Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF T‘EXAS AUBYIN IIonorab1.e Lutlxc C. Johaeton county kttorney Pale8tlne,Texas Dear air; opinion ao. O-4048 Be:. Doe6 the term squalififod.votera ae useU in the Test8 Liquor Oontrol Aot mean that a pmf~on muet be qtitrhd t0 y0t0 b~en.t0 thb O*tit of havtngpatd aLa poll %a8 Or 8elng exempt fTealpayingflame;?woN hlr alunatureon 8 petltfanrequetilai3i loeat option~elwMon oaa bsmunted i~0oarputtngtbenumbs~0i qwm0a voters who hate eignea the psbitionv Your leeter of September 08, lWl, r~qu#~t$n$gn' opinion of this Departdmnt on the above ofa+,& queatiloa; $&ads 88 foii.OW*: *Art1018 666-32 or the Mm Liquor OontroS Act provides in p&r I. . . a& .sUOhcourt hall atier a looal option eleotion whanever pettitlonedto do 80 by OS many aa ten 426) per oent of the qual.iSfedvotera of eaid oounty. . W* I)oee the term ~quallfiedvoter* as ueed above mean thsb a pereon AMI% be quaLi$iedto vata, even to the extent of !mlng &d his poll tax or bein$ execempt from pa ing sruae,'o0r0r6 hin si ture on a gbtltion &auert 9 iq a looal option el.eat r 011can be oountsB in oomputlnG t>ionumber ci qtmlfiledvoter6 who have fJi@~d the-petition? 'It la my opinion that this queeti~n should be answered in the afflrmtlve# that is, a perso +st have.either paid hi8 poll.tax or be exengt fr SCIE~ before he can rai&~a petition oalling $0 x2 option election. Alsersv, Remlngtilui, O&o* App+, 118 . Honorable Luther C. Johnrton, page 2 , 9. i-i,(za) 714:I Arti 666-S, Penal 0ode.a Artiole 6066-32,Vsmon*s Ahnotatad Penal.Code, providesr "The oomniaslonors~oourt or enoh dounty in tM,e State upon its own motion PPayorder an rlsotlan $0 bo held by the qui%lifledvoter@ in said oounty, to detomina whether or not tho fialeof liquor8 aholl be &1rohlbj##6 or lsgallzed in suoh 001&y, an&moh aourt shall orUs l loool option elsotlon whax~svsrpetitioned to do so by aa amay a8 to5 0.0) per Q8nt ot’ the qualdfied votie~6 OS raid county, of anyjustlcs prsoinat, city or town, Lg- votes ror governor at the last preceding gemeral~’ YSL1ootSs.u as tha basis r0r atmtii3ing the qualiriedVO~TB in my cuoh county, or polltioal rubdl~islon. . .!! Artfole 2954, Vwnon~e Annotatul 0Ml.l Btatutso, name8 the olasees of persons whopshall sot ba allowed to VOW in slls LxYAt3. i.rticle2959, Vwxmn*s Annotafctd Clvfl~tetubss, 6fbtsf0tih the quPlfri06itl0nt fw v0ti5g in tafs minta The OEIIB0r Akere Y. Rti~ton, 116 8. w. (84) 7i4, JRentiOAIb~ in yOuFletter, ‘zuImgOtbr thiLXSSshold0 %Aa?oQt that un~az the Liquor Control Aat,the oommlsEl.on~rat sourt of the oouhty oould adopt my GWW it thought proper to msertain irthe parsone sl~hiz7ga petition for local option ele*ttioa wars legal voters of tho oounty and whsthsr or not ten psr 0-t of t&e quallfledvoters .oftiikoouctyhad s&.nad it al rsqtind by Art-Sole664-i%, supra. 3a.b ewe rurthsr h&t* Shat under the above mention& atiiOlo that t3 petition ~hiOkrZnS 8iSo.sd by pLorethan ten per oat of the qualifiedvoter%, praying for the oamissloners*.oourt to oalZ a looal option eleOtion wal) eurrisient notwithstandingthat it falletlto show on its fasr that the arlgmrs were ~diriea voters or alsotora of th? aouatyl or corsltitutm?ten per oent of the qualifiedvoter6 ha ths oounty. Thheword “qualiitad” is defim?+d in i’icmb~ aid FIUmJbl, paraanent.edition,Yol. 36, pa 660, as follows? *;lualiried is synonyaouswith *ausoeptible~oapablei 00rPpetentq rittin63 posesraing legal povmr or eapaoity." noaorable Luther 0. Sohnetoa, me ?I On page 589 ln the a msntloned ~olunioof &+rds and 3%m306, KB fin% the foll:‘ing %: definition Of a lgal$- fled elector: "A qaalified9leOtOI'Viithin Cixo local option law . provldin~ for getltlon for 5 looal option eleotlon io'be clsnod by one-third 02 t;he'quallfled eleotore of the cougty, 68 shown by the poll llet or return8 and oanvaeQ2f the last generaL eleotloz, 1s one who puets the reqL;iz;e;?entaof Conmt., Artlole 7;Seotion lIW (Rutlad@ v. Board of Suprr. of hlarp\utte $kmnty, 100 Uloh. 2.2) On pcqya600 of the above mentioned volume of ,$@dr aud Phrneea we find the followingdetlnltlon of the ta.lll'&ali- iied rot.erP: W:~uallfledvote& within the looal optloa~lanpzp rldlng that a looal option &M&ion ahall be slgrud by *qualliiedvotere~ who are qualified to vote ior members of th6 leglelature,ace thobo penonrr who h6vo the ~nUi- floatlone epeoifisd by the Bonetltutlonand by Aev. St., 1899, sea. t39%4,. . . there being no speolal quallfioa- tlon for persons entitled to vote for m&era of the lsglelature." (99 8. lf.269) Anothw deiFoition lto~ndin Vioti6end ?bra80# 16 (raiioll0~3 : *A qualified voter is Ueflned in I~evieed'tatutss, 1899, . . . to be one who under the general lawa t t t&a State would be allowed to vote in any oounty ror State 8Ad cousltyoftlc4rs and who hna meided in the diotrfct thirty &aye prsoedlng ttm sohool disttriotmeotlng in ?;hiahhe offers to vote." "A qualifiedvoter ie one who by law fs ontit1.d to.vote st an election, 'Whoreeleotora are required to register, an elector who falls to eo register is not a ~umllfled voter althou& he possessesother qualltloat~one." We think that the tern *qualifiedvetarv as wed in ;I&lole 660-32, supra, means tioae who are qualified to Vote, un6sr the Constitution and statute6of this Xuta, and w&O ase pu@ifie% to vote in the looal option elootion whioh IS to be Oe]iled by remon of the said petitlo& 'die respeotfullyaaiswbrthe eb,(ivestated q+.WStiGn Zn the arfimatlve. Emwrable Luther C. Sohaeton, pw 4 Trusting that the for8go51~3fully answer8 your lnquiq, we are FIRST ASSISTAHT ATTORNEY GENERAL b.rdeli%k'lllfam hnaiataat