Honorabk Jullra Rtontgorrery 

Etrta HIghway Eogkeer 

Austin. forss 

mar strr ipklon No. o-2011 

Ro: h which county should tba 

buses of the All bmorlcan 

Bus L.&~S. Inc., k ro~isterrd7 

W’a we k rscript of your letter of &btarch 4, 1943, 

In whkb you request aa opkloa of this department es to tie. 

county ta nhkh the buses VT thhr All Amrrlcan Bus ~Lnes. 

lncorporatod, should bo rogtstcrd. ?be followkpl facts are 

cmtalnat in your Ietter: 

‘Tbe hll Amsrk*rr Bus :..ines. lacorporatec. 

is l Delaware Corporation with Its corporata 

hebdquarters in Los rrsgeles. CbUfornla Ii operatea motor buses through the Stata uf Tewc: l x. 

cluaivoly inter state They du not have l p r mlt 

to do business k Texas l I l foreleo corporation. 

neither do they have n common-trrrkr pomnit 

frmn the Edlrum! C-Ynmtssion to traasport passengers for hlra. but cperrtr ‘tin a pennuwnt federal l4ajunctioa Lssuod In Trrvk Cotrnty out of the 

ban Antonto Federal Uhtrlct Court. 

‘They o p ur a ta l crws Toras over L’. S. Hlghray 

77 worth of C1ekesrllb to Dalks l sd over U. 6 

Highway 60 to El Peso and to the aorthwost bto 

New Mlsxku. 

.Ths prlacipal place of busiaess to Dallas whore 

an agoat is amplayed who k b chdrga of tbo Tour 

cad :. ldahoma burinc*r. They alsa hare aa bttoraey 

k Dalks npon whom rarvke may bo had. ln addttloa 

tu this, they mbintak sorvke garqps La Ddhs 8nd 

El %se for servkhg and rrpairiag their buses.’ 
. . 

Hon. Julleo Montgomery, page 2 

h oplalon No. O-2053 tbts dopmtrnsnt discussed the 

questloa of la which county tbc motor vehklcs of a forolga 

cwporatloa should bc rcgistcrcd crad In answer thercto ruled 

as follows: 

4nztlclc Of7b of the Penal Cede, provldcs la 

part aa follows; 

4 ‘Sec. 2. A a~arosldcat owner of l motor 

vcblclc trctlcr or semi-trailer whtch hoc bean 

duly reg1stcrcd for the current year In the State 

or county ef whhb the owner la a resident and 

la accordascc with tbc laws tbcreof, may. in Ibu 

of registerlop, such vchlclc as otherwise required 

by f&w, apply to the State WtghWay Lepartmcnt 

throu$u a couaty T8r Collector fur the ragtstratlon thereof cc provided by few. . . .’ 

4brtkk 8L7b, Scctlon 1. of the Scan1 Code, 

defines l ‘non-rcsfdeat’ es follows: 

a ’ *Non-residentm mans every rcs(dcnt of 

a state or county other tbaa the State of TOWS 

whose sojourn k this State, or whose occupatlan, 

or place of abode, or bushess in tbls State, If my, 

co*rrrs a total perkd afn ot more than omc hundred 

mkd tventy dsys fn the cdcttdar year.’ 

% ybur qucstloa you state thnt the non-restdent 

regularly opcratos into or through TCXM. :>bvloasly. 

you are +onecracd wlth the county of registration 

of 8s ladWdua1 or corporstion th8t would not bc 

a ‘mm-rcs(dont’ as deffacd abow. 

‘The effect uf the fe~fshtlvo dofinltlon of ‘DOSIrestdeat’ as quoted above la to mehe a person or 

corporetlon who la a legal nsLdettt of another 

stl but operates in Tens formore then one 

hundred and twenty (IL51 days a year a ‘rosfded 

of Texas for ro~tstr~tfon~purposcs. 

l ft la the opfaton of thfs depcrtmrnt that a 

foreign corporation wbkh has been made a ‘nabfeat’ 

of Tcus for registration purposes should bs treatad 
as other reslde8t or domostk eorporatlams 

for thb purpon and thnt tha county of resldoace of such 8 eorporstka ts the couaty of 

Its phc@al pluo of bwlsess h this 6tde 

In llw with our dlscussloa la eoawctles rltb 

questlea 2 (b), rupra. 

. 

. . . 

%I course Uu above would be qwlU&d 

by the rules heretefon mentioa*d nprrdtba ngtstrotlon of tbo motor vohkles b7 porsons In lo& control or fn k*bl posscssIon as 

*owac~s’ udw iutkk 6675e2, supra. h such 

l easo tha motor vebkks could k rqlskrad 

la the c o untoy f r c s& lc ao cf l tUh~ 0r of tbc l owwr** 

u defiwd b Artkfe 6673s~1 (t). Ako. lf the 

foro~rr rorporatioa or 80n-nsident IadlAIwl 

ham no place of b\ukss that would 81~ It a 

cottatty of ro~fdeaco k tbls btste ss d1~coss.d 

broh but the motor nhkloo on h kgol porm0srkn or losol control of on agent or iadlvidual 

rho has a cotmty of reslde.ue in Taams thrn In 

l uh cuc such motor whkles woub%hsvs Lo be 

rogkkrrd k tlw county ol tlm l~gd pesscssor’s 

or k@ csatrolfer’s rosfde8eo. XC follys of 

aoeorslt7 nloo that if the fonl~r corperstlon 

or rlarr-rostdomt tndivtdual has DO ‘count7 of 

ruftkwe’ In Texas u dkciused rbovm and l ko 

ha8wa~eator hdlvWalhlO8a8wh0la lOgat 

puuuor or w8trollar ef #a notor v~hkks. 

then Mid fadlvidtl41 or corpot&ttoa mry npor 

the motor vohlclos In uy cat7 h Tour. 

ln you letter you skte that UIS prklpal place d bustmess of the All krurksa bus L&s, btcorporated, fa Term la 

ba Cdfm County. ft k our optaku, tborofore, thst the bases 

h c lo la q to l wh eorpwstloo must be nplsknd in arid county. 

