E ET GENERAL 

TEXAS 

Grover Sellers 

Honorable Homer Garrison, Jr. 

Direotor, Department of Publia 

Safety 

camp ?AaIny 

Austin, Texas Attention: W. J. Elliott, Chief 

State Highway Patrol 

Dear Sirr Opinion No. O-6509 

Re: V&hat is the n?'oper method of 

registering a oombination vehicle.. 

which aggregates a total weight of 

68,000 pounds? 

Prom yourktter as supplemented by a personal interview of recent 

date, we take the following facts and questions: 

"Operator has a truck-tractor, semi-trailer combination and has attached 

a trailer behind the semi-trailer. This makes the combination, used for 

hauling gasoline, exceed the forty-five (45) feat length limit. Howwer, 

under the provisions of a statute, it appears that authority to receive 

a special permit for exoessiw size or weight maybe given for a period 

of ninety (90) days, or less, by the State Highway Department. 

"The truck-tractor and semi-trailer combination is registered for 38,000 

pounds gross weight,and the trailer will weight 3@,000 pounds loaded. 

Thus, the total oominations, if allowed, would operate a gross registration weight of 68,000 pounds. 

"The question arises as to what registration would be proper to cover the 

above type of aomeyanae. As we understand the law, each trilar, or init 

of a oombination must be registered separately, and it is also provided 

that no combination of vehicles shall exceed 38,000 pounds. Does the 

fact that a special permit has been granted for such combination require 

registration of the combination for the 68,000 pounds?" 

We assume that you have referenoe to Acts 1929, 41st Legislature,, 

Seeend Called Session, chapter 88, as amended, appearing as Article 6675a2, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, when you say that "as VIB understand 

the law, each trailer, or w.i+%t of a combination must bs registered separate1y.a That statement is true. Seotion 2 of Article 6675a, V.A.C.S., 

relating to registration of vehioles reads as follows: 
Honorable Homer Garrison, Jr., pa:;e 2 (O-6509) 

Qvery owner of a motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer used or to be used upon 

the highways of this State ahall apply each year to the State Highway Deparhaent 

through the County Tax Collector of the county in which he resides for the registration of each suoh vehicle owned or controlled by him for the ensuing or our-rent 

calendar year or unexpired portion thereof, . . 0" 

Sec. 3 of Article 827, Vernon's Annotated Penal Code, originally 

passed in 1929 as Senate Bill MO. 11, chapter 42, page 72, Acts of the Forty-first 

Legislature, Second Called Session, and amended in 1931, by H.B. No. 336, chapter 

282, page 507, Acts of the Forty-second Legislature, Regular Session, reads as 

fOllow8~ 

"Ehcoept as otnerwise provided by law, no commercial motor vehicle, truck-tractor, 

trailer or semi-trailer, nor a 

over, on, or upon the pub= 77 l;;hways outside-&e 

combination of such vehicles, shall be operated 

B-n incorporated city 

or town, the total gross weight of which exceeds that given by the follo::ing formulat 

"Y: equals C times (L plus 40) where 

!'X equals total gross x::eight, 

!'C equals 700; 

including load and vehicle in pounds; 

"L equals the distance between the first and last axles of e vehicle 

or combination of vehicles, in feet. 

"Under the foregoing formula, the gross weight is ascertained by adding forty (40) 

to the distance in feet between the first and last axles of a vehicle or oombination of vehicles and multiplying the sum by sevens 

exceed thirty-eight thousand (38,000) pcunds~ 

tie gross weight shall never 

-- -- 

"Provided, however, the gross weight Permit.ted Thy the foregoing formula shall be 

subject to the following restrictions and limitationer 

"No such vehiole or combination of vehi.cles shall have a 

greater weight than six hundred (600) pounds per inch width 

of tire upon any wheel concentrated upon tie surface of the 

highway and using high pressure tires, and a greater weight 

than six hundred and fifty (650) pounds per inch width of 

tire upon any wheel concentrated upon the surface of tie 

highway and using Low-pressure tires, and no wheel &all 

carry a load in exoess of eight thousand (8000) nounds on 

high-pressure tires, and nine thousand (900G\ pounds on 

low-pressure tires, non any axle a load in excess of sixteen thousand (16,OOC) pounds on hig-pressure tires, and 

eighteen thousand (18,000) Patmds on low-pressure tires. 

An axle load shall be defined as the load on all wheels 

whose centers msy be included~ between two parallel transveroe vehicle plans forty (40) inches apart." (Underscoring 

ours) 
” . . 

Hon. Homer Garrison, Jr., page 3 (o-6509) 

Section 3a of Article 527, Vernonls Annotated Penal Code, reltating 

to lengths of vehicles, provides as followsr 

"No motor vehicle, commercial motor vehicle, truck, traotcr, trailer, or sem& 

trailer shall exoeed a length of thirty-five (35) feet, and no combination of 

such vehicles oou led to ether shall exceed e. total len th o~f'or 

feet, unless sue -hi-+ ve 1-2 8 or ocm6ination~e~s 1: 

min the limits of an incorporated city or town.* 

--+ipGW 

Thus it is seen, the combination of vehicles exceeds the weight end 

length limitations of Article 827, Sections 5 and 30 and may only operate legally, if entitled to, and has beenganted a special permit from the Highway DeparG 

ment. To receive this permit the applicant must satisfy the reouirements of 

Section 2, Artiole 827~ Vernon's Annotated Penal Code, as folltisr 

"It shall be unlawful and constitute a misdemeanor for any person to drive, 

operate, or move, or for the owner to cause or permit to be driven, operated, 

or moved on any highway, any vehicle or vehioles of a siee or weight exceeding the limitations stated in this Act or any vehicle or vehicles which are 

not constituted or equipped as required in this Act; or to transport thereon 

any load or loads exoeeding the dimensions or weight prescrived in this Acts 

provided the department, acting directly or through its agent or agents designated in each county shall have and is hereby granted auth&%ty to grant permits to periods of ninety (90) days or less for the transportation over State 

highways of such overweight or oversize or over length commodities as cannot 

be reasonably dismantled or for the operation ever State highways of superzavy or over length ccasnodities as cannot be reasonably dismantled . . ." 

(Underscoring curs) 

It is apparent that the gasoline transported is a commndiw capable of being reasonably "dismantled" and the operator of sn overweight, overlength combination of vehicles used-for hauling gasoline does not qualify under 

the speoial permit statute. Therefore, since no spooial permit can validly 

issue on this combination of vehicles the operator is beund by Section 7a of 

Article 827a, Vernon's Annotated Penal Code, relating to trailers, as follows: 

"No motor vehicle shall be driven upon any highwag outside of the limits of sn 

incorporated city or town drawing or hauling attaehedthertc more than one 

trailer.” 

Thus, in oonclusion, cur answer to your inquiry is that every motor 

vehicle, including Wok-tractcrs,and everytrailer, semi-trailer, used upon the 

public highways of this State, should be registered separately under the terms 

of Article 6675a, Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes, supra. As a consequence, 

the 66,000 pound ocmbinati~on vehicles in question, if legal, should be registered 
separately. However, such ocmbiBation cannot logally operate as one unit on 

the State Hi!;iways under existing statxtes of this State. 

You-s very tm1y 

ATTOXNi3Y G:X>U,L, OF TEXAS 

By /s/Benjamin Woodall 

Benjamin Wcod~ll 

Assistant 

i" /s/ Eo) ,‘o Maddox