OFFICE OF THE Al-l-ORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
xonorabloLlntons. Batage
oountyAttorney
"The indentma aeourlngtbew obligntionrdU eon-
try oortainoil and gee leasesand UoIpb
roe propertyin
tbo States~Qf Kansasand OIslehow
and,as wall,mm. 011
and gae leaSee in the Oountiesoi Flueow an4 San PatrlOi0,
Tezas.
wThsm 1s also pledgeda oontraotooverlng purohase
0f gas rr00 oertaln lease in sarimtriofo County,Texas,
and oontraoteooverlngsale 0r gas produoedrr00 all
three atatw.
"All of thebonds oi SerIssAwlll bq ppohaeed tram
the mortgagor by Metropolitan Life ilheuranae Company, a
oorporatlonor IfewYork. All of the bonds of SeriesB
will be purohasodfrom the mortgagorby The Rational
city &Ink or wm York.',
You mentionan 0 by 8n AsslatantAttorney General
under the preoo6Ing a tratlon,dated Fobrunry 1.5,1957,
addremed to the OotmtyAttorneyof PotterOounty,to thm li-
rO0t that a trust indentw on propedee wlthln a8 we&l am
ulthoutthe State of Texas in favor of and dellreredto non-
reeldontm of the Statew exempt rrom the tax, and you further
mentionan oplnlon by t&o prior adminfstratlon at thir offloe,
addrwied to thr Cwnty Attorney OS WI@dta Oounty,dated Way
27, 1938, see to hold that obligationaowned by nqtlonal
banks are aoqtfrorawhtu. You rrqueatour oplalona8 to
wholib~ or not thr indo!atureof mortgage to be axooutedby
RepublloBatural CaOk+mpeny, before beIn reoordod, anst.bo
lltempe6la aooordinaowith the pr0Y1010nrr or Arti 70470,
B.C.&, u auadod by 8.B. Xo. S4 by the 44th Logislafiure.
8aId S.B:Mo. $34,46th Logialaturr,made In part as roll.rrrre
*boept aa bmln othenI80 provldodthere Is bbro-
by lotiedend awmew6 a tax of Ten (lC#)Cents on oaoh
One Hpodmd (#lCC,OO~Dollar8 or Sraotiontheroof,over
the fir& W Thmdnd ((eW.00) Dollara,on all not.8
d obll&atlons mow6 by ohattolmortgags deed of
til.t uahanl~*r 1108~oentmot vendor'@lien oonbitlon-
a l lai~a6ontxa~tandallln&ntants of a slmLrnatw
W&Oh a%% illed or reoorbl In the orfloe of the County
Clerk under the Eegl#tratIonLaw6 of thI# State; protided
that no tu aball be l&vied on Inrtxumentsseourlngan
amount of Tro Bundm6 0NO.00) Dollam, or.1~~8. After
.Mo ltfeo tly dateeof tai8 Act, uoept aa hereInaftor
provided,no wah instrumentehall be tiled or reworded
byanyCounty Olerklnthls St~tauutlltWre harbeen
affllrsd to mah Inatwnt stamp@in aooordanae ~i$h
the pmtIrrIo~ oi thlr meetion;providingfurtherthat
nhouldth* Instntnuntf’I1.d In .thoofi'ior ot the Oounty
Clerk bo 8eourityof an obligationthat baa property
pledge6•~ 8aaurIfyIn a State or States other than
Texan, the tu #hall bo baaed upon the raaronnblooa8h
value of all propertypledgedin Texas in the proportl6n
Ton. Llnton S. Savage, Page 3.
that said property in Texas benrs to the total vcluo of
the pmgerty aoa~~lng the obligation; ... and pMVided
further that when onoo str:mpodas provided herein, an
instrumentmay be recorded In any number of countioa
In thie State without again being 80 stamped. ...
*If the amount aooured by a instnunentIs not ox-
proseed therein or if any part of the soourlty dosorlb-
od In any suoh lnstnrmsntappears to be looatod wIthout
the State of Texas the County Clerk shall require proof
by written affidavitsof suoh feots as may be nooossary
to determine the amount of the.tax duo.*
Tho provisionwith reforenoe to proratlng,thetax, wbsro a
pert only OS tho aeourlty Ir,looatod In the State of Texas, was
not la tho original Artiolo 70470, R.C.S., a8 the semo erieted
et the tlmo of the oplnfon to the County Attorney of Potter County.
Furthermore,we might obaene that on April 29, 193S, the proood-
lng edmInlstratlonof the Attorney Goneral'sDepartment ln an
opinion wr$tten by H. L. rcllllford,Aseietant Attorney Gonoral,
addroeeod to Ron. C+rley Lookhart, State Treasurer, Nled uon-
trery to the opinion or February 15, 1937.
In our oonferenoo opinion MO. 3061, dated June 17, 1939,
addressed to Ron. Charlay Loolchert,State Treasurer,we expressed
the via that'tho tax levied by 8.8. No. 24 1s a tax upon the
prirllogo 0r rwordIru3. PertloulerlyIn vlow 0s the lnoluslon in
the amended Aot oi the prov%slons requiringthe prorationof the
tax whore a pert or the eaourlty 1s looatod outside tha State of
Texas, we bslloro thnt the instrument in quo&Man muat beer atampa
ae provided in the emended Aot, and dotormlnodas therein provided.
In opinion Ro, O-267, dated February 25, 1939, add&sod to
the State Troamurer, es well a8 lo our opinion No. O-874, rsomtly
given to the Banking Commis~lonerof Toxea, we oxpnrsed tho rlow
thet lion instrumentstalc- by national banks and owned by them
are not subjoot to tho tax. However, it wIl1 be noted that In the
iaota submitted to ua by you none of the bond6 aooured by this ln-
denture of mortgage Is now owned by tho Rational City Bank of Now
York, but apparently that bank simply plans to puroheeo SerIoa B
of the bonda ao eeoured. If wo understand the instant situation
oorrootly, the Matlonal City Bank of Now York would not be paying
this tex. Henoo no exanptlon would be afforded the Indenture of
mortgage In question.
The tax #hould be oaloulatod aa eot forth In S.B. No. 24 and
oollootod eooordlngly.
YOWS VOlF$'tNu
GRL-W ATlDlU?EIGENEIULOlr~i!XAS
APP~WVED SEP 7, ,lQSQ .
Gerald C. Mann (signed1
AT’IDRNJIY GENERhL Op‘TEUS