OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Ronarable Oao. E. Sheppard 

Conptrollar or Publia Aaaotmt6 

kuetln, +axaa 

my 13, 1939 
Hon. Geo. iii Sheppard, Page 2. 

r . 

rhich shall be furt!ser cubjeot to the approval of the 

Comptroller, and Is official oath together with said 

bonds shall be recorded in the offlae of the County Clerk 

cf said County, acd be forwarded by the County Judge or 

the county to the Comptroller, to be deposited In his 

orrlce. :iafd bond sZnl1 be oondltlonsd for the faithful 

performmoe ot 9x0 duties of hlo offloe aa essesaor 

t-ml collector of taxes for end during the full tena 

for mhl& he was elected or appointed. Jr the event 

the bon&s requlred in this Iztlcle are executed by e 

84ti6r4CtOry auraty oospfiny or aoapanlea or by any pri- 

.vate partiaa, 48 suraty or auratiea thoraon la oountlaa 

with 4 tot41 tarable valutition of Thirty yilllorr Dalsara 

($SO,OOO.OOO.OO) or more, the oounty-of uhloh the prln- 

.olpal in said bond or bonda la aaaaaaor m(l oolleotor. 

or tax68 ah411 pay a raaaomble mount aa pramlum 

an said bontl or bWd6, whlah munt shall be paid 'apt 02 

the Oenaral Ravenps of the oorurty open praaanktlon of 

th4 bill therafor to the Coambaionar~ Court ot ths 

aounty proparly ruthentloatad 4a.nquirad by hr.-. 

other alaims a&nat tha oounty. ?f thers.be, any eon-~ 

trovuay aa to tha rhaonableneaa of tha amount ola%md, 

as auoh premium, such aontrorerrry pay ba datermlned'by 

any Court or oompateat juriadlatlon. 

wWhanaver the aaaoaaor an&~ooll&tor of taiea 6i 

a ny b o untla y n~ulr e%~ a ~g ive l a p a r ab ota n& to o o vor 

diatrlct tuea aol.lttcted byhir, auah bond aimll b4 

approrad by the governing board, or oam~i88ioP of 8~6.~ 

diatrlcta, and the prsmium on am ahalL ba paId out of 

first 003.leotiom for auoh distriot8.~* 

“Art. 7lXS. The aaaeaaor and aoll&tor or t4xaa m4y 

be required to furnish a naw bond or addltiozml .aaourlty 

whanaver, in the opinion of the Gowiaalonora court or tha 

Comptrollar, It miy be" advla4blnr. Should a- asaeaaor 446 

oolleotor or taxea fall to glva a new bond and a4dItIonal 

aaaurlty when required, he shall be auapended troa orfloa by 

the Conmdaalonars Court of his aoonty. 'aad ifSJaedf4talp 

thereafter be removed from oifioa la the wde preacrlbed 

by law." : .:' 

You point out that, pursuant to Artlole 7247, llarlaad 

Civil Statutes. as aminded, the Tak Aaseaaor-Collsotor haa bean 

raqtired to n;Blke 4 bond pPyabla to the State of Tema, through 

ita Governor, in the amount of ten per aent of the akts 4d V43.oran 
Cm. Geo. R. Yhcppsrd, ?ace 3. 

crd poll taxes char&cd cr. We 1938 tax roll, tc ocver ttis 

offlcial~e tern beginnine Jannery 1, 1939. Inaezuah its thc.smount 

of such bond 1s net oonputed u?on certain oocupatlon taxes end 

license ices collected by this o~flclal, and baoauee there are 

no bond raqu:recents in co:ineotlOn %lth the oolleotlon of suob 

taxes and fees. you ask I'f you have lawrul authority under the 

general tcrme of Article 7248, es amended, kevlsed Civil Xatutes, 

to require a new CT addltlonal bond in such amount as will adequate11 

protect tlic? ."tate and the .publlo Interest In the collection of these 

excise taxes and llcenss fees. 

The ooverage and oblfgtion or the firx,Aaaea~r-Colleator*a 

bon5 under Article Oti7, aa arendbd, Revised Clvll statute, 6hould 

rlrat be datemalne5. The aonatitutional.duty OS the.otiios.bi 

ass4aaor~olleotor of t4xe8, omated by insndmant a$~ our Conatltti- 

-tion, Eover;ber~~S, lQSE, Is that of perfornlng *all the dutlea with 

respect to asaasaing property r0r the pvpow 0r taxation and 0r 

oollectlag auah tarcla as my be prworlhod by the lagiqlature,~ 

Saetlon 14, Ax-t&lo 8, Conatltution OS Texas. The oondltlon~of~ fhe 

aaaaaaoraolbctor*a bond is apeolfloall~ tixed In imld.Artlale 

71347, &rla,ad CIvll Statutw, aa follomar .%a%d.bon5 ah&l1 ‘be 

.-aondltioned for the faithful perfoa~me of the duties of'hia oftfoe 

as aaaeaaor and oolleotor or taxes for and dw%ng the folltarm 

for rhioh he was elaoted or appolnkd.* ,.~.~ 

The oblfgktion or sxt4at of liablllty unaor &fflolal~k~ 

oulleidor*s bonds, oondltloned aa above, aray be thus @morally 

stated: If the bond I8 mneral In Its imma It rll.1 apply to all 

kinds o? tar45 lawfully lntruated to the oftio4r for ~4ol$44fiion, 

while If It applloa by Its terma only to a osrt411tXind or kind0 

o tax48 It does not oover the colleotlon ot other tam&. It all 

~J 

l pamls~on the tem8 or the bonds. whera a oolhotor*8bori4l8‘ln 

genonl tsraa, and aonditloned for the.faitbN parfomanoo or'.$la 

duties, or ror the paynent of allnonoya aolleoted by him, If Jiy 

aubaaquent legialetlon new tax48 4r4 pmvI5o5 for, the oolleotion: 

or rhloh la aubtitt4d to t& oolleator, hla auretlea are limb10 

In reapeot ,to auoh taxes to the acuce extent aa if ttbsy had bami 

provided ior before the boa5 was given. Cooley on Taxation Vol. 

