Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion

baornble Jale, E.xildry DiTOOtOT, %tOr'hmE~X'tIItiOn Dirlda Eailroad CoMi66lan o? Texm dUEt,At,f6X.6 D68r sir: opinion x0 .:hl~s Hec w 1*raog.oi oortifioate qporti&ire~ ll6tween inter6tate abdXktrutit4 h6imii,. we*r‘a i96 equil“to tecp& 66nt of the oolntt ~pportlcwd to intlu6tate yl6in666 only. In yiur Latter of OetobEr 17, 19S9, pou subaifth6 foll~wbg f86tEt "Jntrutat6 Co6monCurierXotor C+wl6r Certifio&e Ho. 2878, owned by the B.&A. Mot& b6ight~n66 InO., ha6 b6en 16666d fio.the8un- 6et Motor Line6 for th6 put thlwe'y6ar6 for a oon6~duatiaof)580.00 p6rwnth,ten p6r oont of 6dd 6uxlthlymat6 being oolleoted w thii Dep6rtmmt for orsdit to the State Hi-y Rand. Ik new haw3 an applloation to remw raid lea60 for a oonrideration of $6ij&oO per month, 6ettbLg out that ~)soo.~ of tb modthly?=6id- emtim paid fob said lease ,Ehall'hSdomed to be ps+idia 'kOZ,EidE&SiOnOf the InterEtatO I-i&t6 and #2M).OOthereof 6hall b desmsdto b6 pid for the lntrr6tate right6; ad fh6 le66Or ad 1066eo oontend that u6 should oolleot only tin per oent.of th6 $260.00 whioh th6y olaim i6 the oonsideration paid for the intIXEtat6 Operating rights. Hmwnble J6qe6 E. I(ildy, &P 2 6%e ill6tWltappli6&,iOu itIV'O1V'66 a rSm 6xell oon6idderation,btt if the praotio6 i6 follomud, it till ultimately re6ult in tiw 1966 of6.n appmoi*bl6 ~ouutofrevenue to the W*. Th6 cert1f1atereferredto i6 6nizItr66t6t6 eer- tifiOat6 i66ued w th0 Ballroad QlmniSEiOn Of Ten6, authorlrlug an operation betw66n Eou6ton and San &tonio. %m reque6t En opinion frwl you a6tO whether oi not- 6hould ooll6ot t6n pero6nt of themonthlyrent8l of#250&0, olaimed tObe +&6 ~untpaidforth6intn6knte operating rlghti, or if m 6hould 00116ot ten per oent of the en- tire mnEider&iOn Of $66&o&" SeOtiOll6 Of &tiOlO 9114 VOmO!l’E Anuotated %X66 Ciril Stat- ut66. authori6es a 66l6, l66fgmwnt, lea6e, art&or ofs oertUio6te of publio oonwnieme md a66er&y for motor oarri6r6,Qd provldm that the 'tlUEl6fO2'66 Em1 Pg t0 the ColmniEEiOna - Of Mona bqti to ten per ~@ of the crmauntpaid a6 a oonsideration for th6tw6fer of the oertifi8ate, rhioh 61a often p6r 06nt 6hsll be deposited inth6 2tate Tnuury to the oreditofth6 Highway Fund of the Gtate...." & thi6 OpiaiO~~866U6.6 thd the WZ'tifiWte &ioned inyour letter i6 a 06rtifiate of publio oomenienoti and neo666ity d66oribed in 6aid &-tlOlCI,and i6 not * Per6 p6XXIitto do 6l%iBt6rEtkItebuEine66 on the hi(;hnyE Of TeU6. The State ha6 no authori* to re$aire or gr@nt a 6er- tifi6at6 of public oonvenleno6 an3 neoerrsiw oovering intercltatawweroe, but doe6 have the pow6r to d6ny'the u60 of its hi-6 to inter6tate motor olfti6,'6,u 6uoh IA66"Oti 6ubj6Ot the higtiy6 t0 ex(M66lVe bWden6, Or endanger the 66fetyorordi~ryu~sr6 of the highBSy6. S&h Carolina ~6. Bgrnuell Bro6., 202 0. 8. 