T
'Oil.
3o,t~&ke;~avis county
hstin, Texas
3ear Sir: opinion IJO. O-7034
,Re: Y%ether a veteran who quell
under &tiole 6, ?eotlon 2a
the Texas Constitution is r
qulred to obtain a oertiiio
of exemption before he can
and related questions.
a !?ember of the armed for United States
or of.;the Armed .Foroe Res e United States,
or or”any branch QF oompo or suoh arned
rorces or Armed Force Re
cr ;&thin one year eftcr the cl.one of t.LIec: FenBar
par ir ?:kiC!? Seid lJSr iS terr~lnoted. Ii
*woviAea, bowever, th.Bt the fore,&nr: po-
vision3 of thiz section do ;iot confer the ri.~~ht to
:-:!I. :‘crrg J.. Zones -, race 2
vote u?on any yrson ?~ho is a ncnber of the rep,U%T
~!r,tablj,nkr.ent o’f the rlnitod ‘Itotes army, :IaY.v, or
:.:arine Corps; and provided further, that a.11 persons
in the amed roroes ol the United 7tGtes, or the
component brGnohes thereof not members of the reg-
fi.e$ es?.abllshment of the 1?nited States Ar.my, Davy,
or l.!arine Corps, ore hereby deolared not tombe
disqualified drum voting by reason or any Drovision
or sub-section lFifth’ or Section 1, of this’
ArtioleiW
In view of the raot that this provision WIS adopted
OS an amendmentto the Constitution arter the last session of
the Lef$slature, your request presents the problem of determi
the efrcct of such amendment, ?hioh has become s psrt of the
funndomentel lau of this State, upon prior constitutional end
stetutory ‘provislons governing the quallrioations of voters
?na the conduct ..cb : elections. -The Texas ~Zegisleture has not
been in session sinoe the efreotive date oi this .amendx+t,
end therefore no new law has been enaoted and no old.strtute
‘hs& been*amended~’ sinoe\:.that. date. All .or the ~ooagtitutlonal
ma stntutory provIsionS_ @ted endreierred:to herein were ir
efreot prior to the adoption- txP the above .amendment; end are
still in effect exoept insorer as they may hsve been repealed
or r!odiiied b.v quoh~amendment.:
Question 1: @Does::%txole VI, .$&&Son i-a’,“oi
rthe~Gonsti’tutio~,:~~ ,Texas exempt.;persona who
kome:.7n~~~~.~i~~~‘~~~~-~r.rorn.,lia~b%llty ,rar pay-
ment : of ‘a,, pdll.tax?W
.:rtiole VIII, Yeotion 1, of the Constitution 0r
Texas, euth@izes-the Legislature to impose a poll tax; and
Article VII: Seotion 3, ...provides. in part:
“One-tourth of the revenue derived rrom the
‘Xate oocupation taxes and ~011 tax’ of one dollar
on every inhabitant of the %ate, between the ages
of tlenty-one end sixty years, Ghall be set apart
annuellq for the benefit of the public free schools;
. . . .
Article 7CI,6, 2959, and 2960, Vernon’s Annoteted F:
Civil Statutes, impose Gn GnnUal poll tax and provide certai
exemptions therefrom.
‘:on. Ferry L. Zones - Page 3
?here an amendmentto the constitution predicates a
conrliot, with existina lenislation. the inaonsiste bnt statutory
yovi sionz; are repealed by implication. Stats of ??hode Island
i?. 7al:.ler
- 253 U. ?. 350, 64 L. Id. 946, -40 C- Ct 486 (1915)
Sutherlanc its Statutorr Construotion. (36. ed:‘~p~orakl, 2eo.
----~- -- a we sea no inconsist&-.-my between the above-
2+x5. Fawever.
mentl.oned oonstitutional and ststutorg provisiOnS imposine the
3,011 tax and the oonstltutional amendmentunder OOnsideratlOn.
Ike language used in the constitution&l amendment does not
indicate an intention to repeal or amend such prior laws l.m-
Tosin? the poll tax. ‘Pherefore, as previously held in our
tiltion !To. o-6821. it Is our opinion that although the person?
*&ed in the amenGent are not required, 88 a condition 6reoedc
to their rip.t to vote, to pay a poll tax Qp to hold a reoeipt
tterefor, yet the amendmentdoes not exeunt them from the m-
r.ent o': the poll tax. ::;‘a snswer ~your~ion~l in the --
m.
