TREATI-OIZN~:Y RENEWAL 

Hon. Tom Blackwell 

County Attorney 

Travis County 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Mr. Blackwell: 

December 1.6, 1957 

Opinion No. ww-326 

Re: Exemption from taxation of 

87 acres of land dedicated 

to the Catholic Cemetery 

Association of Austin, Texas. 

You request the opinion of this office as to whether 

certain property owned by the Catholic Cemetery Association 

of Austin Is exempt from ad valorem taxation under the facts 

presented in your letter of November 22, 1957, the pertinent 

part of which reads as follows: 

"The Catholic's Cemetery Association of 

Austin has dedicated for cemetery purposes 

87 acres of land just north of the MlssourlPacific Railroad Intersection with the Interregional Highway, which land lies south of 

St. Edwards University. This land was deeded 

to the Catholic Cemetery Association of Austin 

by deed shown In Volume 1302 at page 425 of 

the Deed Records of Travis County, Texas... 

The Cemetery Association then dedicated the 

acreage for cemetery purposes as shown by 

the plat In Volume 6, page 76 of the Plats 

of Travis County, Texas. This plat was for 

approximately 95 acres of land since which 

time the south boundary line has been changed 

at the request of the City of Austin In order 

to make way for the south boundary loop. 

After this modification there remained 85 

acres of land still Intact for cemetery purposes. 

"The 85 acres, the subject of this oplnlon, 

is called Assumption Cemetery, the Catholic 

Cemetery Association controls thie Cemetery 

and sells right of sepulture to lndlvlduals. 

Ten per cent of the sales price Is paid Into 

the Cemetery's continuous care fund, ten per 

cent goes to the continuous care fund of the 

Mount Calvary Cemetery (the old Catholic 

cemetery) and eighty per cent goes to the 

third party developer (St. Edwards University) 
< . 1.~: 

Hon. Tom Blackwell, page 2 (WW-326) 

from which Is paid operational expenses, 

cost of development, and cost of land. 

"The Deed from the St.. Edwards Unlverslty 

to the Catholic Cemetery Association has 

a provision In it to the effect that If the 

Cemetery Association's Corporate existence 

shall terminate, the land shall revert to 

St. Edwards University. The deed also 

provides that the land Is being conveyed 

to the Cemetery Association 'for so long 

as the land Is used for cemetery purposes 

and no longer'. 

"The Cemetery Assoclatlon is not obligated 

to resell the land before any set date; nor 

Is It bound to sell the spaces for any predetermined price. No matter the time or 

price, whenever the right of sepulture Is 

sold to any of the'spaces, St. Edwards 

University receives eighty per cent of 

such sales price. 

"DO you think this land Is being 'held 

with a view to profit' in such a wax as 

to,dlsquallfy it for tax exemption? 

r We assume for the purpose of this opinion that the 

Catholic Cemetery Association was Incorporated as a nonprofit corporation and that It has not departed from this. 

There appears to be no question but that the land belongs 

to the Cemetery Association subject to the reversionary right 

of the grantor, St. Edwards University, if Its use for cemetery purposes should be abandoned by the Association. It Is 

equally apparent that the land has been dedicated to cemetery 

purposes. 

Section 2 of Article VIII of the Constitution of 

Texas provides In part as follows: 

"The Legislature may by general law exempt 

from taxation. . .places of burial not held for 

private or corporate profit." (Emphasis supplied,) 

In recognition of the authority thus vested, the 

Legislature has enacted Article 7150, Vernon's Civil Statutes, 

which provides In part as follows: 
Hon. Tom Blackwell, page 3 (~-326) 

(tThe followingproperty shall be exempt 

from taxation, to wit: . . . 

"Section 3. All lands used exclusively 

for graveyards or grounds for burying the i 

dead, except such as are held by a&person 

company or corporation with a view to p,rofTt. 

Under the facts submitted we think It must be 

conceded that the land In questlon Is held exclusively for 

the purpose of burying the dead. This alone would not be 

sufficient to accord the exemption "If held by any person, 

company or corporation with a view to profit or for the 

purpose of speculation In the sale thereof". 

The Cemetery Association controls the cemetery 

and sells the lots. Teri per cent of the price received 

for the lots Is allocated to perpetual care of this particular cemetery which Is called Assumption Cemetery, and 

ten per cent Is allocated for the same purpose to Mt. 

Calvary Cemetery, which you refer to In your letter as 

the old Catholic cemetery, arid eighty per cent to St. 

Edwards University for the land and for operating and 

..~ development purposes by St. Edwards. 

The question we must decide Is whether or not 

this arrangement with St. Edwards University Is such as 

to constitute a holding by the cemetery corporation "with 

a view to profit or for the purpose of speculating In the 

sale thereof". We have reached the conclusion that It Is 

not a holding "with a view to profit or for speculating In 

the sale thereof". 

We do not construe the word "exclusively" to 

mean that no plot or burial space Is used exclusively for 

the burial until It has been transferred to a person who 

devotes It to.thls purpose. The language of the statute 

Is not susceptible to this narrow construction but to the 

broader and more rational view that all the'land Is used 

exclusively for graveyards or grounds for burying the dead 

so long as It Is not held for profit. 

Upon the dedication of the land by the Cemetery 

Association to the Interment of the dead, It was held by 

the Association for that purpose just as effectively as 

would be any segregated portion thereof transferred to an 

Individual and thereafter by him devoted to that purpose. 
Hon. Tom Blackwell, page 4 (~~-326) 

We do not think that there Is any element of profit In the 

sense used In the constitution and statutes to the Cemetery 

Association. 

, 

All that the Assoolatlon reaelves Is a return to It 

of the purchase price of the land and lts~development by St. 

Edwards for which St. Edwards receives eighty per aent from 

the sale of the lots. Nothing Is left In the way of profit 

that could be distributed to the members of the Association. 

Whether or not this Is a profitable arrangement for St.Edwards 

University Is not material. It may or may not be. 

What we have held here is not In conflict with our 

holding In Opinion WW-205, a oopy of whlch~ls herewith enclosed 

This for the reason that the land Involved In that opinion was 

held by a private corporation expressly organleed for profit 

and the property was held for private or corporate profit and 

with a view to profit orfor the purpose of speculating In the 

sale thereof, hence was taxable untli It was sold to persons 

who either used It for burial purposes or field It for such 

purpose. 

The whole 87 acres are, under the Constitution and 

Statutes, exempt from ad valorem taxation. 

We conclude, under the facts submitted by you, the 

land Is not held by the Association with a view to profit or 

for the purpose of speculation In the sale thereof. 

SUMMARY 

Cemetery property held by non-profit 

corporations not for private or corporate profit or with a view to profit 

or for the purpose of speculating in 

the sale thereof Is exempt from ad 

valorem taxes under the Constitution 

,and Statutes of this State. 

LPL:gs Yours very truly, 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE WILL WILSON 

Qeo. P.Blackburn,Chalrman Attorney Qeneral 

John H. Mlnton 

Marietta MacGregor Payne 

B. H. Tlmmlns, Jr. By 

Pred Werkenthln 

<P <++-J 

L. P. Lo1 ar 

Assistant 

FYVIEWEDFOR THE ATTORNEY OERBRAL 

James N. Ludlum