OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTlN
QmOYemGL‘LLII - , ,
-ATrcr OmlLIKL
aerenaant aavka the state rindcounty
The State ana County rofu:;ed to ccco2t
suoh a proposition; howver, ir, duo oozme of busSmss,
XIidelrro and Cmeron Co~.tios Xitor Control md I.~~gxovc-
r:ont %strict Wz~bar %.nc finaLly acco~%~~d suah a dcd.
A CCJ~Y~ of this dead is. cncloscd for your inspoctfon.
.
.~..,
_ 452 .
.. ;
oorabloTOZlL. I:Cirtky,
pSz,O2
fhc cokax3ionors zo:trt ~2reoa to vdtbh0latflopronezu-
tion of the t%X.sUit on thI.3 JxOpartY Tar 3 lXCl~Oi!Ubl~ .
IO&h of tir2c. YIthic ti1at tize, Irl.23lgO end CaxcPofl
CodA. Yatar'Control amI I12prOvo:r:snt District Ikzbor
I.:inc hod seourea offcrrz frols Indivia.unla to ~mchase
all of the la@iaWlved in tho tr!x omit and tko encloccd
ma. Aftor those offers had bcon nubs~Itied to tho
corsdosiono1~3 Caurt, the Co~missIonors Court aa the
Tax Asaecsor i-m3 Collector mao n pcrsoual exmInstIon
0f the pronkos ena were OOtiOfiOanltl; tha >rIco that
WQO 0frOrO(: fox-th land. Theg, In turn, cxecutea a
oonseut to the, sole of tho land in the 3Lt’lio manor as
is proviaea In Art. 7345b of tli0n; C. 5., 1925, for
the sale of lznds aoopued by taxing un.Lts by virtue
of foreclm3ure In aelInqueut,tax wits.
'Wiatilgoana &moron Cocmties Yator Control’ &id
fmgrovc~ent MstrIot~ fkiber .Cino, as Trustee, ereoutoa
deed0 to the&i progrtiea to tire oovoral _aurchusera;
tho Tax Asswsm and Collector for t!m :;ic,te, the ZmcCs-
eionsm Court fez the County nocepted theti pro-ratn
part of the Jw7dUw.j price Of t!LIs wa ana us0a ths
fm0 to pay the taxes tbnt hua accrtwl agninet the sum
and Issued tax receLpts covering thi3.proportg up to
ana IncludIn?, the year 1942.
Vh6 question now has been raised ,that such
oalas m?iie void. T!m State on3 Count;r haa an Interest
In this proncrty nhdch It aid not Rcqufro by tax fore-
closure, r;nd hence ooMd not sell or a&o0 to f&o sale
of nhatuvcr Interest they ha’s acquiroa in o&Id lava by
virtue of the enclosed deoa, nor cc.ul~ the Tax i~ssassor
and Collector agrso to the sale of this ma for the
stritc of !i’oxaB*
fVp.d~r .irt, 1577 R. C. S. 1925; arid ~Ynllncc! v.
City rjf Colc::;nn, 30 ~,?~. (2) 34c; 45 S. 1’. (Zd) 19S,
it could s:cc;1 to tllo Grit:!r t!lat IQ order fo2 the county
to coavcy Ito i/:tereot ID the land aemriboa In the
onclos& do& t-hut Q. spcoiel coix-:i~elon~r bo a2,,70i1>tt?b
3nd tflo laid sold In ~ccordanco v!ith Art. 1577..
453
“in order to’ acyuirrt t!:o ictwost 6r tho State,
it SOUN ‘00 11~+08~!lar~to nftl-8 applicntioi~ tc? the G~noral
I,,$ Wfioe acd grooeed In tho mnner prescribed by sta- .
.
nAs you can se8 fro:> the euoloncd Geod, thcro
am a great nuL%berot picc00 of land that’havo been sold.
Tho purchasers of this property am very anxious ts Got
thi3 mttsr 3ottled.. X0 would d::proolate your advising
ua at yoar earliesti possible i802Dllt as to vihethcr or not
the opinion of this offlco in regard to this n;atter is
cosr8ot.~~~
-‘.,A Subseqknt to our roooipt of your aald lot&or
you have sent $3 a aopy ol the secial nar~anty doed’ executed
by the Ycst Toras Abatmct and Guarauty Coqmuy to oaid Eidalgo
and Camron Couutieo Xator Control ana Inprovcmnt Eistriat
!:uztbcr Xiuc. ~~.- *
It Ts our o&-&m t!mt ths transaction mntioned
by you, in %Jhioh tho dollnqueut tuzqayor Yost Texas Ahntraot
and Wuranty Company 003vqysd tho real property lnquirod .’
abJut to Hidalgo &ld Cmwron Co*uutios Xator Control and Im-
provemnt Distriot Mwber Kina, *gas invalid uud wholly uu;
.’ authorized by low..
