# THXAIS'OIKNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

PRICE DANIEL ATTCIRNEY

GENERAL AUUTIN s1,Tpxas
June 30, 1948

Ron. George 11.Sheppard Comptroller of Public Accounts Austin, Texas Opinion No. V-622 Re: The authority of the Automatic Tax Doard to reduce or eliminate the 26 ad valorem levy for the Confederate Pension Fund. Dear Mr. Sheppard:

You request the opinion of this office upon the following, which is quote? from gour letter of May27,1948:

“Articles 7041 and 7043, R. C. S. , 1925, create and prescribe the duties of the Automatic Tax Board in calculating the ad valorem tax to he levier! an? collected eaah year for State and free school purposes.

“Article 7043 sets out a specific formula to be followed by the Automatic Tax Board in calculating the rates to be levied for the di,fferent funds: ‘In calculatiry said rates the Board shall calculate the same by the followin,? rules and upon t,!le following basis: *.

.,’

“Section 17 of Article 7of the Constitution reads, in part, as follows: ‘In lieu of the state ad valorem tax on prooerty of Seven (7d) Cents on the OneRundred ($100.00) Dollars valuation heretofore permitted to be levied by Section 51 of Article 3, as amended, there is hereby levied, in sdd.ition to all other taxes permitted by the Constitution of Texas, a state ad valorem tax on propert~y of two (2d) cents on the OneHundred ($100.00) Dollars valuation for the purpose of creating a special fund for the payment of pensions for services in the Confederate army and Navy, frontier organizations s.

Hon. George H. Sheppard, l?age 2 (V-622)

and the militia of the State of Texas, and for the widows of such soldiers serving in said armies, navies, organizations 0rmXlitia; vided that the Legislature mayreduce the Esrate hereinabove levied *‘I

“There is sufficient monies in the Confederate Pension Fund in the Treasury to meet all claims that mayarise or accrue against said fund .for the ensuin,? bi-ennium and for a period of years thereafter. The question naturally arises, therefore, as to whether or not the Automatic Tax Board has the ‘power to reduce the 2~ levy provided for in Section 17 of Article 7 of the Constitution above quoted.

“I shall therefore thank you to advise me, as amember of the Automatic Tax Board, as to whether’ said Board would be authorized to reduce or eliminate the 2$ levy, above mentioned, for the ensuing year.” Section 17 of Article VII of the Constitution provides that in lieu of the seven (7#) cents on the One Hundred (d)lOO.OO) Dollars valuation for the payment of pensions said tax shall be two (26) cents per OneHundred ($100.00) Dollars valuation instead~ of seven (76) cents as theretofore, This two (Z$) cents is expressly levied by the Constitution as was the seven (7#) before. It is observed that this provision of the Constitution further provides: “provided that the Legislature mayreduce the tax rate hereinabove levied.” This rate, therefore, may not be reduced except by the Legislature, and the Automatic Tax Board has no authority to eliminat,e~eor reduce this rate. The fact that there presently exists a surplus in the Confederate Pension Fund sufficient to meet all demands for the present biennium and several years thereafter is imnlaterial. Until the Legislature takes some effective action to reduce or eliminate this rate, it continues an annual tax liability upon all property in this State subject to ad valorem taxes.

### Hon.GeorgeH.Sheppard,Page,3 (V-622)

TheAutomaticTaxBoardhasnoauthority toreduce'or,

eliminatethetwo (29!) centelevied bySection17ofArticleVIIoftheCorsIX%utirn forConfederatepeasionsr
Yoursverytruly,, ATTORNEYGENERALOFTZX$S

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