177 &uthu66t6zTI Greyho~d wZI6 76. Railroad @66i66iOn of %X66, 99 8.2. (2d) 263 Railmad hEEi66iOIlVEe 'Ilpp6,It10s.x (26) 1078 Railmad M66ion ~6. Loving, 128 8-m. (2d) 846 Baith~6~. Col66nn, 127 8-W. (26) 929 Hinton ~6. Tbomp~on, I22 &We (26) 961 HoDonald.6. ThornpEa, 69 &Ip. Ct. 176 Honorable Jgle6 E. itilday,Page S If Itbe trw that the oertifioate cover6 onlyizitra- 6tate OCMDWrW, it fOllOWI that it would b6 illOgiO6l t0 'ay that a portion of the m&al paid repre6ent6 the ralw of the bUEine66 don6 in intemtate oomnero6. 8inw the wrtifiwte gnUIt. n0 p6~M66iOn t0 do an i&6rEtat6 buSiW66, none Of th6 OOn6id&ation pid for lea6ing the oertif%Me oan be construed to be in payment ofth6 privileg6 of doing an itirrtat6 buSine66. The rule would not be different, however, if the oertifi- oata al60 oOn6titut66 a petit t0 do 6B interstate buEine66 on the hibhrays Of T6x86. It 16 uaneoe6aary to deoide here whether the pymant required by the 6tatute 16 an Innspeotionfee, or a tax im- powd for the u6e of the Stat8 higm6. In either case, it I6 not 6ubjOet to attWk 011the ground that it OOnEtituteE an WloOn6titu- Mona1 burd6n on inter6tate ocawroe. In mgardto Inspeotion fees, 6ee Inter-Island 6tim XaVigatiOn tipany ~6. Territoxy Of Hawaii, 96 Fed. (26) 401; R+aproo Gwo Co. ~6. Earth Carolina, 171 U.S. 3601 H6L8anv6,D6nw~r,205~ 8. SF38andaatort~kupo66dfor the u6e of State highmay6, 608 Aero-Xayflowurl!nn6f6r Company v6. Georgia Pub110 Servioe Cam6166f~, 296-U. 6. 2661 Continental Baking Campany ~6. Ibodring, 286 U.S. 562; Interst6te Busses Corporation ~6. Blodgett, 276 U. 8. 246. If the EM mquimd to be paid is ooncridered6n Inspeotion fee, the total 6um oolleoted must h6w a rational mlatiOn6hip fo th6 006t of in6potion. Red C Oil Manufacturing C+~~pany'~6.Board of Agrioultum, 222 U. 8. 380. Ilhllewe am unaoquaint6d with the facts, n6 a~666 that the total 6am16oolleoted do bear such a relationship t0 the 606t Of inEp6&iOn. If thi6 be true, we oan 666 no objeotion to the method adopted by the Legislature in determining the 6tandard byuhiohthe a6wmt of the fe6 16 fixed. Eeither 089-e find o%jeo- tion to thl6 method if the rrtatutorgpayment Is 6onEtXUed t+ab6 a tax for the u6e of state highuay6. The value of the u6e of th6 oer- tifioats is deten&ned bg the parties thsmeelveti. They should not be heard to oamplainl&@at6x ba6ed upon a proportionate part of the value they fix i6 invalid udle66 it i6 OOIIfiEOatOrg. Ik do not believe that ten per o6nt of the value plaoed upon the ~66,of the oerfifioate by the parties thtanselvesow be held in this oa6e to be 6onfiboatoly. The State may impore a highway u6e fax or pn inapeotion fee on rehioles operating* in inter6tate oommel'b. Aeyo-Hayflower 2!l%,Ef& i%mpanY 911. Georgia NbliO 8WViW &WiEEiOn, 6UpM~ MObWl 76. Denver, 6UpL-h If this be true, it is also truethat the State wy levy a.tax or an ia*utIon fee ba66d parkly upon Inter6t6te emmr6a andprtlyuponlntra6tat6 eowero6. The greater power inolud66 the 16666r. It 16, therefore, our opinion that you 6hould u6Llwb a EUD equal to ten per oeat of th6 total oon6ideratIon paId for the lea66 of the oertifipate, or in the oa6e declorilmdin your in- quiq, ten per we of #66OdXh YOl.W6lWytnily kY%RHBY GBEBRALOF TX&S By 6/VIotor we Bouldin Piotor X Bouldin &6i6tfllt AFmovsD DEC. 2, 19s9 E/m-d C. h&n MWRESYGBlpEBAtOFTXM