,&estiob~ 2: “Is the Tax: Colleotor authmized..
to issue a oertificate~af exemption to a'prson"
who comas within the terms of Artiole.VI, sec-
tion 2-a, or the ConstZtutkion of Texas, assuming
that suoh person is not ,,gtherwise exempt. from.
pay-rent ,of-e poll~,,tq?? ~. .’ .~
Althou& the‘ ooktitutional: provision :under. &nsider
Won does not mention oertifioates ofexempti'on; it. is olear
rrom a reading of the statutes that a Person who is.not exempt
rrom the nayment ot the poll tax is not entitled to a oertifi-
oate
1V exem t on. 9
?rom the payment of a poll tax, end who are theref'ore entitlei
to a certifi0ete‘%b that effect, are required to obtain suoh s
certiricnte.Y It would be foolish to say that s person who is
not exemnt from payment of a poll tax must obtain a certiri:
cate stutfng that he is exem& from such payment.
Article 2968, Vernon’s Annotated P,evised Civil %a-
tutes, provides, in pert:
‘Tvery person who is exemeted by lav: from the
5aynent of n 7011 tax, :na who is in other respects
G quu14.I.-“ied vo t er, Iho resides in a city of ten
thousand (10,000) inhabitants or more, s’:all, before
the Pirrt @.l 1945 Would he entitled to obtain an exemption certiiicr
nrior to l?eb. 1, 1946, even though the 18 months' period pre
::or:.Fcrrp L. Zones - ?aaqe 8
In *he ~nendment would expire prior to the eenel?al elaotion in
:!ovember, 1946. The ennusl poll tax is levied on a certain da
.:ud it nuat be paid by a certain date, or en exemption oer-
cificate must be obtained by a certain date, in order for eith
;;o serve as a qhslification for voting; and when proDerly ob-
r.Azeed, the raoeipt or certificate serves as evidence o? the I
to vote.during a certein year. It is apparent iron the above
tl?at these statutes could not beapplied effeatively in their
present form, to tiersons who qUSlify Under the oonstitutional
zzewirent .
Assunin&?that the Le&alstUre would now have the
:g::er to set ur, a valid rwqirement thatpersons who qualify
undoer fleoti'on 2e 0r the Constitution nust obtain a speoial c81
ti~icate ana that no such person.will be“@ermitted~to vote
f:nlers h8 Lweaent.8 such oertiiiCat8 (which~,gU~~tiOn~.ae~i8rencr
,:.. '10.7 cellad upon to de&la), yet it is 018ar that the.~Lee.sislat~
+?s r?ade no~:such..reauirement. Certslnly, a.parson who quali-
5 ies -w a voter under th Gonstitution is-not%0 be disfran-
&iC:od and reiused the rze,t to vote nerelgbebause t,he,Legis
Lcture h-as not provided 6% the isSuanOe'of~ a ceM.ficete
s:w:ii.lf: his ~uelifioation.
. -
,- 3-18 hjUr't;S 0~&8xa-t&WJ~ thx%-&&uX tha.'~8a&&k,#Sr
it-. conotrued~:,the statutory 'reguldtiofiti siid~tiha-the,,'rif~~t.;~.-a
voter'f+reely.to c.Sst his‘vote‘in the :e~re~sion:~6~;:~-s,r~ee
choice at 6n election and, in the ebS8noe~~Of S.tatUtOry -0oman
v&l1 not disfranchise him. state v. tlarMn'~'-186-~?: 7. I
111 (&arillo Civ. App. 1945>;
12 n. 'I. 952; !?ensep Vi ":il!~el~~
App. 1932);;ztretton v. Hall,
App. 1936);'Lee v. :miteheab,
civ. 4pp. 1944). The constitutionel amendment under oonsidel
tion was olearly intended to permit servicemen an& ex-service
who qualify Uhsreunder to vote tdthout paylag: 8 poll tax re?z
less of prior legislation on the subject. It would be un-
reasonable to say that the effect of the aIlendr:ent is to
disfranchise such person because,t!!ey cannot quelifg under tl
existing: exenption-certificate .statutos end because the Leci:
lature has made no special provision for them. To so hold
:;'oulJ. be to l'eder the amen&tent neanin?less nnd of no effec-
whetever.
?herel'orc, we auwer *'our euestion 3 i2 the affirn
&.
-
“0.1. 7crry I. Zones - ?a,?8 9
the “1s Tax authorized
Colleotor
-F-w
to CC u 8 on the certiried list of voters
the nanes of persons uho come within the tams
of nticle section ;?-a, of the Constitution
VI,
of Texas, but who have ;lot p3id a poll tax
and have not obtained a certificate of exemption?"
