OFFICE OF THE ATIORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Honorable Clifford 9. Roe
CauntJ Attorney
Panola County
Carthago, Tolas
Dear Sir:
oarefully oonridsrstl by t
request a8 follorrr
rawn from said
da ahall be paid
red bl tha oounty
g a aounty ludltozi
nst said fund shall
and apprwad bjr tha
S-t of 8alU county and the
dllrbumrd on such approved
ts dram bT the aounty trraa-
ala1 or a ocrunby eaploper whore
thoriimd to be paid Srom tha orricrr8
Fund is entitled to reost~e oompea8atioe if
Honorable clifrord 8. Roe, F&g* a
said offioial or amployea i8 lndabtod to
sltbut the 8tat.e or county aa proridul In
Saotlon ‘I or the so oalled *orri00r8* Sal-
ary .Lawr.
“If you should find that a oouaty
offloial or, employee who im indebted tomtha
Btate or ooUoty is not entitled to reoeir*
compensation fmm the Ofilow8* Salary -4
until mid indrbtednetm hsa bean paid, than
plrse advim me if daliquant taxer ara aoa-
rridrrad as lndrbtadnae8 again*8 tha State
or county if 8aa.d oounty official or employee
has been notified in writing of tha amount
mhioh 18 due the Stat* or oounty ln &llquant
CaXW.
Tha laws of the State of Tans protilde
the maaner in wbioh, CoUnty Tax Colleotor-
Annreorfb may send out notioau to fodividualn
when their taxer are due. This in my opin-
lo5 ir a direct acknowledgsaent of e debt
wbleh la due the State or oounty by an lndl-
vidual, and 1 hogs that gou will 80 aonntrua
thin partloular Act of tha Legislature so
aa 80 iaslude del~qusnt taxes au eridanae
of indebtedassr agdn6t the State and county;
and that any eOunty offlalal or employee who
ban been aothorltsd to raorlre oompsnsatloa
from the Offioers’ Salary Fur&dmay not IO-
cslts same if ha has fallob to pay deliqueat
taxel) whleh he owa# either to the State or
county.*
Section 7 of Artlols Solee, Vernon’r Annotiated
%XES Civil Btatutss, read8 a8 follow81
wao. 7. All monies dram I FOP @aid
Offiaerat salary Puad or tide *hall br paid
out only on rarraBt8 approved by the aouaty
auditor in oouoties harlng a oauotp auditor;
otharwloo all elaiam againat aald fund shall
first hare been aubitod and apprwrd by the
comdm~cumrm* Cotlrt of sat4 county anb the
aoniea rhall br dlmburaad on such apprwed
olaims by warrants drawn by the oounty trem-
urer on eald had.
i .-
I Hsnorablo Qllfford S. Roe, Pys
'?rowar~a~t8hall
S
bsdrarn onsaid fund
or funds In fevor of aq psnoa indebted to
tha etate, county or to raid fimd or iA favor
of his agent or aneignes until saoh debt i8
paid.*
We GuOte from 61 Corpue U$#Xl5, pages 9+1-e and 3,
as follows:
"( I 4) 2. Tbxeu not Qabtr. A5 the
obligation to pay tax%8 doe8 AOt rest DA aa7
COAtXaat OXpress or iaprisd, OR UpOAt&5
oonsant of the taxpayer a tax 18 nota debt
in the ordinary sense ot that wordi although
it La n liability or obligetion and nmy ba
a\.debt wider a particular statUta, or In the
hisher or enlarged 50~55 of the word 'debt*,
as umbracfng aaX kind of a just damsad, and
in mm3 jurisdlOtlOA8 a tAX i8 held to bts
nothing asoro than a debt dum by the oltlesn
to the taxing -5.r. The obJ.fgatioA to py
taxes not bsing eaAtraQtU%l, it fOllOw5 that
tax88 (ire not asrl3nabls a8 ordinary dabt8,
uQesa it is expreas4 so provliird, nor are
they ths rrubjeot of 5Ot off betwean the tarparor
an6 the statr or muni8ipality, nor do they
draw lntereot like ordinary obllgatloA8, saws
vtfure tka statute 50 daolaras. It i5, hnw-
ever, the individual and not the property
ahlcrb pays the tax, although ths property lo
rssortad to for the purposs of ascertaiai~
the snow& of the tax end for the ?urgoo% at
snforeiag its aymant v&era ths owner mker
default. But P t ha8 beon held that this
diatination is too refined for any practlaabls
prpoee .m
We qwte from 61 Corgw Jude, page M3, as follows:
*( I 1239 I (2) Sot-oft or eounterclain -
es a tax is not a debt in the ordinary sense,
nor the liabma for it fOW6ed Ubon OontreUt.
it cannot, unless the statute 80 pioriaee, be -
pai6 OF nieohar ed by mitt&g off Or oounter-
olaining agains & it a debt hue frcis the Auni-
olgalit~ to the iadivldual taxpayer, and still
less of course, a debt due from the oollecrtor
of taxes in his private alpo~4tr. . . .w
Honorable Clifierd S. Fiw, Pa&e 4
Pt Is au, opinion thut the tom "debt" u8.d fn
Seatif!& 7 of Artiole 591&e, V. A. C. S., aupra, ahhouldbr
const&ued so a6 to give it itn usual end ordinary manIn&.
It is OUT further oplnlon that aeunqu4nt taxor
duo the county arvl state should not be conetrued to indebted-
ne6m to the atats or count~'crbdffr aa+3 Section 7 cS the above
quote4 statute. Thin aonstrllation'of tha rtatuta has boon
heretofore adopted by thf8 department. Bee O&dliOif dated
August 30, 1898, written by Hon. A. lr.Gray, Aasirtant At-
torney Osncral, and rsoorde4 in Vol. W&b, p. 896, Lot8er
opinlonm of the Attorne7 General of !JJoxam.a aopy of which
ia lnolo~e4 herewith Sor 7cur iafcrmatlon.
AT.~!ORWW@EWEWLL
0F'FE.X.M
Wm. 7. Faoeiag
Anrl8tant