OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable ‘#ayne Leferre 

County Auditor 

Clay County 

HeKLriOtt4, %X48 

Deer Sir: 

ellnquent teoe earn4na 1934 it 00ii00ton the above stated 

question hea be 

4th day of April, 1919, 

County held an eleotion 

r a epeoial roe& tax 

l Q dollar valuation OS texauld be levied, areeeeed end 

leotlon resulted in favor 

loners* Pcecinot No, 1, end eialler 

in Preolnat No. ,? on April 14, 1915, end 

Agril 14, 1919, and in Preoinat Ho. 4 

that all of said. eleotions resditeh in 

these eleotione being held for the purpose 

ether or not a mjorlty o? the legal qualified 

property texpeying VOt8r9 of eaoh preOiuCt desired to hare 

levied, asasseed end collected a road tar of tifteen cents 

on the one hundred dollar raluetlon or taxable property in 

each of said oomlsslonere* preoinots. 

Art&ale 3937, Vernonte Civil Statutes, reads in 

pert es follow8r 
Honorable %eyne LeSevre, Page 2 

"Each Assessor of taxes shell reoeive the 

fO1lO~ir~g ooffipeneetion SOC his eervloes wbioh 

shell bs estimated on the total value of the 

property esseeeed es Sollowe: For assessing 

the State end County Tares on all sums for the 

Slrst Two ~lllion Dollars ($2,000,000.00) or 

less, Slve (5) oents for each One Bundred Dollars ($100.00) OS property assessed. on all 

mms in exoess OS Two k!llllon Dollars 

($2,000,000,00) end leas, then i%ve U.llion 

Dollars ($5,000,000.00), two end one-hali (24) 

oents on e@oh One Hun&red Dollars ($lOO.OO), 

end on alLsums in exoeas oS slve ~4lllon Dollars ($5,000,000.00), two end one-sourth (24) 

cent6 on eeoh One Hundred Dollars ($lOO.OO), 

provided, that in oounties in whioh the populetlon does not exoeed twelve thousand, Slve hundred (12,500) inhabitants, the Assessor shell 

reoeive on all suma Sor the first Four Ellllon 

Dollars (64,000,000.00), the au 0s rive (6) 

cents for each One Hundred Dollar6 ($lOO.OO), 

and on all sums above such amount the See shell 

be es above stated, one-helf OS the above oompensatlon shall be paid by the State end oneheals by the oounty; for assessing the taxes on 

all drainage dlstriote, road dlstrlote, or other 

political subdivisions OS the oounty, the Assessor shell be paid three-SlSthe OS one oeht Sor eeoh 

One Eundred Dollars ($100.00) OS the assessed value 

of such dlstrlots or subdivlsfone." 

You further iniorm us that the Tax Assessor is 

clelollng the three-fifths of one cent for each One Hundred 

Dollars of the asessed value of the various comuiissloners~ 

precincts by virtue of the above rrrentloned elections, oleimlng that the above mentioned eonmissioners' preainots are 

road districts as mentioned i&Article 3937, supre. 

It is to be understood that we ere not here paesing upon the validity OS the above mentioned eleotions. 

Zectlon 9 of Article 8 oS the Texas Constitution, 

reeds aa follows: 

"The State tax on property, excluikm of 

the tax neoessery to pay the public debt, end 

or the taxes provided for the beneslt of the 
Honorable %'ayne LeSevre, Page 3 

public free sohools, shell never exoeed thlrtyfive cents on the one hundred dollar valuetlon; 

end no couhty, oity or towa 8hell levy more than 

twenty-five oents for city or oouzty puxpo8e8, 

end not eroeeding fifteen oente for roede end 

bridges, end not exoeedlng fifteen oents to pay 

jurors , on the one hundred dollar valuation, except for the payment ,oS debt8 incurred prior to 

the adoption of the azendment reptezber 27, 1823; 

end for the ereotlon of publio buildings, street, 

sewers, water works and other permanent improve- 

:zents, not to exoeed twenty-five oente on the 

one hundred dollars valuetlon, in any one year, 

end except es 18 in this oonatltutlon otherwlee 

provided; end the Legislature may eleo authorize 

en additional annual ad valorem tax to be levied 

end oollected for the further maintenanoe of the 

publio roads; provided, that the majority of the 

qualified property taxpaying voters of the oouaty 

voting et en eleotion to be held for that purpose shall vote such tax, not to exoeed fifteen 

cents on the one hundred dollar8 valuation of the 

property subjeot to taxetioh in suoh oounty. And 

the Legislature may pas8 looel laws for the malntenance of phbllo roads end hlghweys, without 

the looel notloe required for a speoiel or looel 

laws. * 

Referring to the above Quoted eeotion of the Constitution the court in the oese of Commlssloners~ court of 

lu'averro Couaty et 41 v. Tinkstozet al, 296 s. W. 271 (writ 

of error refusedj used, the So~lovAzg language: 

*The Leglsleture 1s only empbwered to euthorize an eddltlonel ad velorem tax to be levied for 

the purpose of maintaining pub110 roads by a majority vote of the qualified property taxpaying voter8 

of the county for the purpose OS malnteinlag the 

roads of the county, end not of any subdlvlsion 

thereof. The measure authorized was one for the 

benefit of the entire oountg,and to be voted on 

by the property taxpaying voters of the entire 

county, et an eleotlon to be held for that purpose. The language clearly excludes the levying 

of the tax therein provided for by any other vote I 

than of the entire county and not for 10041 but 

for county-wide purposes, end prohibits euoh tax 
Honorable %ayne Lefevre, Rge 4 

so authorized ironi exwedlng fifteen cent8 on the 

one hundred dollar valuation of the property subject to taxatlon in the oounty. * *: ** 

statutes presarlblng fee8 ror publlo orricers are 

strlotly construed; and heaae a right to fee8 may not rest 

in lmplloatlon. See Texas Jurisprudence, Vol. 34, p'. 508; 

XcCalla v. City or Fockdale, 246 9. K. 654; Blnrord v. 

Eoblnson, 244 !:. 'J;. 807. 

Commlssloners precinct8 do not constitute road 

districts or other wlltloel subdivisions of a county 88 

contemplated by Article 3937, aupra, where three-fifths 

of oue oent for each one hundred dollar valuation or the 

assessed value of taxable property 18 allowed a8 fee8 ror 

assessing the sane. 

You are respeatfully advl8eU that it iB the oplnion of this Department that the tax a8sas8of wa8 not entitled 

to three-rltths of one oent for eaoh one hundred dollar valuation or the asseesed value of taxable properky in the oommfesloners' preolncte. Thle being true, there are no delinquent 

tees v&lOh the tax a88e88or was entitled to as such fees we18 

not provided in the first lnstano6. 

Trusting that the roregoing ray an8wer8 your lnqulry, we remain 

Yours very truly 

ATTORNEY GltNERAL OF TEXAS 

By 

Ardell wllllam8 

ASS18 t&l& 

-$L4&&&.- 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS