OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Ronombls 80~. P[.t3fhegpm-d
Cceptrollw of Pub110 Aceouuta
mRtln* 3uar
Sy tour bttar or 9;yQu alnot Ma.
ltteatlm ot t&h Depertkant t ttte iDkrpntatloD
given out br loo ta th rR or the vulour
oOlCEtibaOf fUR8 tlpOB 00 B, 8nbalrir1onah,
Alwol* 9049, vonlon'R tutoa, provM.lo$ Rrn?ol-
t rd(opsra bOU64, t&e-
ltr u6tw- lr
e tranaport66
In thr -8r and tot
theB on@ city, trYal
ation tu M&1. be sol-
tm et opexmtor ot wid
sWa6 02 other strtuttwr,
ldaini6Cntiva ra2m you oonetxtwd
ln oonaaotlon *lth~Ardol~ ll9, ma&l
tlan tu reseipt 01 llaene~ taken out br
a arrdumt of l louor 0Laar than tbo me to rhiah he
propthy lmal.1be any pmtaotloa
balongr, mainat 8 prom-
OutlaD ?or knoldag1y ptusulry that of 8 klam elm. uld
r81rb8g t0 pf th8 00O~p8tlOO tu a0 wnrOr.*
Ban..Geo. E. SllOQpard,
paFs P
To url~lnlotratlro rul%ng to the +6rIou6 tu SOROORO~B-
oolleotors of feta6, kred won the roryolag rtatutar, ia tuuy
84 rortb 112 Jour lctteir66 tollowr:
This Deparwrat la 1ti lnterpretrtloa of the kr
b&s hcrdofon ruled, and bw! +o inatmoted the County
Tax Aares8or+Colleotorr,, that ths prorlalonb~ra;~~o+e
puotcd ln *utlolJ e, Attlolo 1049, 6ubdlrlsIonet;, maat
be mad in oomeoffon rltb tke ptov$mlons of hrtiale 1x9,
P e na CO
l ~R ,ld that the taabr6 or opsxutors of any ruob
ah-6 or uhlbltlon6,uhleh tmol,from ~1~8 to ~1666 664
gtTe pcrierrunomu must propam~thclr ltlnen in -adrMoo
686 tbs Zlt6te~ocoup6tlon
p6y tar at tbo r6t6 1~6rbd tar
the olty,,tom or rlIla@~oi the l8rge6t populationin
whlcb thy will peHor8. Phr County Tu Collsrtorr&6+0
bcon ldrl6sd furtbcr thrt lf the Ztate tu 18 14 6t tbR
nta prowribs for's oortdt puhtlon law lrub 8
8laairuraad nxlotm umber or L bitants 1s tlxrd.br the
bet tkt the COMBO lasusd thamror aan not bo ~84 in
cltloa or tome rlth 6 &mat papul6tlonthan the rulnuar
tlrod *It&out rlolatlrg tL6 6ald hrtI6le U9 of tha Pond
Cob. lo other vorde, undar our latorpr6t6tion0r tbo
two pml6lor~s when conaidorud. tog&her, It t&a omar or
operator of 6ny suoh tr6tclIng 6hOu 8houltl p6y 6 foe of
#5&O tor 8 Sat0 Slews* to perform in toa; or 1668 tken
1000 lnlabLturt6 aab should tberoUter.p~rform in 8 city cr
town rlth 6 populatlan of mom than lCO0 lnb6blt6nt6h8
6oul.4b6 8ubjn6t to ptocs6utlomunder Us 8dd ArtIol6 ll9,
for pumulng 6n ooouprtlcn or a blghsr ul66s th6n the on6
to xhloh be properly bolomr.w
46rIre to bc 64vl66d by ~6 lf your latorpr6t6flonof
'lots
the putlasnt rktutes la eozroot, amd If not corm&, JOU ark IS
the umor’l or oper6tom of traveLin@ 8homs trodtbmtrcr 8lU be
to opcrata tot 6 f66r pywhsre f.nthe ftat6 of TeXa6 Upon
p~ruI.t.tea
tha paymnt of the rlnlaum 6x~N61 z:wto ~oooupatlQntar ot &b&o,
levlsd upor 6hows on6 tbertroa lxhlbltllyLn oltlol), towns and
vi116~e6 or loo0 inhablt6nt6Or le68.
XIIoozmotion with tblr mr,uert, you nfor to m4 attaoh
l copy of an oplnlo~by kUBi6tUlt AttOXWy G6n6r6i John J. X-t
of d6to June S5, lQS7, dlrooted
to vu, snd holdlWJ that 8 t;nVellw
thmtre or l bo~, under tta tax uerun 10~0lrrdLsro, a0014 opezbo
emeon In a oltr, tom or vIll6ge of 1000 lnhebltanteor tea0
pay in adtonoa thu annrpaloccupatloaatu thrnon of $0.00, d
oontlnur ror the ?n~&nee of the Jsar to treref.ring~srforo in dtIee
ot high@ popuhtlon brwkats rithout paying 8Qy rdditioM1 tax.
