May 12, 1947 

Hon. George H. Sheppard Opinion No. V-180 

Comptroller of Public Accounts 

Austin, Ttxaa Rt: Proper procedure to be 

followed in making a 

supplemental asstssment on any land for 

years prior to the time 

such land passes into 

the ownership of a ptrson who is a bona fide 

purchaser for value without notice of such fact. 

Dear Sir: 

You request the opinion of this Department upon the 

question presented to you by Honorable James C. Martin, County 

Attorney of Nuects County, in hir lttttr of March 18, 1947. We 

quote below Mr. Martin’s letter covering the factual basis upon 

which our opinion is requested. This letter follows: 

“Mr. Dub Allen has referred to me your letter 

dated March 12, 1947, concerning the right of the 

Tax Collector to assess and collect taxes on land 

for years prior to the time at which the present 

owner acquired title to such land. (There has been 

a salt of the land in question to a bona fide purchaser for value without notice of the fact that the 

land had not been asstsaed for prior years.) The 

discovery was made recently that the land had not 

been asses&d and was not on the tax rolls. The 

property owntr is willing to pay for the years during which he has owned the land but refuses to pay 

taxeo for those years prior to the time he purchased 

the land, not then having any notice of the fact that 

there had been no taxes theretofore paid on such 

land. 

“The basis of his contention is the last stntence of Article 7346, which reads as follows: 

“‘No rt-assessment of any property shall be 

held against any innocent purchaser of the same if 

the tax records of any county fail to show any assessment (for any year so re-assessed) by which 
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Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 2 Opinion No. V-180 

. . . 

8aid property can be identified and that the taxes 

art unpaid.’ 

‘If this article is given effect how can we make 

a supplemental l sstssmtnt on any land for years 

prior to the time at which such land passes into the 

ownership of a person who is a bona fide purchaser 

for value without notice of such fact? ” 

The above quoted atnttnct from Article 7346, V.C.S., 

must be read together with Article 7347, V.C.S., in arriving at an 

anmwtr to your question. The pertinent portion of Article 7347 is 

am follows: 

*a 

. . . provided, that the certificate of any tax 

collector given during his term of office that all 

taxes have been paid to the date of such certificate 

on any certain piece of property, which is fully dtl cribtd in such certificate, or if the tax rolls of 

any county fail to show any assessments against 

such property sufficient to identify it, and that the 

munt was unpaid at the dates such rolls may have 

been examined to ascertain the condition of any 

property as to taxes unpaid, this shall be a bar to 

any rt-assessment of such proRerty under this law 

for any years prior to the date of .such certificate, 

or such examination; provided, that the property rtferred to. when re-assessed, shall be held by an innocent purchaser, who has relied upon the corrtctness of such certificate, or the tax rolls heretofore 

referred to.” 

Careful reading of the full text of the above Articles rtveals that they were passed in a single bill (Chapter 130, 29th Legislature) to provide a method for two things, as follows: 

1. Assessment and collection of taxes on real 

property omitted from the tax rolls. 

2. Rt-assessing and collecting the tax on real 

properties on which former assessments are Invalid. 

Careful reading of the above quoted provisions relating 

to innocent purchasers reveals that they do not relate to property 

omitted from the rolls, but relate solely to property on which assessment was attempted and which is being re-assessed because 

the original assessment was invalid. 

If the property was omitted from the rolls and never assessed, naturally a search of the records would reveal no payments 
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Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 3 Opinion No. V-i80 

and no facta that could lead a Tax Assessor-Collector or purchaser to balieve payments had been made. The search itself 

would put a purchaser on notice that the property had been omitted from the rolls and that the taxes had not been paid. An Asstsaor-Collector’s ctrtificata to the contrary would not bind the 

State against the true facts. Obviously, it was for these reasons 

that the Legislature gave no “innocent purchaser’ protection in 

the cast of property entirely omitted from the tax rolls. 

In the case of re-assessment of property once on the 

rolls (but under invalid assessment) the Assessor-Collector or 

the purchaser may have been misled and caused to believe from 

the existing invalid assessment that no unpaid asstssmtnt was 

outstanding. It is in this cast that “innocent purchaser” protection is afforded. Even in such cast, a person cannot be an innocent purchaser and thereby prevent re-assessment unless the 

facts show that on or before the date of purchase he had a proper 

tax certificate showing payment, or (1) that upon examination by 

himself or his agent or legal representative the tax rolls of the 

county failed to show any assessment against such property sufficient to identify it; and (2) the tax rolls failed to show that the 

taxes were unpaid at the date such rolls were examined to as- 

~‘ctrtain the condition of any property as to unpaid taxes. It must 

further appear that one claiming to be an innocent purchaser rtlied upon the correctness of the tax roll which failed to show assessments against such property sufficient to identify it, and which 

failed to show that the taxes were unpaid at the date such rolls 

were examined. 

Except in this limited scope one cannot be an innocent 

purchaser as to ad valortm taxes accruing prior to the purchase. 

Whether or not such a purchaser is entitled to rely upon this statutory provision involves, in any event, factual determinations; and 

unless he is able to show all of the factual conditions prescribed 

by the statute. he cannot be an innocent purchaser. 

The Commissioners’ Court may proceed with rt-assessmtnt of such property in accordance with the statutes relating thtreto until such time as it finds from the facts that before purchase of 

the property the purchaser examined (or had examined) the tax rolls 

and that such rolls failed to show unpaid assessments against the 

property sufficient to identify it and that he innocently relied upon 

the correctness of such tax rolls as to no unpaid taxes being due. 

In no event are you prohibited from making a supplemental assessment roll on property entirely omitted from the rolls. 

SUMMARY 

Articles 7346 and 7347, V.C.S., providing for assessment of property omitted from the rolls and reasstssment of property mvafidly assessed, gives 
.!I::, Hon. George H. Sheppard - Page 4 Opinion No. V-180 

“innocent purchaser* protection under certain conditions in casta of rt-asstssmtnt but not in casts of 

supplemental assessment of property entirely omitted from the tax rolls. In casts of re-aasessme, 

nfact conditiona must be shown to exist &fort Commissioners’ Court is justified in not rt-assessing the 

property. 

Attorney General of Texas 

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