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NEW GENERAL

33 EXAS

Honorable Grover Swift Opinion No. C-707 County Attorney Winkier County Re: P. 0. BOX 1015 Whether Article 1436-2, V.P.C., authorizes the Kermit, Texas prosecution of a person, who is customarily engaged in the business of obtainingmotor vehicles for scrap disposal, for failureupon demand by the State Highway Department to surrender to such Department certificates of title to such Dear Sir: motor vehicles.

In your opinion requestyou state:

"A supervisorof investigation for the Motor Vehicle Division has asked me to file charges against an individual for failure to turn over to the Department certificatesof title which have been demanded by the Motor Vehicle Division on certain vehiclesnow on said individual'sproperty.
"This individualdoes not have the certificates of title to these vehicles which were sold to him as junk. There is apparentlyno problem concerning said individual's turning
over to the Motor Vehicl.e Division the license plates which were on these vehicles.

"I have questioned the authority to file charges in connectionwith his failure to turn over the certificatesof titlewhich have been demandedbut which said individual does not have in his possession for the following reasons, and I would likeyour opinion as to my position:
"(1)Article 1436-1, Section 37, requires 'That the owner lastnamed in the certificate of title shall surrender such certificate to -3413-. .

Honorable Grover Swift, page 2 (C-707)

the State Highway Department for cancellation when the motor vehicle to which such certificate of title has been issued is

. . . junk, dismantled or destroyed or its motor number changed.'
"(2)Article 1436-2provides in part 'Thatall certificatesof title covering such motor vehicles obtained for scrap disposal, resale of 'partsor any other form of salvage, shall upon demand,be surrendered to the State Highway Department for cancellation.'

"From reading these two statutes I find
no requirement that thepurchaser of the vehicles sold for scrap disposal, etc.,
as set out in 1.436-p be or is required to obtain from the seller a certificate of title for the automobile so purchased. On the contrary,Article 1436-1, Section 37,places the burden or requirementon the seller or person last named in the certificate to surrender such certificate to the State Highway Department and provides a penalty for his failure to do so when such automobile is junk, dismantled
or destroyed. Article 1436-l doesnot refer to the sale of such automobile."

Article 1436-2, Vernon's Penal Code, was passed
as House Bill 805, Acts 57th Legislature,Regular Session, 1961, chapter 506, page 1118. The caption to said act provi~des:

"An Act to requireany person, association of persons, corporate or other, who customarily engage in the business cf obtainingmotor vehicles forpurposes of scran. resale of Darts therefromor salvage;<

to surrende? to the State Highway Department all unexpired vehicle litense plates and Certificatesof Title for suchmotor vehicles;providing for
a penalty: and declaringan emergency." (Emphasis-added.)

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Honorable Grover Swift,page 3 (C-707)

The legislative intent to require the salvage dealer to surrenderboth the licensepiates and the certificate of title upon demand is clearly set forth in the caption. This intent is further shownby the language of the act itself. nal Code, provides: Article 1436-2, Vernon's Pe-

"Anyperson, association of persons, corporate or other, who customarily enthe license-numberand the-make and mo-- tor number of themotor vehicle fromwhich suchplates were removed shall be maintained on forms to be furnishedby the State Highway Department. Upon demand the licenseplates and inventory lists shall be surrendered to the State Hiahwav

way Department to furnisha signed receipt for the surrendered licenseplates and Certificates of Title. Any person violating any provision of thisAct shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100)nor more than One Thousand Dollars ($l,OOO),or by confinement in the county jailnot less than ten (10)days nor more than one (1) year, or by both such fine and confinement."

This Act, passed some 22 years after Article X436-1,Vernon's Penal Code,makes no mention of "the
owner lastnamed in the certificate of title". It deas solelywith persons engaged in the business of salvage of automobiles and provides that they shall immediately remove any unexpired licenseplates from
a motor vehicle obtained for scrap disposal or resale -3415-Honorable Grover Swift, page 4 (C-707)

ok? parts therefrom or any other form of salvage and to place the licenseplates under lock and key. They shall also make up an inventory list as required in said Artitie. Said Article furtherprovides that the certificate o:ftitle covering such vehicles obtained (by the scrap dealer) for thesepurposes shall, upon demand,be surrendered to the State Highway Department for cancellation. Fina!.ly,saidArticle provides that it is the duty 0:'the State Highway Department to furnisha signet1

receipt for the surrendered licenseplates and the certificateof title. If the legislaturehad intended .iorthe licenseplates to be obtained from one person and the certificate of title from anotherperson, they would have provided for receipts,not a receiat. Article 14~6-1 and Article 1416-2 are senarate andLdistinctacts,-' independent from each other. &See ErrParte Harry Rubin, 362 S.W.2d 331, (1962),which on rehearingheld:

"(6) We do not agree that Art. 1436-1, Sec. 37, which requires that the owner last named in the certificateo? title shall surrender such certificate to the State Highway Department for cancellationwhen the motor vehicle to which such certificate of titlehas been issued I* * * junked, dismantled, destroyed, or itsmotor number changed + * scJ1

provides a punishmentfor the same act for which a differentpunishment is provided inArt. 1436-2. The later statuteprovides that ail certificates of title coveringmotor vehicles obtained for scrap disposal, resale of parts or any otherform ofsaivage shall u on demand be surrendered to the StateM&-tment for cancellation. The former-requires the surrenderby the owner last named therein of the certificate of title when the vehicle is junked, etc., whether obtained for such purpose or not, no demand for such surrenderbeing required.
"(7) If, however, the statutes do provide a differentpunishment for the same act, thiswould not renderArt. 1436-2, the later of the two statutes, invalid."

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Honorable Grover Swift, page 5 (C-707)

It is the opinion of this office that a person, association of persons, corporate or other,who customarily engage in the business of obtaining'motorvehicles for scrap disposal, resale of parts therefrom, or any other form of salvagemust, upon demand, surrender to the State Highway Departmentboth the licenseplates and the certificateof title covering a motor vehicle obtained for such purpose. This is truewhether the salvage dealerpurchases themotor vehicle or, as in your hypothetical situation, to the salvage dealer. themotor vehicle is given

SUMMARY

Under the provisions of Article 1436-2, Vernon's Penal Code, upon demand, a salvage dealermust,

surrender to the State Highway Department the licenseplates and certificate of title of a motor vehicle obtained for scrap disposal, resale of parts, or any other form of salvage.

Very trulyyours,

WAGGONER CARR Attorney General

REO/er

APPROVED:

OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman Lonny F. Zwiener Sam Kelley John Banks W. 0. Shultz By:
AssistantAttorney General

APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL By: T. B. Wright

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