3, tiotlan 1373.; State of Texas vs. Klddletoa*s Sureties, ~?+$ Tet. 

ISi Swan vs. The State of Texas, 48 Tex. 120. 

The office oi tax eaeeasdr-oolleotor Is, under tiu, abarged 

with the duty of oolleotlng~~nd paying over to the proper~.mtata authorities, 44rtal.n Inherltanoe tame, autoeoblle regletratlon i446, 

beer llcanea fees, and occupation taxes. The ooxmtftittfonal and 

atatutory duties or this ofrloe aomprehend the aolleotlon or the 
; tete*i ;;crtior. of ti:!c:'c tares 6:; WQii es ad valorem and poll 

texQs. Yhersforo, it :u?.t, follow tf:at tSe o.fficial bond of a 

tax ussessor-coilector, executed :n favor of the State, and conditimed for the faittful perfor?zil;ce cf she duties of tbe ol'floe 

of esecssur-collcotor of iaxuf2, would ccver and insure the due 

pnyztient to the state. :jf all ncnity'e and revenues lenfully oollectea 

by e tnx .tiseasaor-collector, tl!ld xould net be limited, tr, 1 ta 

covera!:c, tc ad valores, taxes md poll taxes. Xor does the fact 

that i.rt.!cle 7247, as alrandad, !ievlsed Civil Ptatutea, 1926, 

fixes the amount of such bc:rd zt ten per cent of the whole amount 

of t:e :::ate ad valorem and poll tax of a C!ven oounty, a8 shown 

by the last preoedlne a88esnmant, militate agdnet thl8 ~oluslon~ 

This 18 merely a mode fixed by the Legleleture for arrltlng at the 

penal amount of the aeseeeor-oollsotorfo bond orlglnal4 nqli$r~d 

to bo filed, and is not lntendod to limit the statutory oondltlon 

lmportad into i5aid bond. 

Klth r&mmoe to your authority under Art1010 78d8, a8 

emended, Hevleed 01~11 Statute8, to require a 8owr8te or addltlon

bond, in 8uoh amotint and with suoh aumtlae a8 im doomed~neoa8rrer

./ 

0 ociver the o0lleotlon and payment to the Stat0 0r the88 Ujo8use 

f888 and l x0ise tax68 in addition to ad Y81ON and poll t#lXe8, it 

1s our opinion that you ray.rake 8uoh requirom8ntti r8g8rding the 

number and rO8pon8ibility Of 8Umtio8 a8 yOoUr OffiOi81 di8Or8tiOn. 

.oxerol88d In the publla interest, tight diotat8, but 8ay not lawfully requlro the exeoutlon and filing by a tsx a8888@Or-OOlleOtXPr 

or a bond in exoes8 ot the amount fixed by Artlole 7847, 88'8m~ndec 

bV18Ud Civil gtatUtO8. 

% have not 8rrlrod at thi8 oonolwlon rlthout 6iffiOulty 

beoeuse then, i8 (~1 apparent oontradiotion and inoon818teaoy betw8

Artlole 7R47, a8 apntnded, Barleed Civil Btatute8, Slxing thearim 

8moUUt ot 8Ul alIRe88or-OolleOtOr'8 bond 8t $~,ooo.oo, Wd tit1018 

7M6, 88 amoadod, Horisad Clrll Statutes, proriding that *the 

aaae8aor-aolleotor of tax08 niay be required to furnlrb a mw bond 

or edditiond eeourlty whenever, in the opinion of the &XUd88iOIE

Court or the Comptroller, It may be adrluble.* Reoo&ting our 

duty, under established oanon8 of statutory 00118tNOtiaLI, to 

oonstrue artlole8 whioh ara in pari matorla, so aa to 8rriYe at a 

hamoniouo remit, we are oonatralned to hold that your authority 

end duty under Article '7248, aa amended, Bevleod ClYil St8tUto8 

1s limited to requiring a new bond when suretie on the originai. 

Pond die, beoome inoolven~., or wish to be reliered tiom their 

obligation, or to requlri% additional suretie upon the original 

bond in such oontingenaia8, but you have no dieoretfon In ahanging 
or fixing ttx emount cf ?uch mw cr cdoitioral bend. 

contrcllcd by tkc txndetor'jr 

TkiP iE 

-~;?rOQi&!.CXlS Of i:;tiC!lS 7;347, kovlsed 

CiVil :' i:ituterI. 61 iorp~s Zurin 103i; -teusofi' ve. i.lberty Co., 

34 L. *i. (2d) 643; liese v. Serfleld, 13 i; 000; mlbert specie1 

s~h001 I)iGtrict Y. Cooper, 20 G. v.. (Zd) 322. 

h8818tWt 

PMl?:R 

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