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441 

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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

iionorablo Oeo. H. Sheppard 

COmptrOller OS Pub110 AooOuntr 

Austin, Texar 

Dear Kr. Sheppard: 

We roknowledge rao 

upon the above oaptioned 

r0110wa: 

qurrt ror an oplnlon 

pinion nquemt in as 

ular stmrlon of 

grants to the 

20 yoarr all 

ea iOr General Fund pur- 

; 

road dirtriota llor. 

donated and granted. 

meport 18 mado rubjoot 

o the Brazo8 River Conn Diatriot under the 

8, dot8 or the Fir& 

th i.e(;islatclre. 

omd ucider the provisiora of CheFter 

of ta i:irst zalled jesaion of tile j,t;l 

Legislature, 6XCbst t3 thb 0Xt6Et 6UCh 6 COUlty 

did not re&t ;iDri: than the 56x.i5u71 authorized. 

Tiizre has beer: no proratlor, made a6 to the a;ioY.t 

each coiuity should pay to comply with t;le pr3- 

viaiom of Chapter 368 abore mentioned. 

n;;ince :iOU66 iJill 408 donate8 and grants the 

mneys collected for ;eneral %3V6nU6 jUr;,O666 in 

t..e ,-and district.3 ib3V5 cis?::tiOl.ed, t0 td Cit;’ 

Of :~ree~ort, tx G;iesti3;1 urises 8.5 to v;xtLer it 

1.q nb;cessary to ColiGct ariz CiOLbJ Lit all rroA2 
-. 442 

&ion, Ceo. ii. bheppard, wee 2 

Brazorla County for the purpom of maltting to t&a 

Brazoa River Conaarration end Reolaiaatlon Dirtriot, 

Since there would bo sufficient ~oneg in the other 

LliEU SbUtieS to aeet the maximum mount authorized 

under tile prOViSIOn@ of Chapter 366 above aentloned. 

*Road dlatrlota 8, 9 and 23 in Brazorla County 

oovor only a anal1 portion of the antlre area of 

i3rSzorla County. Ii Brazorla County la still mqulrad to pay its pro rata part of the donation to 

Brazoa River Conaervatlon and Raolmmtion Dlatriot, 

then should the marlaum be takan tropl the taxes 

oolluotod from the areS of arazorla county not 

included in the road di6triOtS above mentlored, 

before maki.n(: any deduction from the taxes oolleoted 

from Said Alatriota?~ 

Chaptrr 368, First Called Soarion of the &th Leglalature 

cede a donetlon to the Brazoa River Conaervatlon and Raolamatlon 

Dirtriot for a period of twenty years of the state ad valorem 

taxes in ten oountlaa, one of uhloh ia Brazorla County, axproaaly 

llmlting thu mount thereoi to .$309,000.00 in any onr pa&r, and 

limiting tha amount OfState taxes donated, as to 6aOh county, to 

the amount of state taxes which would bu ooueoted baaed upon 

the 1934 aaaeaa6d valuatlona. said Aot further authorized the 

issuance or nefiotiable bonds, l eoured by a pledgo of the sum 

donated iron the oolleotion OS ad valorem taxes. ;ie understand 

that 1uoh bonds were issued 6nd at least a portion OS same are 

now outstanding. 

ilouae aill ho. 408, Regular ~aaalon of the 49th Legialature donate4 to the City of Ereeport for a period of twenty years 

all the State ad valorssi taxes collected from road diatriot6 i;O8. 

8, 9 and 23 iE Brazorltl County *not heretofore dokoted aiid 

granted”. sec. 2 of said Act reads ~6 fOiiOW6: 

";it the end Of ea& aIOEth tko ?aX .'.SSUSSOrCollector or .irazoria Coiu.ty, Oii fnma to ba furnished b;i tLe ioqtrollzr Of L ubiio ~ocO’Ut.fi 

(hereinertur referra& to 36 tho Col~ptrollLr,, siiall 

.mke a report u,ndi;r oeti, t3 s&id %L;ltrOlldT, SAOWing the aunt, of ad velorez taxi-6 collacred by hirr, 

for the State Gerieral wa upon property, real and 

perronal (including rol.lioe atook belowing to railwithin 66id roSd dlatrlcta in aald 

and aocoiupeny the 

state;:lint 6;~;3winC full 

66m with a S&~riZod 

CiS$OSitiOL Of 011 such ,tot6 
4 

taxes oolleoted. Tne said Assessor-Colleotor aim11 

pay over to the Treasurer of the towu of Freeport 

all moneys oolleoted by hip, under the provlalona of 

this Aot, over and abov6 that hbmtofore donated and 

g r a nted, l xoept auoh amounts as are allowed by law for 

aaaeaaln~ Snd oolleotlnC: the aamu, and shall forward 

to the Comptroller a duplloate oopy of the reoelpt 

for auoh monoga given to him by the Treasurer of the 

town of Fresport. It la expressly provided, howevar, 

that no remittance shall be made by the AaaesaorColleotor of tkazorla County on aooount of tax68 

