iBusTxrs IL*. TEXAU 

WILL WILSON 

ATTORNEY GENERAI. July 18, 1960 

Honorable Robert 9, Calvert opinion No. MU- 083 

comptroller of Publio Aooounta 

Capitol Station Ret Correct filing date for 

Austin, Texas the anrulril report of Tax 

Collectors under Artloles 

1260 and '~336, V.C.S.,.and 

penalty under Article 133, 

Dear Mr. Celvert: Penal Code. 

Your recent letter requesta that we advise you the 

correct date for tax collectors to iile their 8nnuhl reports with 

your office, acoordlng to Artioles 7260 end 7336, V.C,S.,, and elao 

the effeot of Article 133* Penal Code, upon this dtitiy. 

Article 7260 d.lrects the tax aolleator to mike monthly 

reporta to the Comptroller setting out tax itemr aolleoted by Mm 

during the month, and, upon submitting auoh aronthly ,reports, pay 

over to the State Treasurer the moneyi 80, oolli#oted for the State. 

Section 4 of the Artlole then provides aa follows: 

“The Tax Collector shall pay over to the 

State Treaeurer all balance8 in his hands 

belonging to the &i&e, and fInallY adjust 

and settle his aocount with the Comptroller 

on or before the first day of M&y of each year, 

end to enable him to do 00, the Commlesloners 

Court shall convene on or before the third 

Monday in April for the purpose of examining 

and approving his final .Mitlement PaPere.” 

Arti 7336 aeta opt the ,dateF’when oertain taxes shall 

beer delinquent, and the penalties whiah shall .aocrue thqre- 

. Seotion (e) then pro!idea a8 follows: 

“The’ Amassor, iihd Collector of Taxes 

L ah&;lioy of the firet d8y of July of each 

i+ 

ml n sme unt a ai37Sict 

axea for t$ p%eding $eg $&!i unpaid, 

make up a list of the land6 and. lot 8 and/or 

property on which any taxes for such preceding 

year are delinquent, ,charglng againlst the same 

all unpaid taxer asssared ag8ln8t the omrsr 
. - 

Ronorable Robert S. Calvert, ?age 2 Opinion No. WW- 883 

report 

annual 

before 

comply 

thereof on the rolls for said year. 

II 

. . . . . 

“Said list shall be made In triplicate 

and presented to the Commissioners’ Court 

for examination and correction, end after 

being so examined and corrected eaid list 

In triplicate shall be approved by said 

Court, One copy thereof shall be filed with 

the County Clerk or Auditor, one copy retained 

and filed bv the Assessor and Collector of 

Taxes, and one copy forwarded to the Comptroller 

with the annual settlement report of the 

Ai 

Since the latter statute requires that the delinquency 

be forwarded to the Comptroller as of July 1, with the 

settlement report which Is required to be filed on or 

May 1, it is impossible for the Assessor-Collectors to 

with the literal terms of both statutes. 

You advise us in your letter that the Comptroller has 

required since the flacal year ending June 30, 1938, that both 

the delinquent report and the annual report be filed as of the 

first day of July. It is our opinion that this is a correct 

requirement and shouldbe adhered to, for reasons which we shall 

set out. It Is our further opinion that Article 133, Penal 

Code, has no application to the reports r,equired to be filed with 

your office. 

Since both Articles deal ,with ,the same subject and 

relate to duties of tax collectors, they are in par1 materia and 

should be construed together. State v.- ~ri2;4~e~exi7;86iO;00 

S.W.2.ld 813 (1947); Wintermann v. McDona 

S.W.2ad 167, lo4 S.WZGiZ-4 (1937). So co&truing them, ks 

pointed out, creates' an ambiguity in the conflict of dates. 

Obviously the Intention of the Legislature was to make jt thee 

duty of the Tax Collector In each county to provide the 

Comptroller with information, through such required reports, 

which would present a complete record of tax collections’ and 

property on which delinquent taxes were still due, as of a certain. 

date. Legislative Intent In enacting the. law is the law’ lt,self. 

City of Mason v. West Texas Utilities Co., 150 Tex. 18, 237 

S W.2nd 273 (1951); Reed v. Waco 2=2nd 247 (Tex.Civ.App. 

1949, err.ref.). Such intent will be given effect even though It 

involves a departure from the strict letter of the law, State v. 

m, Supra; Brown & Root v. Durland, 126 Tex. 20, 84 S.W.2nd 
Honorable Robert S; Calvert, Page 3 Opinion No. WW- 883 

1073 (Tex.Com.App. 1935, Op. Adopted). We therefore believe that 

both reports should be filed as of July 1 of each year, 

We note that your office has, since 1938, required the 

annual settlement statement to be filed on July 1 of each year, 

along with the delinquent tax list. Where the interpretatlbn 

of a statute by the agency charged with its administration has 

continued unchallenged over a long Deriod of time. that interpretation is entitled to great weI ht. 

