Ronorable,R. C. glagle, Jr. 

Criminal histrict Attorney 

Grayson County 

Sherman, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No., 0-2065-A 

Re: Registration of motor 

vehicles brought into 

State by non-residents 

for the purpose of sale 

or tyade. 

We have had before us for reconsideration our 

Opinion No. 0-2065, approved April 1, 1940, .dfrected to 

You in reply to your letterof iltarch 5, 3.940.~ Your let- 

-ter of requestread in part as ~follows: 

“I ::&&I /anx,ionS~' 'to have 'you submit ‘~OUI’ 

opinion on tirticle 14134, Chapter ~8, Title 

17 of the Penal Code. of .Texas, 192.5, as 

amended by Chapter 77, ,Acta of th8 First 

Called Ge.sSion of the Fortieth Legislature. 

This article ~presents a serious situation 

.to the.Tax Collector of this County. Being a'bordeallne county, numberous automo-" 

biles are brought into Grayson County, 

sold, and many times taken again out of 

the state for Pe-Sale. We have an automobile dealer .t&,the c$?~&&ty that operate@ 

agencies in (&J$homa. Whenthis concern 

makes a:trade for: an .Oklahoma car here in 

Texas and then immediately removes the car 

out of this St6’te for m-sale in Oklahoma, 

must the car in question be registered in, 

Texas? On the other hand, if an Oklahoma car 

is bought in Texas, is the endorsed Certlficate of Title from Oklahoma, alone, sufficient 

evidence of sale and transfer of ownership? 

If the T 3QrSed :',.,certificate is sufficient, 

may the ax Collector legally acknowledge 
. . 

Honorable R. C. Slagle, Jr., page 2 0-2065~ 

change of ownership by registering automobile in buyer's name without the prescribed 

bill of sale properly executed.5 

Your request presents two questions: 

First, whether or not Texas registration of a car 

is necess.ary 5heiB p,.Texas automobile dealer who also operates 

agencies in Ohahoma makes a trade for an bklshoma car in 

this State, and immediately thereafter removes the car to 

Oklahoma for the purpose of re-sale. We assume that the car 

in question will be brought into Texas by its non-resident 

owner a 

Second, whether or not an endorsed Oklahoma Certificate of Title is alone sufficient evidence of sale and 

transfer of ownership in order that a county tax collector 

may legally acknowledge such change for the purpose of Texas 

registration of the automobile in the buyer's name withbut 

the necessity of a properly executed bill of sale. 

Article 667sa-2, Vernon's Annotated ~dvil Statutes, 

provides for the registration of each motor vehicle used or 

to be ussd upon the public highways of this State. Application for registration is to be made to the County Tax Collector of the County.in which the applicant resides. To this 

requirement of r#$$5tration are appended certainexdeptions. 

.One such exemption-from registration is that owners of certain 

farm tractors, farm trailers, farmsemi-trailers, and implements of husbandry, operated or moved temtiorarily upon .the 

highways are not required to register such vehicles. Another 

exemptionfrom registration m,ay'be found in Article 827b, 

Vernon's Annotated Renal Code, which contains provisions with 

respect to the registration of motor vehicles owned by nonresidents and operated upon the highways of this State. Section 5 of this Article~oontains this significant sentence: 

"And provided, further, that any nonresident owner of a privately owned motcr 

vehicle may be permitted to make an occasional 

tr~ip into this State with suoh vehicle under 

the privileges of this Act without obtaiging 

such temporary registration certificate. 

An "occasional trip' is defined in Section 1 of 

Article 827b to mesn "not to exceed five trips into this 
Honorable R. C. “lagle, Jr., page.3 0- 206.5~ 

. . 

state during 

any one trip. 

py calender month, nor to’ exceed five days’ on 

In other words, regardless of purpose, a 

non-resident of this State may make an “occasional trip” 

into this State in hismotor vehicle without obtaining Texas registration of such vehicle, 

car into the, State for the 

Re .m~y..,lawfully bring his 

purpodd af ‘S’alS while on an aoccasianal trip,!’ without the necessity-of registgring it in 

thisstate. yee &merican Lloyds of Dallas v. crengo (CCA, 

19261, 282.5. W. 9.57 writ tiefused. ae call to your attention, however, that gectioli 15 .df Article 82j’b, Penal Code, 

requires that there be displayed at all times upon such 

automobile the re@stratlon number plates assigned to such 

vehicle for the current year by the St&te of the owner’s 

residence. 

A decidedly different question is presented when 

the new dealer-owner of the automobilb, a resident of Texas, 

drives the car over the highways of the State after the sale 

to him for the purpose of re,-sale .fn the 8tBte of Oklahoma. 

In Opinion No. ,O-‘891 this department held that when 

a motor vehicle la upon the public highways for any purpose 

or any length of time, unless there be.an express exemption 

it muat be registered as required by law. 

We have found no exeplptlons applicable to a re~sident 

automobile dealer or his agents driving a used automobile into 

another State for the purppss of re-sale. 

In further answer to your first question, it ‘is our 

opinion and you are advised that when unbar the facts described 

in your letter the new dealer-owner of the used automobile 

decides to drive it to Oklahoma over the highways of this State 

for the purpose of re-sale t,,he au omobile must be re istered in 

this State. Article 667Sa-l-15, t ernonts Annotated f 1~5.1 gtatutes; Article 807b, Penal Code. 

