. . 

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Honorable Joe Reeder, Jr. 

County Attorney 

Knoz county 

Benjamin, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. 0-;rOy 

Re: 18 property owned and used 

sxoluelvely by 

Leroy Teegue P 

We are In receipt of your letter 

whloh you request the opinion of th 

questlon. Upon our request ror add 

un that the local post was not in 

that It had been granted a char 

which you enclosed. You furthe 

~~,Sek.,tl~'29i Art. YIXI 0r .our State Constitution allows 

the 'LegisIytulv, by general lawa, to exempt rrom taxation “lnstltutlons of puirely ptiblic charity". The Legislature ln accordance with 

this sectlon\ga6sed article 7150 V.A.C.S., and we quote the pertinent parts of sucil statute: 

"The following property shall be exempt 

from taxation, to wit: 
Honoreble Joe Reeder, Jr. - Page 2 

“Seotlon 7. IZlbllo charities.--All buildings 

belongl.lg to institutions of purely public oharlty, 

together with the lende belonging to and oooupled 

by such institutions not leased or otherwire used 

with a view to profit, unless auoh rents end profita 

and all money8 and credits are appropriated by such 

institutions solely to austaln suoh lnatItutlons and 

ror the benefit of the slok end dleabled members and 

their famllles end the burial of the seme, or for 

the’ malntenanoe of persons when unable to provide for 

thamselve e , whether suoh persons are members of such 

In’stltutlone or not. An .lnstltutlon of purely pub110 

charity under this article 1s one whloh dispenses lta 

aid to Its members and others in slokness or distress, 

or at death, without regard to poverty or rlohes of 

.the reoiplent, also when the funds, property and 

assets of such institutions are pleoed and bound by 

its laws to relieve, aid and administer in any way 

to the relief of its members when in want, sickness 

and distress, and provide homes for its helpleee and 

dependent members and to educate end maintain the 

orphans of Its deceased members or other persons. Id.” 

The purpose for which the national patriotic society was 

formed la set out In Title 36 U.S.C.A., Section A3: 

“43. The purpose of this corporation shall 

be : To uphold and defand the Constitution of the 

United States of Amerioa; to promote peace and 

good will among the peoples of the United States 

and all the nations of the earth; to preserve the 

memories and Incidents of the two ‘iiorld Nars iought 

to uphold democracy; to cement the ties and comradeship born of servlcel and to conseorate the efforts 

of its members to mutual helpfulness and eervlce to 

their county. As amended Oct. 29, 1%2, c. 633, 1, 

56 stat. 1012.” 

\Ie have been furnished a copy of the national ounstitution 

and by-laws of the Amerioan La&ion and the 1945-1946 oonstltutlon 

and by-laws of the Jmsrican Legion, Depsrtment of Texas, and rind no 

language altering in any way the purposes of the American Legion as 

set out In its national charter. The charter of the local post contains the following lanp,ua&e: 
Honorable Joe Reeder, Jr. - Yoga 3 

“By the eooeptance of this Charter, the 

aald Post aoknowledges lrrevooeble jurlsdlotion 

end deolares ltaelr to be in all things aubjeot 

to the Constitution of the Amerloan Legion and 

of the Department of Texas, and the rulea, regulatlona, orders and lawa promulgated in pursuance 

thereof; and rurther the said Feat’ pledges Itself 

throu&h its members, to uphold, protect and defend 

the Conatltution of the United States and the 

principles of true Americanism, for the common 

welfare of the 11~1~ and In solemn commemoration 

of those who died that liberty might not pariah 

nom the Earth.” 

In Opinion lrlo. 0-747, dated Juna. 2, 1939, this Department 

considered the question of liability ror franchise tares of Amerloan 

Legion Corporetlons to be organized under Texas Lswa, the appllcatlons 

for ohertere oontalnlq the following “typloal” purpose provisions : 

“It shall have all the rights, powers and 

privilegea, granted to and oonferred upon oorporations by provision of Subdivision 2, .“.rtlole 1302, 

Chapter 1, Title 32, of the Revised Civil Statutes 

of the State of Taxes, which rends in hsec verba: 

lVITlle support of any benevolent, oharltable, 

educational or missionary undertokiw,* and partlcularly lncludlw, the rollowing: 

“‘(a) To preserve and strengthen oomradeshlp 

among its members; to perpetuate the memory end 

history of our dead; to support end maintain 

education In the moral, intellectual and phyaloal 

development of those who served in, or who may 

serve in, the ;\rmy , Navy, Xarlne Corns or Coaot 

Guard of tha United States of America, in any 

foretin war, lnaurreotion or axpedltlon, whloh 

service shall be aovarned by the Issuance of a 

campaign badge by the Government of the United 

States of ,\merica; and to malntuin true allegiance 

to the Government of the United :,:tetes of America, 

and fidelity to its Constitution and Lowa; to 

fos tsr true pa trlotlam; and to malntol~i and extend 

the Institution of ;Lmerlcan freedom: 
Honorable Joe Reader, Jr,. - Page 4 

“‘(b) To act aa a charitable and benevolent 

organization for the purpose of promoting the 

welfare, alleviating the suffering, and assisting 

and aiding thoee who have served, or may .eerve, 

with the military foroaa of the United Statee,‘of 

America In foreign lands, their wldowe, orphana 

an4 dependents and relations. 111 

The writer of the opinion conoluded that Amerloan Legion Corporations 

were exempt fron payment of the franohlae tax by r’eason of Art. 7094, 

V.A. C.S. which exempta’ from euch tax oorporations organize4 Y’or 

strictly educational purposes, or ror purely publla aharlty. *I 

It would seem that’ the tirporations organized under the 

“typical* purpose oharter proviolons just eet out satisfy all the 

requirements of such oorporotlona being purely public oharitiea.., Even 

though the national charter of the Amerloan Legion, read in oonneotion 

with the oharter of the local post, does not present such a olear-out 

case, the authorltlea 4laouesed below lead ua to ooncluds that the 

local post la a public charity, assuming that the local post is conducting its affairs in accordanoe wfth :the charter provfsione. 