Co=. v. 011 Well Drilling-Co., 25 % 

Associated Indemnity 

S.W.2nd 523 (Tex.Civ.App. 

1953),affld 153 Tex. 153, 2a S.W.2nd 697 (1954); %lvert v. 

Fl sher , 259 S.W.2nd 944 (Tex.Civ.App. 

-.2nd 496 (Tex.Civ.App. 1957). 

administrative Interpretation during the past 22 years is entitled 

to such weight. and furnishes further support for our opinion 

as stated aGove. 

Article 133 of the Penal Code provides as follows: 

“If at tht end of any month the collector 

of taxes shall fail to make to the Commissioners 

Court hjs itemized monthly report of all tax 

collections for the county, or pay over to the 

county treasurer the amount due by him to the 

county, or if he shall fall to make out and 

post, between April 1 and 15 of each year, a 

list of delinquent or insolvent tax payers, he 

shall be fined not less than three hundred nor 

more than one thousand dollars. Each failure 

is i separate offense.” 

This is the wording of the Article as contained in the 

revised Penal Code of 1925. 

was p. 91, Acts of 1893. 

Its original source stated therein 

This is the same original source as 

Article 7260 and also Article 7263, Revised Civil Statutes, 

which latter article reads as follows: 

“The tax collector shall make out on 

forms to be furnished for that purpose by the 

Comptroller, between April first and the 

fifteenth of each year, list (sic‘ of delinquent 

or insolvent taxpayers, the caption of which 

shall be, tha ‘list of delinquent or insolvent 

taxpayers . I In this list he shall give the name 

of the person, firm, company, or corporation from 

whom the taxes are due, in separate columns; and 

he .shall post one copy of these delinquent or 

Insolvent lists at the courthouse door of the 

county, and one list at the courthouse door, 
Honorable Robert 9. Calvert, Page 4 Ojinion Ilo. UW-863 

or where court is usually held, In each 

justice precinct in his county; and the tax 

collector, upon the .oertlPicats of the 

commissioners court that the persons appearing 

on the insolvent or delinquent lists have no. 

property out of which to make the taxes 

assessed against them, or that they have moved 

out of the county, and that no property can be 

found in the county belonging to such persona, 

out of which to make the taxes due, shall be 

entitled to a credit on final settlement of 

his accounts for the amounts due by the 

persons, firms, companies, or corporations 

certified to by the commissioners court, as 

above provided for .‘I 

Note that Article 133 of the Penal Code assesses a 

penalty upon the tax collector should he (1) faj.1 to make 

his itemized monthly report of tax collections fork the county 

to the Commissioners Court, or (2) fail to pay over to the 

treasurer the amount due or (3) fall to make ‘out and post a 

list of delinquent and insolvent taxpayers, between April 1 

and 15. These first t it d ties assigned him under 

Article 7260. The thi;: obEyzu%g r~ifers to the duty assigned 

him by Article 7263; that IS, compiling a list of delinquent 

and insolvent taxpayers, then posting one copy at the door of 

the county courthouse and one at the place of court in each 

justice precinct. These are not the lists previously discussed 

which must be filed with the Comptroller. The apparent purnose 

of such posting is to apprise the persons, firms, and corporations listed thereon of the fact that th~ere are unpaid taxes 

in that county chargeable to them. Doubtleesly :;he posting date 

of these lists is set between April 1 and April 15 so as to give 

the taxpayers listed thereon ample time within which to make 

payment if they so desire before the time set for the annual 

settlement report. Since the list referred to in this Article 

is separate and distinct from the lists previously discussed . 

which are required to be filed with your office, it Is 

apparent that the penalty provisions therein would not enter 

into the question of the correct filing date for such statement s . 

SUMMARY 

-, 

The tax collector’s annual settlement report 

and list of lands, lots and property on which 

taxes are delinquent should both be filed with 

the Comptroller of Public Accounts on July 1. 
Honorable Robert S. Calvert, Page 5 Opinion No. WW- 883 

Article 133, Penal Code, concerns separate duties 

of the tax collector and hence is irrelevant 

to such filing date. 

Yours very truly, 

WILL WILSON 

Attorney General of Texas 

JRI:jip 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE: 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Arthur Sandlln 

John Phillips 

John L. Estes 

Wallace Finfrock 

. REVIEWED FOR TXE ATTORNEY GERERAL 

By: Leonard Passmore