JOHN L.HILL Attorney General 

# The Attorney General of Texas

December 21, 1978

Honorable Wilson E.Speir, Director. Texas Department ofPublic Safety 5805N.Lamar Blvd. Austin, Texas 79773 Opinion No.H- 1299 Re: Whether certain materials constitute oil field equipment for purposes of article 9llb, section l(i), V.T.C.S. Dear Mr.Speir: You ask whether the term “oil field equipment,” as it appears in the Motor Carrier Act, V.T.C.S. article 9llb, includes caliche, sand, gravel, cement, reinforcing steel for bridges and culverts, lumber for forms, road beds and fencing, or other road building materials used to construct and maintain a road upon an oil and gas lease or a drilling pad located at awell site. Article 9llb provides for the licensing of specialized motor carriers, defined inpart asfollows:

(i) ‘Specialized motor carrier’ means any person owning, controlling, managing, operating, or causing to be operated any motor-propelled vehicle used in transporting, over any public highway in this state, over irregular routes on irregular schedules, for compensation and for the general public with specialized equipment, property requiring specialized equipment in the transportation andhandling thereof.

... For the purpose of this Act, the term ‘specialized equipment’ includes, but is not limited to block and tackle, hoists, cranes, windlasses, gin poles, winches, special motor vehicles, and such other devices as are necessary for the safe and proper loading or unloading of property requiring specialized equipment for the transportation and handling thereof. For the purpose of this Act, the term ‘property requiring specialized equipment’ is limited to (1)oil field equipment.

...

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For the purpose ofthis Act, the term ‘oilfield equipment’ means and includes machinery, materiels, and equipment incidental to or used in the construction, operation, end maintenance of facilities which are used for the discovery, production, and processing ofnatural gas andpetroleum, and such machinery, materials, end equipment when used in the construction and maintenance ofpipelines. Sec. l(i). Thus, oil field equipment requires specialized equipment to transport end handle, see Attorney General Opinion O-6916 (19451, end includes machinery, materials, and equipment incidental to or used in the construction, operation, and maintenance end processing of oil and gas. This definition of oil field equipment covers a wide variety of items, so long es they are used in the ways stated by the statute. Attorney General Opinion S-104(1953)determined that sand end hydrated lime constitute “oil field equipment” as defined by article 9llb, section l(i), if used to maintain oil refineries. The intended use of the road building materiels you enumerate isafact question which cannot be resolved inthe opinion process. Younext askwhether transportation ofthe enumerated materials isregulated when ahighway is traversed es set out inerticIe 911b,section Ic, V.T.C.S., or when the commodities are transported between two or more cities, towns, or villages. Article 911b,section lc states

The terms ‘Motor Carrier’ and ‘Specialized Motor Carrier,’ asused inSection 1ofthis Act; shell apply to end include all for hire transportation of oil field equipment, as defined in subdivision (i) of Section 1 of this Act, over the public highways of this State outside the corporate limits ofcities or towns, irrespective of whether in the course of sllch transportation a highway hetween two (2)or more incorporated cities, towns or villages istraversed. As e general matter, a motor carrier is not covered by the Act unless it traverses e highway between two or more incorporated towns in transporting property. V.T.C.S. art. 911b,Sl(g). Section lc effectively subjects to regulation all for hire transportation ofoil field equipment over public highways whether ornot e highway between two municipalities istraversed. You finally ask whether e carrier with Railroad Commission authority to transport road building materiels could legally transport them to en oil field facility without also having authority to transport oil field equipment. The authority of a certificated carrier to transport property depends on the certificate itself end the intent of the commission in granting it. See State v. Bilbo, 392 S.W.2d 121(Tex. 1965);Dye Trucking Company v. Miller, 39m.W.2d 567(Tex. Civ.

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### APP.- Austin 1965,writ ref’d n.r.e.1; Attorney General Opinion M-244(1968). The issuance of a soecielized certificate coverinn certain items to a carrier does not withdraw the existing authority of e general~commodity carrier to carry the same items. See V.T.C.S. art. 9llb, S5a(b); cf. Alamo Express v. Union City Transfer, sunre (Soec

iialized carriers granted authority to carry certain items following evidence that common carriers rendered inadequate service). SUMMARY Whether the term “oil field equipment” es it appears in article 9llb, section l(i), V.T.C.S., includes road building materials used to build end maintain facilities for the discovery end production of oil end gas is a fact question. Section lc of article 9llb requires the regulation of all for hire transportation of oil field equipment over public highways whether or not a highway between two municipalities is traversed. Whether or not e carrier with authority to transport road building materiels may transport them to en oil field facility depends on the terms of the certificate and the intent of the commission in granting it, but he does not necessarily need authority to transport oil field equipment inorder toprovide this service.

Attorney General ofTexas APPROVED:

DAVIDM.KENDALL, First Assistant

Opinion Committee

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