Honorable Lloyd G. F!ouldin
County Attorney
-PaId mtlto county
Palo Pinto, Texas
Dear Sj.r:
Opinion No 0..2227
Re: (1) Liability of farm tractor
for ad velorq taxes of indewdent
school district;
(2) Statu,t,@y right of tax assessor
of :'ndemndent school distrkt to
assess proparty for taxation where
owner refuses to do so.
This Department is In receipt of yo,ur letter of April 12, 1940, wherein you
submit for om determination the two ;@llow.i.n::
.~. questions, which we quote
tharefram:
"Mrr L,?yd %. Stevens, Tax Assessor and Collector of the Santo Independent
School District. has asked me: in wri~t5.n~ -I~%0obtain an opinion from
your dea-tmen'c on the following questLons:
"(1) Is a farm tractor subject to assessment for taxes?
"(2) IP said tractor ins subject to assessment for taxes, what can
the ta;: assessor of an Independent School distrrct dl3, I~f the owner
of said tractor refuses ts render said tractor for taxat?on?"
We concu? in your conclvs!.on that c farm tractor is not exempt from ihe
taxes levied hy on ?ndci)endent sch,ool d:strict under pertinent statlkes.
In thiq connection, Article ;lk>, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes,
provides as follows:
"All proi,erCy, real, personal or mixed, ek$cept such as may be herein-
zliper expressly exe$@.ed, Is subject to taxation, and the same shall
he rendered and listed aa herein prescribed."
Article '7147 provides that, "?&sons1 property, for the purposes of
taxation, shall be construed &include all goods, chattels and effects."
and proceeds to enumerate certain species of personal property as being
Honorable Lloyd G. Bouldin, Page 2 (O-2227)
within the intendment of the tax stu tutes . Nothing appears therein to
remove a farm tractor from the 1” ‘-1 category of taxable personal
property
Article 7150, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, enumerates certain
specific c*assifications of property, real and personal, which the
legi;latu~e, under enabling provisions of the Constitution, has elected
to exempt. Farm tractors not appearing there in, it must follow that they
are subject to various ad valorem taxes, includi.ng those of independent
school districts.
Turning our attenti.on to your second question, it appears that the rights
and duties of the tax assessor of an f~ndependent school district are
fixed and governed by applicable generel laws rel;-,lating the time and
manner for the assessment of State and County ad valorem taxes by county
tar assessors-collectors. This is so by virtue of the following specific
provisions of Article 2791, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes:
“It shall ba within the discretion of the board of trustees of any
independent school district t.o name an assessor of taxes who shall
asoesa the taxable property l*ichin the llmita of the Independent rahwl
met within the time _-end In the mannar provided by existing laws,
in oo far .ai they are appJioable, and when said arsarsraent hag been
equalized/by a bosrd of equaliesti.on appointed by the board of trr:tear
for that purpna, ahall prepare the tax rolls of raid district and
shall duly ‘n?.m and oertify oamc to tha county tax aolleotor as provided
for in the sucaeedlng artlola.” ( Underscoring ours)
these :Mrtinent general statutes are Articles 7192 and 7193, Vernon’6
,,r.r;titated Civil Statutes, which provide, respectively, a6 followa:
“In every case where any person whose duty It is to lint any property
for taxation has refused or neglected to list the same when called on
for that purpose by the easesaor of texeo , or has refused to aubecrlbe
to the oath in regard to the truth of hia statement of property, or
any part thereof, when required by the tax assessor, the .seseasor rhall
note in a book the nahe of such person who refused to llat or to
swear; end in eysry case where any person required to list property
for taxation has been absent or unable from slckncas to list the same,
the tax assessor shell note In a book such fact, together withthe
name of such person. rr
“In all oases of failure to obtain a statement of real and personal
property from any cause, the assessor of taxes shall ascertain the
amount and value of such property and assess the same 8s he believer,
to be the true and full value thereof; and such easeasment shall
be as valid and binding as If such property had been rendered by the
proper owner thereof. ”
mnorable kloyd C. Bouldin, Paze 3. (o-2227)
It readily appears' from the foregoing statutory provisions that the tax
assessor of Santo Indkpsndent School District would be authorized and
r&ulred to 8esem the farm thactor In question for taxes of said
school district, upon the failure and refusal of the owner thereof to
rpler s*me for taxation purposes.
Trusting we have fully answered your inquires, and with best regards,
we me
Yours very truly,
AT!EXNEYGENFFALQFTFXAS
a/ Pat M. Neff, Jr.
Pat M. Neff, Jr.
Assistant
PMN:AMM/ldW
AppRovEDwi 27, 1940
s/GERALDc. MANN
A!MORNEYGENERALOFTEXAS
APPROVED OPINIONCOMMITTEE
BY B. W. B.
CHAIRMAN