!
Tho deed in questlo recitoa in part that the
5ctid Zicklgo an& Camrim Comtios Yatcr Co;ltrol a03 I:qpovo-
nont Dintriot ?:w:ibcr Iiine took the laud iu quoatlon in its
ownbehalf and us trustm for the St&to of Texas,. tim Couuty
of Iiidal&o, tho %slaco Iudops?.~ent Zohaol Xntrict, acd
the lldcouch413a Indcgonddnt School 2i3triat. ‘Said purported
dood of conveyance furthar recites that:
“Tim grmtr?o hzxoi:: in ii;3 0311b&elf of imd
as trustoa for the other poli?Aoal sabdivi3:ocs of the
Stato of Texas, h.eraiuboforo aontioned, nccop.t.3 this
couvvoyacco subject t.o all taxes of.every hiad aud
chazaotcr in far02 42 the Stat8 of Toma? t!le County
of IIi~8l~O) aad the other political subdivisions of tho
-Stata of Ye::hs hcrcLi;boforc ne;1tior$, and all other3
,,_. _ -- -------__I.__&.--
:. 454 ‘. ‘//
I
ILor.orablo Totom
L. IInrtlcy, pace l+
I
1
Jxivvi~r,: th-3pear to lovy and usswx~ taxes ugainnt
mid pm_nert,r, and al.1 irl%gatioil Ckx~~as a&d 80:;8333-
fiisllts02 SVOYY killd tllld ChaSotcr i!.l PUvO2 OT ilny .
cowany, corporation Or politi.cnl.SUl;LlVi3iOlz Ck?Vl.jI~
the ,powar to levy such charge nhd asssasamto v:h:oh
have heretofom aoorucd a,ginst said above Eiescribs~i
traots of~land, or oithcr of l&m, to the data of
theso prcsmto, inoluding the year I$&2 and all prior
years, and the fgxntao horein io its ovm behalf ahd
as .trustee for the other political subdioislono of - I
the Stato of Texas hcrcinbefore .mutio~ed, coutracts
aud &goes to i.rtdcnniZ’y ar.d aavo h~zl.oss the (crautor Jo
am4 its assigns r.cntiocod a@mt tko pqm9nt 02 a~ i
of euoh outntandir& delingient tsxce, asaessmuts and I
chcarges . *’ I
-w’
It .ds t&mutary that a politicdL subdivision
1lk.o the said. Zidalgo a,ud Camron Couutibs i:ater Control II
aA In?rovo~~~.ont~.,~strict Eu:abborhino is a creature of th8
statutes, and has only such poiwrs as are d%4e+~tcd to 5.t I
by ths legislative cnactmouts vrhlch authorize its b&n&. !
j
(3oe Dallas County P3voe District ho. 2 V. Loomy, 103 f
Tar. 326, 332; Csburn v. harstcw :!ard County, Texas, I
brainage District, 239 S. i:. l.034, error refused; wlnrton I
County ]Irfilnago District v. Hisbso, U&J-S. 5.. 3Sl; err01 i
rorusaa) The ottazptOn tha pazt of said Zidaigo an6 .I
t
Camron Counties Yator Control. and Gxprovgmnt District _I
I!mber Mao to nooogt ,nnid conveyance ih cottlommt of 1,
i
its om taxes a&ainat the grantor, aud the atto!l?t ,of said
district to accept said oohveyanou as truotcu for t!le I
skit0Of TOXCi5,~
th0 COtlnty
Of !rudCIi~O,
the :aa.~CO Illdf+
pcndent School DistrIot, and the lZdcouch-Zlsa Tndcpondant I.
Sohool District xas v~holly nn ultra vise3 act on the part
of safd Elcalgo end Crmero.:1 Counties Xatcr Control and I
Xf~provczmt Ku!qbcr K~.IM, ardt was i~vt~li~ and wholly
i)ictA.ot
unnuthorizocl by any lag, oithar statutory or osnstftutional,. /
455
BOnorable Tom L. Hartley, pq;e 5
and beyond the aoope of power@ of mid grantee to either
undqrtake or to p8tiom.
Furthermore, the power to aamss, lsvy an4
wlleot tarsa, uhioh la delegatti to a taxing unit muoh aa
ie bald. Mdalgo and Cameron Couatiee Y.&tar Control and
Ipprovtment Dietriot Number Nine, in the power to oollsot
the authorize4 taxen; but the authOrisation 408s not
wower it fc aoospt paymentor meid taxem In my m84ia
other than money.