The a & w rub would bs qu~Iifkd, hawvor. lf tba motor buses 

aro umdor tha poss~srkn or coalrol of l p l r wa who has the 

*&gal right of ceatroP or l le& right of pessessloa’ war uld 

vohkks. In such coso t&7 could also k nglstond tm tbo county 
Noa. Julka Moatgoomry, w5* 4 

Of l Wh b a d )OSHO~OTí8 01 kati COdVOlk?% ?O8idOMO. 

Thk departmoat doflmd the tenam ‘lo& rl&t cl poosouloa’ 

and -logal right of camtr01~ br ophloa No. O-2105 l I follows: 

‘h hoklq to tha porpore khkcI ck k&- 

lath doltnlttar of tha term ‘owau’ lt to l w 

opiaka that tba k@atwe tnteaded to provide 

a method whonby motor v&l&s which are 

aktkaod la l pmtkukr couaty for the armatar 

portfoa of l rqktrUka yeu k the poou*rloa 

aad eoatrol of m bdlvlduai who.lm 8 nsfdont 

of that county, who bar alI the righta h (h 

motor vahkh that the ownor would hn with 

rho aau~ptloa ol lolaI ttth could k rog~knd 

la the c o unt6s y l wh &ldlvidwl’m rarld*ace. 

WLth thb b&htiW PolrpoM iJ2 mm it b OXU 

opbk8 that thn krma ‘latal rl5ht of porrtrrloa’ 

and ‘hgel rtgbt of control moan sacwthkg mom 

tbaa the actual phyakrl pornsrton by an agent 

or nrvaat. Wa thbk thmt tho bra18 ttaply l eh 

poourrha or control b be wttb a d0JJr.a bf parmaaeacy thzoqhout tha ngktratka yaw md rot 

l a tomporuy m4tter, A persaa who caa ba 

clamsod as havb l lthu lopal rllht of porsoortoa 

or had right Of CoatrOf Would b. W Who Wti See 

that (b *or veblcb k bcpt h TopBlr ud k 

l puaWd Ir 8.4 oeadWaa, aad would k eatnoted 

with Its c ua y. brl th w wo F da m, a r opiakn a l M 

tuma would precludm a perma who hu oaly the 

p h y sic a l p 608ee8k n l r pbydcaf camtrel of l motor 

nhiclo. bat roti beludo l potaw who hu dl 

rbhtm la tb mdot vohlch ao to tta castroI Ua 

opanttoa, au BWI mugamont but who doem net 

hwo bati ttth. Our deflaftloe lm further qurllflod 

‘UBt l wh p6.#8mka or coatrol would hwa to k of 

l p o a ma ea t nature 6~ met oae abject to klag dlnrtod et say time by the lo+ titkholder wtthla 

the nuenBblo caLpoctattoa of the p4rtt.r Bt the 

tkna of the rqlstrdfoa of the metor *rhkk . . .* 

In uld tiplalon wo a&o rmlod a8 followr k coaaectkn 

with tha nbtlonmhtp of l local tkkt asent of l bus couquay. 

to tb motor vmhkka of a&M tompaap 

l ëh M8W.F to m UCOd q?bMtkll it k 6W 

opkkn that l lee& tkket &goat of e bus canpmy 
WOrJd not &vC 8 kg&l Fight Of ~8sO88kn OT 

baaI right of control over the burw8 whkh 

rcgulwly p880 throwh his tan. The l xcoptko 

to tM 8 wo uld bo l cum WhOFCby 8ola0 btrumont h the form of l lcwc or kflfnomt, dd 

tkbt l gCIlt Would bc #bon Such louti r(lht Of 

COdFOt OF b#d rf2ht of Po@Mnrbr. h tit6 COOautka, kowovor, ruch cc butrcancnt dnw8 up 

for purporo8 of •V~B~OWI of the motor vchlclr 

rcgtstraticm law &eve quoted would cot of ttrolf 

8cfflco to mckc 8UCh porron cc ‘OwMr* wlthln 

the moaning of the rcglstrmtioon l tatutc. . . .- 

You UC th4refotc hdvtrod that the motor buroe of 

tho All &nerlcm Bur L&or, ineorpcrctcd, under tbc fact@ 

stated In yuur lcttcr rbould bc re5tater.d h Dcllc8 County 

ucle88 acme of 8uch buses l c #a the lop1 po88c881on or logo1 

control. c8 dofincd cbovc, of cc ladlvidccl who rortdo~ h 

caotbcr cow&y cad to ruch cc80 8ctd burcr coold bc rogl8tcrcd 

La 8-h other county, 

l! iurs very truly, 

ATTORNbX GENESAL OF T&M 

By a/ auly GOldboT~ 

Ahcclrt4nt 

BG:LMtv 

APPROVED MAR 26,194O 

8/ Gerald c. M&an 

Attornay Goaual of Toxcs 

APPROVrn 

OPINION COMMITTER 

BY BWB, CHAlRMAN