MARK WHITE 

Attorney General 

Supreme Court Building 

P. 0. BOX 12546 

Austin. TX. 76711-2546 

512,475.2501 

T&Y 910/674-,367 

Telecopier 5121475.0266 

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Dallas, TX. 75201-4709 

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El Paso, TX. 79905.2793 

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Houston, TX. 770026966 

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McAlten, TX. 78501-1665 

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San Antonio, TX. 76205.2797 

512/225-4191 

An Equal opportunity/ 

Affirmative Action Employer 

The Attorney General of Texas 

December 22, 1982 

Honorable Henry Wade 

District Attorney 

Dallas County Government Center 

Dallas, Texas 75202 

opinion No. MW-543 

Re: Whether property owned by 

Offender Preparation and 

Employment Network is exempt 

from ad valorem taxation 

Dear Mr. Wade: 

You ask three questions concerning whether the Offender 

Preparation and Employment Network, Inc., a non-profit corporation 

whose purpose it is to provide ex-offenders with employment training 

and assistance, is exempt from ad valorem taxation. The corporation 

is claiming exempt status under section 11.18(c)(l)(C) of the Property 

Tax Code which exempts from ad valorem taxation the real and tangible 

personal property of charitable organizations "providing support to... 

the handicapped without regard to the beneficiaries' ability to 

pay...." (Emphasis added). You first ask: 

Does the word 'handicapped' as used in section 

11.18(c)(l)(C) of the Texas Property Tax Code 

include individuals whose 'handicap' is one of 

status, or is 'handicapped' restricted to the 

physically or mentally impaired? 

This office has already construed section 11.18, Property Tax 

Code, as establishing new criteria for determining whether property 

owners are eligible for ad valorem tax exemption as charitable 

institutions. Attorney General Opinion MW-288 (1980). Property owned 

by an organizatiqn can qualify for an exemption only if the 

organization meets these criteria. Prop. Tax Code 611,18(a). If the 

claimant non-profit corporation is to be accorded a charitable tax 

exemption, it must first be exempt under section 11.18. See City of 

Waco v. Texas Retired Teacher Residence Corporation, 464yW.2d 346 

(Tex. 1971); Hilltop Village, Inc. V. Kerrville Independent School 

District, 426 S.W.2d 943 (Tex. 1968); Attorney General Opinion MW-288 

(1980). If it fails to qualify under section 11.18, we need not 

consider whether it is a "purely public charity" under the 

constitution. 

p. 1969 
Honorable Henry Wade - Page 2 (MW-543) 

The Property Tax Code does not define "handicapped" for purposes 

of section 11.18 (c)(l)(C). Nor has any court yet construed the term. 

However, the Code Construction Act, article 542913-2, V.T.C.S., at 

section 2.01 provides that: 

[Wlords and phrases shall be read in context and 

construed according to the rules of grammar and 

common usage. Words and phrases that have 

acquired a technical or particular meaning, 

whether by legislative definition or otherwise, 

shall be construed accordingly. 

"Handicapped" has been defined as "those at a disadvantage in economic 

competition because of physical or mental defects." Webster's New 

International Dictionary, 1133 (2nd Ed. Unabridged 1957). An 

examination of the Texas Constitution and Texas statutes indicates 

that our lawmakers have consistently employed the term "handicap" or 

"handicapped" to refer to those persons with physical or mental 

impairments rather than to those persons who experience social or 

economic disadvantage by reason of their status. See, e.g., Tex. 

Const. arts. III, 551-a; VIII, §l-b; XVI, §6; V.T.C.S. arts. 601b, 

$3.20; 4442a-1; 4442~; 5159d, §4(10); 6823a, 98. We believe that the 

rules of common usage compel us to conclude that, when the legislature 

employed the term "handicapped" in section 11.18, Property Tax Code, 

it was referring only to those persons with physical or mental 

impairments and not to those persons who experience social or economic 

disadvantage by reason of their status. 

We therefore conclude that the term "handicapped" in section 

11.18, Property Tax Code, refers to persons with physical or mental 

impairments which place those persons at a disadvantage in economic 

competition. The term does not include ex-offenders who are not 

otherwise physically or mentally handicapped. Hence, a non-profit 

corporation which provides employment training and assistance to 

ex-offenders does not as a matter of law fall within the ambit of 

section 11.18(c)(l)(C), Property Tax Code, which includes "providing 

support to.,. the handicapped without regard to the beneficiaries' 

ability to pay" among the organizational purposes which may receive 

designation as a charitable institution. Because we so conclude, we 

need not answer your second and third questions. 

SUMMARY 

A non-profit corporation which provides 

employment training and assistance to m-offenders 

does not as a matter of law fall within the ambit 

of section 11.18(c)(l)(C), Property Tax Code, and 

therefore, cannot be deemed exempt from ad valorem 

taxation as an institution "providing support 

p. 1970 
Honorable Henry Wade - Page 3 (MW-543) 

to... the handicapped without regard to the 

beneficiaries' ability to pay." 

xs 

MARK WHITE 

Attorney General of Texas 

JOHN W. FAINTER, JR. 

First Assistant Attorney General 

RICHARD E. GRAY III 

Executive Assistant Attorney General 

Prepared by Jim Moellinger 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Susan L. Garrison, Chairman 

Jon Bible 

Rick Gilpin 

Patricia Hinojosa 

Bill Kimbrough 

Jim Moellinger 

Bruce Youngblood 

P. 1971