
"The tax collector did not send this statement,
and the taxpayer did not come in to pay the taxes un-
til after November lst, at which time, the tax collect-
or told the taxpayer that he would be unable to issue
her a receipt unless she paid all penalty and interest.
Wf'would like to know whether or not, after the
above-conditions, the tax collector would have power
to accept payment of this.taxpayar?& delinquent taxes,
without collecting penalty and interest."
Honorable G. E. Rigby, page 2 O-4299
From the facts given in your letter we will assume
that the taxes were delinquent and that the taxpayer desired
to take advantage of the'provisions of House Bill 76, Acts 47th
Legislature; Regular Session, .1941,and that yours inquiry in-
volved the provisions of that Act. Section.1 of said House Bill
76 provides:
.eSection 1. That all interest and penalties
that have accrued on all ad~valorem or poll taxes
that were delinquent on or before July 1, 1940, due
the state, any county, common school district, road
district, levee Improvement district, water improve-
ment distr~ict,and water control and improvement
district, irrigation district and other defined sub-
divisions of.the state (and, subject to the provisions
hereinbefore and hereinafter contained, such interest
and penalties on delinquent ad valorem and poll taxes
due cities, towns and villages, and special~school
districts, and independent school districts,) shall be
and the same are hereby released, provided said ad
valorem'and pdll,taxes are paid on or before November
1, 1941.".,(Underscoring ours)
It iill be seen that the above statute, providing for
the remission of penalties and Interest, does not authorize the
assessor and collector of taxes to change the law so‘as to extend
the time withinwhich the taxes must be paid in order for the tax-
payer to avail himself of its~provisions.
The rule with reference to the power of public officers
is stated in Tex. Jur. Sec. 67, pp. &o-&2, inclusive, where it
is said:
"Public officers and governmental and admlnis-
tratiue~boards possess only such powers as are express-
ly,conferred upon them by law or are necessarily implied
from the powers so conferred. They cannot legally per-
form acts not authorized by existing law, and the repeal
of a statute authorizing an officer to do a particular
thing, or of the statute that created the office,
necessarily revokes and terminates its power.
"mile publid officers are for some purposes
agents.of the public and of the community which they
represent, they are agents whose duty and authority
Honorable G. E. Rigby, page 3 O-4299
are defined and lirritedby law; not agents with
general authority to bind the public. The rule
that an agent can bind his principal by. acts with-
in the apparent scope of his authority does not
apply to them. Ordinarily they cannot bind the
government which they represent beyond the authority
conferred upon them, in the absence of an estoppel
or ratification of unauthorized acts. Furthermore,
officers are not the agents of each individual member
of the community, and no citizen can be presumed to
assent to their illegal or unauthorized acts.
"Persons who deal with ~publicofficers are bound
to take notice of their powers and are charged with
knowledge that they can bind the government only as
authority has been conferred."
We think that the statement of the tax assessor-collector
to the taxpayer could not and did not change the existing law with
reference to the time within which her delinquent taxes must have
been paid in order to avail herself of the remission of penalties
and interest. Everyone is charged with knowledge of the law.
Since the statute does not confer upon the assessor and collector
authority to extend the time, stated clearly and unequivocally
therein, within which the payment of such taxes is required,,in
order for the taxpayer to avail herself of the remission,~and
since the assessor and collector, according to the authority cited
above, was not otherwise authorized to change the law, it follows,
therefore, that your question must be answered in the .negative and
that, under the facts submitted by you, the tax assessor and col-
lector would not have,the authority to accept payment of the tax-
payerts delinquent taxes without collecting the penalty and interest
due thereon.
We trust that in.this manner we have fully answered your
inquiry. _
Yours very truly
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
BY Harold MOCracken
Assistant
HM:EJ/ pam
APPROVED JAN 30 1942
GRGvER.SsELLERS
RIFtST~ASSISTART
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
APPROVED OPINION COMMITTEE
BY BWB, CHAIRMAN