oollootsd from said road districts to the ;ieolamntion 

Dlatrlot or the town of Frsaport for a 1:l.ven year 

UIdeSS 6Ed Until SUCh A66666Or-COlkctor Shall have 

been notified in writing by the Coisptroller of PUblio 

AOtOUlltS thet the amount or money due it on aooount 

of taxoa for auoh year shall have bean remitted to 

the Brator River Oonaervatlon and Rmolamatlon Dlatrlot undrr the provisions of Chapter 368, Aota or 

the First Called Sbaaion of the Forty-fourth Leglalaturei it baing the intention of this Aot that 

after the requirements under said Aot of the Fortyfourth Le@slature shall have been set for auoh year 

a11 money realized from the State ad valorem tax 

levied for general purposes in said road dlstricte 

in said County shell, on 6qust let, after remIttine 

any balanoe then due said reobmatiou diatrlot, be 

rumltted to the town of Freeport, Texas, for the 

uaoa proaoribad in this Act.* 

As we understand your inquiry, you desire our oyi~~ior; as 

to whether the Tax ~aae6aor-Colleotor of 3razoria Zounty ~8~1 

lewfully hold the State 6d vtilsre:; t6xc6 collecrt2 fro;.; zid 

Biatricts i;OS. 8, 5 and 23, until euoh the as tk Co:2L;rrollar 

shall n0tirg hti t:.at tkb keolasstion 31:trict has tiitkr received tha ;E~x~!&I axout ~if .jG~,O~~.oo from tiie ten CO‘ULtieB, 

or reoeived from Lrtizorih COuity til& riaXiATLLTl Of ,tC:i: tSXE6 

i,.iiCs y,ould 36 CollJctti, 3irSfZ U;O:; thr! 153k CbSLSSl2Z SZliCtions, (wnich vie lil:CbAl. “--+e:.i fro:i L; sc:i2dAla ci’,T,ic.;iz to jzur 

li;ttar a;JOult6 f(j t:ic; 6LL. Of Tc2,c$L.09), e;.< t .2.1 ;a>- to tile 

iltj of iree>ort 6ucP .: tcte ad vslore::. talcs c~lltiC:Lci Lr;l;. 

said di6triot6, 

The only que6tIoE. for us to decide 16 Wh6thir or UOt 

t!le provi6ion6 in sec. 2 above quoted, allos'ir,~ t.iC ,f6X AS6~6S~P 
444 

iion. Gee. ii, Lheppard, pc,s 4 

Colleotor not to tnaka Rrsplittanoa . , , on acoount of taxer 

OOll8Ct~d from aaid road dlatrlota to tba iieClamtlOA DlatrlCt 

Or th8 tOWn OS Freeport for l given year* until the zeolamatiOA Dlatriot haa reoeirod iron the Tar Colleotora rrom the 

balanoe or Bracorla County and the other nine oountiaa either 

tha maximum of $~09,000.00 or iroc# Brazorla County lta pro 

rot8 part, baaed OA the 1934 VelUiItiOA, and then malt the 

tax.8 oolleoted from the thrro road dlatriota to the City of 

Freeport, impair8 tha obligation of the oontraot batwecn the 

debtor8 and the holder8 of tha Raolamation Dlatriot Bond~a. 

It la aettled in Texas that when an Act of the atata 

LeC;ialatura authorizer a bond laauc, and oretitaa or euthorlzea 

thr orration of a oertain rund for PayneAt of the bonda, l uoh 

~VJllaiOA Of thr Aot oAtor into thr MAtraot batV8.A $ho 

debtor and holdara of tha bonda, 80 that it oannot bo npaalod 

by aubasquant lo~lalatlon without the l ubatitutlOA of l omathing of qua1 rSfioaoyi nor OVA any aubaqpent lagiblstion 

ba upheld which her the efieot OS impairing thr obligation OS 

auoh oontraot. city 0r ~o~aar Parr 'I. Iiaoling, 247 6. w. 

818 (Sup. ct.) 

;Ie hare oarefully atudlrd the two Aota in ~ueation, and 

lneamoh 88 the Freeport Aot olsarly mates the donatlcui t!Iereln 

dependent upon the Aeolar&tlon iIlatrlot~8 reoelrtig the full 

amount of taxer donakd saoh and rrery gear, we oannot find 

anything in the Praeport donation that would impair the obllgatiOA of tha oontraot betWe@A the debtor mnd the bondholder. 

It la therefore our oplnlon that the Tax Aaaeaaor-Colleotor 

oan lawfully hold the taxes oolleoted fro;u the three rood Clatriot$ until such t,jzs 08 the &iClbsitiOil district htie l%CeiVC:d 

lta rull quota aa above ret forth, and then pc;l l o~~e to the 

City of Praoport aa provided in aald Act. Lowever, the mour.ts 

80 held, (or as much thereof aa la neoesaary) should be Psld to 

t:,e heClanatiCn District in tile eve&t thtit Cur& sti: texcble 

year, the ;:ecla:mtim 2lstrlct does not reoeivc trle i.GXicIU2 

amount dofiated it fro2 taxes collcctsd fro2 t.:: L~ltIiCC of t>e 

diatrlot. 
. 

445 

Ja trust that the above fully anawera your inquiry. 

/+ 

.‘, Your8 very truly, 

ATTOdLY G&AAL OF TdAS 

Aaalatant