639, 842, 

defines a 

In the case of Conleg v. Daughters or the Republic, 106 Tex. 

-_ . . 

80, 156 S.b. 197, the court deals wlth a corporation organlzea ror tna 

declared purpose of perpetuating the memory and aplrlt of the men who 

aohleved Texaa’a independenos, and to encourage historical reaearah 

into the early history of Texas , and promote the celebration of 

In Powera v. Flret National Bank of Oorslcana, 137 S. iv. (24) 

affirmed in 138 Tex, ‘604, 161 S. Wol. (24) 273, Judge Alexander 

publio charity aa followsr 

“A public charity or trus~t la one for the 

benefit of the public at large or .aome substantial 

and indefinite portion of it. Charitable purpose8 

include (a), the relief’ of poverty; (b) the ,advancement of education; (c) the advancarnent of religion; 

(4) the promotion of health; (a) governmental or 

munloipal purposes; and (i) other purposes the 

aoconpllshment of which la benefloill to the communRestatement of the Law ci Trusts, p. 1140, Sec. 

:%: 10 Amer Jur, 621; 14 C.J.S., Charities, p. 439,~ 

12;‘Soott On’Truata., 1972; Perry on Trusts dc Trustees, Vol. 2, p. 1184.” 
Honorable Joe Reedar, Jr. - Page 5 

Indapendanoa Day of the Texas Republic, and ereot monuments upon 

plaoaa made historic in the war for Texas’s Independence. The oourt 

held that the society was properly incorporate4 aa an na4uoational 

undertaking” within the second subdivision of Artlole 1121, Revised 

Ststutes’, which wording Is Identical with that of Section 2 of Artlcla 

1302, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Stotutes. 

The Court in the Conlay Case, supra, explains the tarm 

“e4uoationala as r0ii0w3: 

“The purpose of this corporation Is clearly 

‘educational’. Khatavar educatas is within the 

meaning of ‘educational un4ertnkin.g’. Yduoatlon 

in the sense as used in the statute inoludaa: 

‘In its broadest sense, . . . not merely the instruction raoeivad at school or collage, but the 

whole course of training, moral, intelleotual and 

physioal; la not limited to the ordinary inatruction of the child in tha’prsuits of literature. 

It comprehends a proper attention to the moral 

and religious sentiments of the child. And it is 

sometimes used aa avnonymoua with “learning”.’ 

14 cyc. p. 1230. The sentiment of regard For 

the memory of those who gave their lives for the 

blessings of this great state stimulates patriotism, 

and la in the highest sense educational. The facts 

to be preserved furnish the means of the beat aducation for the VOUM man and woman of this state. 

The purpose ii 1a;dable in its influence upon the 

present panerotion; it is laudable, educational 

and benevolent for the future citizens.” (amphails 

auppliad) 

Since the purpose olause contained in the national charter 

of the Amarioan Legion shows vary clearly that the corporation is an 

“educational Institution” and that the oorporatlon is not formed for ., 

private profit or gain, it musti be held that the local post ie a 

public aharlty. If an institution is devoted to publio eduastion 

without private gain It la an institution of public charity. Southern 

Methodist University v. Clayton, 142 Tax. 179, 176 S.W. (24) 749, 750; 

see also Fowsrs v. First National Dank or Corslcana, 138 Tax. 604, 161 

S.P:. (24) 273, 280, and the opinion of the Court of Civil Appaala in 

the same case, recorded in 137 Sill. (24) 839: ‘b 

As additional authority for holding the local post to be a 

public charity, wa cite the case of Dodanheimer v. Confederate Memorial 
. 

Honorable Joe Reader, Jr. - Page 6 

Supreme 

to be a 

for the 

. 

Association, 68 Fed. (2d), 507, certiorari denied, 292 U.S. 629, 54 

Court, 643, 78 Law Ed. 1483. The court held the Association 

publio charity because the court found it was lnoorporated 

iollowlng pur~osaa : 

” to erect and maintain a Confederate 

hfeaor1ti1’I;lstituta , and there to col&ect, arrange 

and preserve statues, portraits, photographs, and 

hlstorlcal data relating to the Southern Confederacy, 

calculate4 to enable future historians to obtain suoh 

reliable facts and data as will asslst them In 

writing fair, aocurate and lmpartia~ history of, said 

war and of the South, the said association being eduoational, patriot10 and historical at,all times.” 

Although we have decided that the local post is a purely 

._ . .__. . . 

public charity, the use to Whlon tha tmllalng 18 put posse a more 

difficult question. The rule la well settled that the use of a 

building, avan though the lnstltut$on be one of *purely public charl- 

” must be for exclusively charitable purposae. 

ift; of Houston, 44 S.W. 

B.P.O.E. Lodge v. 

(26) 488. Then quaat&Tn of axclualve use for 

such purpose la entlraly’ona of fact and you have not stated, and we 

do not know, the extent of the use ~of the two pool tables and two 

domino tables. We are inclined to believe that an incidental, 

occasional or aporadlc uaa of these amusements by the members on 

meeting nights and similar ocoasions would not take away the ad 

valoram tax exemption. However, If ‘the building le used as a social 

club by the members of the local post, the rule announce4 In the case 

just cited would apply, and the building and grounds would not be tax 

exempt. 

Ve trust the foregoing discussion fully answers the question 

asked. 

Yours Vary truly 

AlTORiiZY GENZRiLlL., OF !?XXAS