"In the abmnoe of ga,"tory authorMy to aoaept
payment otherwise, $mm3 8ro NW 1 in ourr8~.* (380 #
~62a8 nm~gr~4~100, b0ti0n 127, pago 176)
" . The laws ror the oolleotlo&,or tarea,
by lmpllo~tion, at leaat l reEort,#io other
methoda ol’ Oo~eOting the 8tatUtQry method.
The 1-40 ln this oama am he14 by a firin lion
io'n~our-3 payrmnt 0r taxer, an4 the lamd oazmot oreape,
be destroyed, Or be holdea,irom the tax Qolkbotor. The
taxes oan be oolleoted through a judgment ior the #mount
Ed R rOX8OltWXe Or the liet~.~ (hrr Opinion by chief
Juetice Fly or the San Antonlo Qlslvt of Civil Appeals,
In oam or SLUIAntonio~a Sa)urban Xpr&gqte4 ?um6 t.
Buar-Medina-Atasooea Oountiee Eater tiprovement Dl8-
trlot Ho. 1, k9 S. W. (24) 511)
I , . . The tar: 00~8OtOr ia 7,#te4 With p0W.X
to 40 a oertain thing in a oartain Wryt an4 ths pren-
orlbed manner ie a negation or other uaotea. . . .*
(See Casal4y Southe,stem Crtirrlon Ooinpany to Duval
COUUty 8t Id., 8. W. (24) &L6.!Opiaion by the CQIlUUiS-
slon 0r App8ala
*In the absence or sta?utorp authority to aooept
payment othsxwlse, taxes are mble in OUXXMO~.~ ISee
Bryan v. SuMberg, 5 Ter. i&g; Auatln VW BOX, Cohesion
or Appeals, 1 s. 3. (Zd) 601, afrirriing 297 9. W. 34l)
P
HOnOrabl8Tom L. Etartley, page 6
Where the Hldalgo and Cameron Counties %ater
ContrQl arid Improvement Dlrtriot IJumber Nine by an attempted
s~ls or the land desoribed ia the deed in question reoeived
money tren those who were perporbe4ly purohaslng the same
and then applisd thle money to the payment of tax88 aaeeaaad
a&n& this land Oi the d8lkiQU8nt taxpayer, Weet Texas
Abstraot and Guaranty Company, we think the taxes in question
'110X-8in raot paid by the taxpayer 50 rar QB maid money would
liquidate same.
w8 rind nothing 5.n the statement or raote~ on
whloh yell request an oplnlon wbioh rhowa that the Oounty
ever aoqulred any interest in the land; the County an4 3tate
neither appear a8 a grantee in the 4064. or 00-8, ii the
Qounty ever 414 aooept the deed to any 0r the lend 0r the
delinquent taxpayer ln auoh way as to aoqulre hgal title
thereto, then in order for the Oounty to logally sell MJJI~,
it wool4 be nsoessary that a oommiasloner be appointed to
make the aale, and that the l&4 be aold by 8aid oomml#rloner
at a publio sale in full oomplianoe with the terms Or Article
1.577 or Vernon’s Annotate4 Cl011 Statutes.
Said prdoedure would be neoeeeary in order to
divest the Qwnty of my tltle whioh It ha4 aa 04 ln the
land that ie or 80~~8 a8eumfnP the County ha F %fnraot
acquired anf aua& title.
The Stats or Taxa& the County op,.Hldal@o,
the v:eslaoo Independent &h@01 Bistrlot, and the X4oouoh-
Elsa Independent School Clatrlot are eaah and all tree to
disregard the attempted extra-legal prooa&ire resorted to
by the Bidalgo and Caas~on Counties Water Control an4 Improre-
ment Witriot Number Nine for the att5apte4 oollsotlon of
taxes, and ad units are all and 8aeh et liberty to prooeed
with a suit ror the oolleotion 0r m3m8, in aooordanos with
the provlelom~ of' Artlole 7345b or Vernnon’e Annotated Clvll
3tatutee.
4557
@norable Tom L. Hartley, page 7
As to the altuatlon in whloh thoae rind them-
selfes, who purohased or attempted to purohase the land in
question from the Hidalgo and Cameron Countlee Kater Oontrol
and Improvement Xstrlot slumber Nine, ws do not believe that
w shotala tender any advloe. That 1s a natter oonoemlng
private property rights of' these purohaeers personal to
themselVeS, end 16 not a matter on whioh this otrloe should
adVl88.
Very truly your0
Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion
Combined Opinion