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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
I AUSTIN
, GDuLDc.m-
A-am-
Honorable L. A. BOO&~
Stat0 Superintonodootof Publia Xnstruotion
Aurtin, Toxar
In your httrr of
o&nlon aa to whethor a aer8
pendent Sohool Diotxiot ia e
that oapaoity# ha ha&z kon tho oat& aa4
asruamd 80 serve. you ark seed not
b6 notloe4 in YiSW oi our
~oiul aat ot the
Le&i8l&urO~ Ibus oe 28, page 43,
Spcolal -Luw8, $9 Ho. 3 thereof readr;
said Freaoh
in a boar6 of
mated for the purposr
r5.n porsone who #hall
ns un(Iqualiried property
raid.cohool df#trloti.
wt8e6 or raid 60h00i
and,rxemior and 18
all the rights, power8
ln@osed bp the General hW8 of the State
OS Texas upon trwteor and board8 of trurt-
oea OS lndepenb6nt sohool dhttrlQt8."
~8 we undrretand your letter, the zrwtre’r father
snA mthsr owned a piece of lend in this DIrtriot at thr tkPl
Ebaorabl~ I+.A. Wooti, Pago a
of tho wthU’8 death IO=0 ton year8 ago. 'II8 pthor that it
Wa8 ooBmuBlty property. tlonor,the trustee lnhoritsd 8~ UB-
divided one-fourth iRttil8t in the land, therm being om othor
ohl1.bOS the wrriagr 8UnitiB& Tha rather ha8 not liveI on
tho land tar w year8 but it has aontinuad to be listed on
tbr urtnder86 tax roll8 aad on Other rooorda in the naaa of
tho fatlwr. It is our undorataading, hme?er, that the wn
8tI.U 0wn8 tk0 undivided Latrreat iahWitc?bfrom hi13mothor.
'fh4tl'U8tM OOOU~ia8 the Pl'OpOrtyl 8 hi8 hOW. All tax@8 ae-
aruing t&no0 1931 oa the land are Qelinqoent and there ir l
su it p o mling
lyinat the rather of thr trustos for ths oolloo-
tloa or oha urtnI The trustee has not eotuallp paid a4 prop-
lrtjr taxer. vihl1.0 you do aot 8psofffoaUy w d&e, we under-
rtan~ thatthetrustsa harpai(lhirpell tax& 18 in au
thinga qualiiied ii under tha facts a8 8teted abora b) 18 a
property taxpayer. The qwrtion thus prueated is whether l
rcipmay bo 4 pro&mrty tax$mpin(r voter until be aRt?talq Paf8
tuea on his property. For, as the edus 18 eubmftted to aa,
it is Udi8pUtOd t&t he Ow UL un6ivid.d interest in land
lying within the Dlstriot.
From the opinion OS Judge Xiolmui in the oam OS
Barron V8. Matthews, a 8. 11. (ta) 461, bQJfOFsthe ydi8tkiltd
court or Cltil Appeal, we qootr as followa;
"The facts disolose that the VOtOr8'who
.were ohallanged by this proposition lotUally
owned praputy, subbjiotto hratiOB, within
the diatrist. Tholr propfly had bati arseoeed
for taxer for the year lBZ9. They were othsr-
Wire qualified tOteP8, ~2ndthe QPl8tbB Oi hW
prerontsd Is, ware they property tax pa ing
votere under the pro~isl~n~oofthe COn8titution
OS TBXBE, art. 7, 8 31
%%ith oommendablr irunkness appellants
aonoodothat v8rious QOrVt8 0r 0its.lappealr
have heI& oorrtraryto their coatmtlon a8 to
the meaning of 'property tax paying voters,*
but iwlat that them deeieions iiaproerly in-
terpret t ha langaagm of the Constitat !on.
With this view wo oannot ager. The owmr-
ship of property subjeot to taxation rm%ers
one liable for tha pvnt OS tares, and the
.-, fact of &sllnqurnoy doe8 not 0-y with it the
penalty of being deprive6 0r 8 tote at an
rleotlon for the purpose of taxing gho prop-
arty. This question has b6.n deter&nod, Ud
Eenorablo L. A. Woods, Page 3, .;,
we think ootreotly, In th0 fOiiOWiB& 0%308:
Rhoaibrrgv. UoLuenn, 81Tex. CiV. AQP~ 391,
al S. W. 5711 iUli3m3n v. Falson, Zb Tex.
Ci?. App. 398, S7 3. W. 920; KOIIQWvr Brunt3
(Tax. Cir, A>>.) 195 5. 3. 643; winters v.
IndepcJndant2ohool Dirtri6t of Erant (Tax.
Civ. AQg.) 208 8. Y. 574.
Wpontho authority of those aasea, md
becmiaewe bellan they announoo a oorrect
lnterpretatien of tha oonatltutiaaal requirr-
xmnt, w8 o*urulo proposition 100. 8, and hold
that the fotua thurbln name4 were Is&ally
qualltlebto rote at thm bead eleetIoa.*
The @as00 eited in the above quotation Su8tab the
opiBlon. We quote troo. Judge Jonkim ophloa in ~fI¶ter8 vs.
Ew;endent Sahool Di8triot of Emnt, ES8 3. 1. 574, 4s fol-
I* l + A taxpayingvoter, do la other-
wler quallriad, does not man that his pop-
erty met hare beea lssaasrd for taxes, but
only that he Is liable for the payment of
suoh t8Xb8, This llabillty is oreated br
assesmlent of taxes by ths BO3waisaioIIers'
court. If the owner of property baa not
render the saxa for taxation,it should be
put on the unren4ored roll. If this is not
don8 for any year or mulea Of y8arl3, baOk
tarea may be oollaotad on suoh unre&demd
progorty for such time as the sam 18 not
barred bg limitation."
Tha term ~qual~fied property tax yin& vot*r,a a8
uaa4 in .Irtlcle7, Seotloa 3, 0r the ConstFtutlon, Wa8 uuder
oousiderntIon in the Barron ~8. Matthews aase, and PE the
eurot tarn is used In the Xot creating the ?renoh Independent
Sohool Distriot and pr68OribiAIUthe qusalIfioatlonooi its trUsti-
ees, wo think the ~ltlningasoribed to It slmuld be tho sam.
Our answer to your quertlon, therefore 1s that so tar
aa the iaota am dlsolosod the trustee 1s quallf~ed to oontinuo
servloe.
Your8vorytruly
APPROVEDJUN 7, 1940
ATTORNEY GENERAL O%'!SGXAW