Eon. Get. 8. Sheppard, Page S
X~UIEUC~ ls l rooonrid0ra0n lnd rd4b~ Or the tOm g : l;m
opinion will be neoecraryto rOeoh a oonolu6ionupon tba instmt
;uestion,We 6806 it drle8ble to ?8?iW all outetu@;n(l op~;one
upon thisldeotloalquestionby formem a&mlnlstr6tlone.
1027, Assistant Attorney Oeneral ?I.GradJ Chaadlsr oonetr%'?L'
then exlet4f oooupatlontu on trawling tent 6howe and th86tne
and hale theu not to be lub Jo otot en oooupatloa tu. &wetor, m
axaufnatlonot thle opinion and uleting ltetutee bmonetntee met
the 1~ ha6 been a~enbed eiaoe the leeu~oe of thle oplnlon end thet
the opinion ruferred to wee 8t tha tlm wrltt6n In all thizq6 66rmot.
n6 do fine l opialon by Aeeilrtant
R o wo ver , Attorney General E. t.
Billltord,of &to L'af14 1936, dlnoted to Ir!aore>le Jim mnoe
Sheriff, hr Aeoo8aor4odootar, Terrell Cot&r, Xex6s, &lenetrl&llP
oppoead to the oplnloabf AeelrtaatAttoraei OalseralJo& J. yOf&y
herolmboVe ll+orto& to, me holding thet uneer the existing lmn the
owner, proprlotor or operator of IItraveling theatre or ebow touie we
8n 8ddltlonal o6oupatlcn tax in oaoh olty, town, or village In which
perfora6nOu mro 6lve& lOO0rdln6to the ~rebuM+Nla&08& firOd by
lub6lvlelonuk, ArtloleTOM, vanon* kmotat6d Cltll Statutee,
upon 8 populmtlon baele.
Utar (I\reeonelderetlon, 86 h6ve amashed the dellberate
oonoluelonthat ne emnot apee with either of them outstmdlng
opinions. On tho Contrary*we aeror with the lnfnletratlrs ruling
~rlv8aby Pou upon tkle guaetlcr,but not upon tha naeonlng amploymd
by you to ruah thle reeult.
fn thle oonneotlonwe do not find that Artlole 119, Pond
Cob, rolled upon by you, &fiords ue any lemletanoeupon thl6 qu68-
tip boonuse lem provider that *a0 oooupatlon tu'raaelpt or lloonem
taken out br l morahant of a lower OleeB than the one to rhloh hs
properly betinge* ehelT &ford proteotlon from proeeoutionfor pureu-
lng an oaoupatlon 0r L hlghcr olm3s. Penal Law6 being strictly
oonetrued,we do not feel that we oaa bring rlthla the ooneamatlon
of thle penal etatute UI.owner,operator or proprietor ot a tnvelln(r
tent lhw or theetro - la no 6ense a merohukt.
Cur aonoluslon reeta lolrly upon 6 propar oan6truOtion
or tho oaoupatlon tax etetute involred here, unaselated br any
luthoritleeof this or other Jurlotllotlono, beoawa our roeeuoh
hes iallr?dto develop any* lo l;\promhlngthin question 0r etatutory
interpretation, we point out that the atetute in qwetlon 16 open to
grwe doubt, a6 lnaloetcd by the eontrmiety 0r oplnlonby thle Do-
rtnunt hereinaboverderrod to. In 6uah & oaeo -0 may properly
E roke thr reoo@rod rule of ltstutoryoonstruotlonth8t, if poselblo
to do 60 without doing vlolenao to the &ng\uge or a etatuto, l rw-
lonmblo rather than &CLunreaeonableeonetruotlon and roeult will bo’
Ron. Gee. 8. Erhapperb,
P-e 4
&ran eucb etetute. @* are In diua?rowent with tbe opinion propa-
by ~eletant General John J. Y&Lay, booawo, ln its ultimclte
Attorney
resultan4 erreot, it plaoaeupon the oaoapatlon tax measure Ilnrol~ad
en tmreaeoaebleiPterprektlcm, when a roaeoaeble result and aon-
01uelon ooufd Mvo been rubbed
from the Iangwge of the Yam-o dth-
Out Qoing rlol@me tboroto.
~~16 o p lnlo l
n the ooncr,proprio-
llo ue
tor or operatorof a tnrmllry thoatre,tent or.othm ltmtum
oagable of being transportedfrom ptor to phoe, to doel(gredlyeeleet
80~0 oraee-rub tank-town for a one nl&t stead on squab 1st of
l given oalon&er year, glaUy paa?.the annual oocupatioa tag or $~.GG
fired by %otlotr t& upon euah lbwe or lxhlbltlonein Quae and
vlllrgrxot leesthan1000 inb&b%tutte one thereby be loootbqd the
oontinuia(r l
aad valuable rlgbt of xhlbhlng and prfmaln& ior the
balanoo of the ymu la tho utropollten rent&a of 0eue without
paying M 84eiti0d TV. 3x1hot, It 16 porslblo and not improbable
that euoh thutm or abow &ht ranaln in the large oltloe of our
State for the &mater *s-t OS the'tu yeer and eeoepe with an oooupa-
tlon tax or $8.00, while the thutree and show8 orunsntly lrhibltlmg
in lwh oitior r0d.e be p0yiag M 0atiwi000up0t P0a ax 0r $98.00.