Article VI , !?ection I, 0r the Constitution or Texas,
nrovides:
"In all elections by the people the vote shall
be by bellot and the Legislature shall Rrovlde for the
cmbering or tiokets and neke such othar regulations
es my be necessaqto detect and punish fraud and
creserve the purity of the b&lot box and the Legis-
13ture may provide by 13%~ for the regtstration or all
voterg.in.all cities containing a population of ten
.,;;h,ousand inhs.bitsnts "m'.mme.,v
-. Articl3~2975; Vernon*s Annotated Revised'~givil '&at.
utea, requires that:
Y3efore the first day of April every esr, the
.County Tox.Colleotor shall deliver to the 5nerd that
.iS'.Oh3~~8d'F~th:'th8~'dUt~_~r.'f~i~~ai~'i318Oti~ SUP-
plie.s'~~separate oertiried' lists-.~r.~uifi~~' in eaoh
vecinot who hev~~bsia~'theFr~~noll tax-imreoeived
their c3rtifiostes Of exertion,"
such lists to be arranged in a oertain order and to contain c
taiz infarnation, and rurther provides for supplemntal lists
any county epntaininga tom of.'nore than ten thousand inhab-
itants.
Jzticle 3121, Vernon's .;nhotated Revised Civil Stet
utes, reads lis r0110vis:
"The county tax colleator shall deliver to the
ohairnen of the county exucutive comittee of each
Toliticol party, r0r it3 use in primry selections,
zt least five days before election day, certified and
;upplenentol lists of the oLu31ified voters of each
?pecinct in the county, arranged alphabetically 3na
by yrecifiota, on6 such ohoirmn shall place the snna
152
‘on. Ferry L. Jonas - Peg8 10
for reference in the hatis of the election ofricers
01' each election precinct before the polls are open.
"0 nrimarv aleotion shall be leCs1, unless such list
in obtsin;?d and used for reference durinw the elec-
tion. *posit0 the name 0r every voter on said list
~311 be stamped, when his vote is Cast, with 3
rubber or wooden stamp, or written with pen end ink
the words, +rimary--voted,' with the date of such
nrtiru under the same. For esoh list cb 311 the
~~uslified voters or the county who heve oaid their
nnll taxes or received their certifiosteo of axemdiion,
%he collector &all be permitted to cherr,e not more
thsn five dollars, the 23ne to be paid by the yrtg
or its chairrzn so ordaring said lists; provided, that
the chor taxable nro?crtg in the C‘tzte, county,
:-‘~a. Perry L. Jones - PaEe 15
political sub-division, district, city, town or villar?;e where
Agt;;oticn is held, and who have dulg rendered the seme rc
shall be qualiried to vote and all eiectors shall F
iz the eieotion nreoinot or their res1denoe.v The sane re-
nuirenent is made in Article 2955a, Vernon*s annotsted Civil
Ttotutes; 3nd Artiole 2955b requires the Tax Collector to
furnish the election judges a certiried list or owners or ret
estate who hnve rendered sene ior taxes. In order to be
“otherwise qualiriedv to vote in this kind oi eleotion, a
yrson who quaUfies under. the COnstitUtiOml amendment unde:
con3ideration ;:ould have to meet the above requirement.)
Ye ans?ler your c.uestion 7 in the a~=iirrAative, and
your ?aestion 8 in the nerrative.
z;e;on 9: “Do gour answers to the above
ons apply to primary as vfell as q,eneral
~lections?n
The constitutional amendment under oonsideretion :
expressly sppliaeble to “any election held under the author!
or the law78 or this state” during a speoiiled period. An
examination of the many statutes euthwizing and Roverning
pr5.mrg elections (See Title 50, n~leotionsw, Vernon’s Ann.
3.3. civ. Ttstutes) impels the oonalusion that .suoh electio
are held “under the authority or the law oi this state*,
eJ& that Artiole VI, seotion 2a, oi the Constitution is ap-
?licable to primary as well as General elections.
‘:e ans?ver your ?uestion 9 in the a’frirmative.
Yours very trulg,
L’
..
Y?Tmm (x!stmAL OF Tzar
By /s/ Raymond A. Tanoh
F!L: jt :jrb Assistant
.:?z?ovm ,‘.;!I.17, 1946
/s/ Grover Sellers
i??m>m cYTR.z OF T?m”J .iP?F?OO’ED QPIXTI(T1: COT3ZIm~
DY W3, ChairRan