Your second question is oonoerned with what muniment 

of title will be sufficient to wldenue snle ‘and transfer of 

ownership; and whether an endorsed Oklahoma Certificate of 

Title would alone be sufficient without a properly executed 

bill of sale. In this connection you, call our attention to 

Articles 1434 and 1435 of the Penal Code, vinich have required 

the execution of a bill of sale by the transferor tc the transferee when the latter makes application for registration in 

Texas. 
. - 

Honorable R. C. Slagle, Jr., Page 4 o-2065-~ 

In Opinion No. O-1491, this department held that 

the Certificate of Tit.16 Act, Article 1436-1, Vernon’s 

Annotated Penal Code, supercedes Articles 1434 and 1435 of 

Vernon’s Annotated Penal Code, lnrsmch as the Certificate 

.of Title Act covers the same general subject matter. Consequently, we must lbok to the Certificate of Title Act 

and other pertinent statutes. 

Section 60 of the Certificate of Title Act, Article 1436-1, Vernon’s Annotated Penal Code, reads as follows : 

“The’ movieions of this Act sha’ll 

awlv to motor vehicles not reauired ‘to be 

tered OF licensed the laws 

thUsState then effective, not to motor 

vehicles owner or opqrated by the Federal 

Government or any of its agencies, the State 

of Texas, or any municipal government unless 

such motor vtihlple- 1s sold to a person required under this Act to procure a certlficate of title, in which even the provisions 

hereof shall be fully operative as to such 

motor vehicle, ” (Underscoring ours) 

Ia the wed motor vehiole in question when being 

sold to the Texas dealer “required to be registered or licensed?” 

We have determined in answer to your firat question that it is 

not so require& to be nlloenaed or reglatersd.” As a result 

the literal lan ua&e of Seotion 60 oi the CsrtWoate of Title 

Hot la 8atirfle iI Inmolar 88 ths #ale or trade by’the Oklahoma 

resident to the ‘hxrr dealer lb oonoernsd; that la, the vshiolo 

iu not required to br rrglrterrd or llomsed In this State and 

the Certifloate of Title Aot in 4&B,, :Wbl&~%g: has no application 

to this tranaaq$ion. 

Other 8sotloncr of the CIrtlfioate of Title Aot bear 

out this oonolurlon, Section 27 haa no applioatlon. This aeotion 1s direoted on1 to automobilor.kqulred to be registered 

or liosns’ed in this &a, ‘I and the prohibition la only againat 

the “oyner” aa that term is defined 

i! 

n tho ‘Oortifioate of Tltlo 

Aot. ICa bslievo the Certifloote of itle Aot’r definition of 

an “importer,” nrmely, ‘Iany person rxoept a manufacturer, who 

brings any wed motor vehftole into this State for the purpose 

of sale within this &ate is more nearly applicable to the nonresident In question, 
Honorable R. C. hlagle, Jr., Page 5 0-2065-A 

For similar and other reasons Sections 28, 29, 33, 

51 and 52 will not apply. 

However we believe Article 667.5a-3, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, is applicable and expressly covers 

your second question. This Article provides in part as follows : 

“4t 4t Q. It is expressly provided that the 

owner OF a vehicle previously registered in any 

State for the preceding or curent year may, in 

lieu of filing an application as thereinbefore 

directed, present the license receipt and transfer receipts, If any, issued for the registration or ‘transfer of the vehicle for the preceding 

calendar year, and said receipt or receipts shall 

be accepted by the County Tax Collector as an application for the renewal of the registration of 

the vehicle, provided said receipt or receipts shall 

be accepted by the County Tax Collector as an application for the renewal of the registration of 

the vehicle, provided said receipts show that 

the applicant is the rlghtfuly owner thereof. 

Provided, however, that shou,ld an owner or a 

claimed owner of A motor vehlole or automobile 

offer to register same, but has lost or misplaced 

the registration receipt or transfer, then upon 

his Surnlehlng satlafactory evidence to the TPX 

Collector by affidavit or otheo?wSaa,, that he 1s 

the real owner of same, then shall it become the 

duty of the Tax Colloctor~ to date each registration 

rooslpt Ineuod for the vehicle the same date that 

application Is made for regietrat&on of such vehicle. W4b 3k.” 

Your seaand question is therefore anawered In aocordanco with Article 6675a-3 to the offoot that the new dea;lerowner of the used autbmoblle in queatlon should present to the 

County !f!w Go~eotor upon making rpplioatian for Texas regiatration of the same and IlOonse and tranaSar rscaipta from the 

foreign State oevering the automabile in question, together 

with any ether evldenccr (ruah aa the endorsed Certificate of 

Title from tha foreip @ato) aufflciant to satf,sSy the Tax 

Collector of lagal own@rahip of the automobile, 

You are further advised that under thq aircumstsncos 

described in your letter presentctlcn ta thQ Iax kollectOr 

of a properly crxeauted bill OS aale for the automobil-a in @estian will not be neodsaary pravldad the foreign license and 
. . . 

Honorable R. C. Slagle, Jr., page 6 0-2065~ 

transfer receipts and such other evidence the 

may produce show him to be the rightful owner 

mobile. 

Yours very 

appl ic ant 

of the autotruly 

ATTORNEY GENDRAL OF TEXAS 

: 

qr '~ James D. Smullen 

Assistant 

JDS:RS--pam 

APPROVED FEB 3, 1941 

CIROVER SELLERS 

FIRST ASSISTANT 

ATTORNEY CIENERAL 

APPROVED OPINION 

BY BWB, CHAIRMAN