We thfnk no euob rmraaeoaablenmtlt wee Intend&. by tba
Lagiele~on or requiredby the lanfwage 0r the statute. It lr true
that the portion or the Etatuto %urolted here aad ret out above,
doer watoaplate the oolleotioaof only one annualoooupatlonW
?mm the owner or operatorol l travolily~oatre or ebom, but It
&em not may Chat much onnuol oeoupatlon tax ehall be oorpotsd.aad
fixed by the meallest populationbnoket of any olty town or rlll.a~o
in mhleh lOeh thutre Or ebOe uy oommenao its oporatlonr ?or the
The atetute la ellant am to the esnountof euoh anmel ooou~-
C’W but wa think the xwe reaeoonabla intwprmtatlon16 to ray
thet the'ono annual ooeupatlon tae ehould be rlrotl anb lorpputedmby
the populiiiion braokete of the large& city in uhloh eueh travelIn&
ebow or theatreehall exhlblt or perfom. Thfe oonotruotlon will
plmoo the looal theatreor show and the trereliagthsetro or ohow
upon a talr basis,an4 Is oartciolynot neytiwd by anything In the
lo t.
cm the other hnd, wo ma not raparad to (50am i6r 86
the opinion by Aeeletant irttorneyGeneraP 8. 1. Wlllford d008, ad
hold that the owner or operator of a trareli~ tbutre or ahor woulb
be liabletar an edcitionelooeupetlon tut for every axhlbltlonIn
a different city, tom or ~11-0. under tbo viiiir0rb opinion, to
lllustrataIts pzratiaal lpplloatlon,it a trevdlng theatre o r lhw
lxhlblta.6In l to wn or vll.Lqeof l.000lnhebltanteor lame an annual
ta xo r $ S.Go
wo uldla o r wgttsn if th esh o w8p ve6
to a to m o r
villa68 or betroen 1000 lnhabl~eateand WGG lhhabltentean lddltlonal
tu or ~16.00 rould looruoi and 08 the lh w aontlnuedits travela and
Boa. Coo. a. Sheppard,POI$Q 8
lrhibltedin towns OC inor8seln~ popubtlon the oooupat;oa tU: then-
00 would pyramid to an oppreeelro,lf no tlonfleeatoryutent. This
16 aanlfeetiyan ~9areaeonable titergretatloaot the &tat&o, ad w
bsfievr the writer bt this oplnlo~ mast
hare ovWlo&ad beetion I!or
lubdlvlalon Zk, Art1010 VO49, Yernon~a.&otated Civil SaLutea,
pravldin(lttmt *only one u&uuaL oooupatlon tax shall bo eollaotod
Cro?ctba owner, proprietor or optmtor” of a theetre or show which
Is transported iron plmae te p&08.
am think the roaeonsblo#ldUle-aroundbatrern the two
extromea of oonctruotlonrepreeeattdby the MGay opinion on the one
hand mad the Yllllior6opinionon the other,is the opinionhe-by
given that only ona lna uel oooupatlontax shall bo eolleotd tram
the owner or pro~otor of thee0 travolln# show or theatree, in
loaor6anoerith the statute abore n?uro& to but &bat auoh one
annual oao\rpatloa tu shall be In ux armunt ifred by lubUlrle~ m,
Artlole 9049, Yamon*& Annotated Olrll Statutoe, for an exhlbltlon
in a rlty, tom or riling8of tha hl(heetpopStlaa bracket8 $a
rhlsh auah trwolln@ aho* or thaatrashall ba or la latonbed to bo
uhlblted brine: the glten tax Jur. It 16 aosnon Imowledm that
the generality,or *theatrloilor &aaatlo proeantatlone, nuelul
0mey ahore,~wi8ie plotuna~ ato. harr a flmd ltlnarary or loho-
dole or oporatloalong in ldvaaoe or the lotual lhowlag. In any
Irent,ri bellere~itwoe oontoup&kd by the I.&elaturo that t&o wner
or o orator of eooh lhlbltlone Shorild deterride in lbwnoe the aaxi8um
UL tloa of the oltlee tome knd vllLa&a# in which performen
i% to be had &ring thi tu year and py 9~0 &vii1 oooupatlon tax
To tlluetrate -U It us0 eoatemphted that perfor-
%~ro%ibltlonr ucml.6b; ulvui in sitleaand towns oi ~0,000
ixhabltantemod under l5.000 lnh8bitaat6, or in an7 oltfoe 8nd twaa
or learner population brooketa, au enaual oeimpatlontax of $80.00
wt~ld bs 6u~, and performanoer oould net be had In cltleeand taxno
In exoeea of 35,000lnhebltente, beeeueeyou would not hate lreued
l tu noalpt to ooter euoh oparatlon.
Bwstlag this fullyamvua your bqulr7, ueuo
Tour8 wq t,ruly
o? zt&AS
By
APPROVED
OPINION
COMYllTEL
n A/,&3