## TREA'ITORNEYGENERAL

OF %-E-US



### Ron. RobertS. Calvert OpinionNo. C-575 Comptrollerof mbllc Account8 ‘.~ 

### Auatln,Texas 

### Re: Method of cmputlng Inheritancetaxeswhere the deceasedhusband's will disposedin its entiretyof some of the .c-lty tstatt, 

### and the survivingwldow elected 

### to take thtreunder rectlvlngas a result of said election proptrty In excess of her one-half 

### Intertatin Pear Mr. Calve&: the entire community.

You have requestedtht -opinion of thla office on tht 

### above captionedmatttr and in connectionthertwlthhave~advlsed us of certain~facts. You have also furnishedus with a brief written by tht attorneyfor the tatatt.
The decedent'swill was admittedto probate. In his will, the decedentattemptedto.dlsposeof the tntlre~commnltJ InterestIn stvdral 

### lttms of property. Iht 

### mrvlvlng widow electedto-takeunder the ulll rathtr than to rttaln her community one-halfInterestIn all of the camunity 

### properties. This she did by acceptingthe prwlslons of the will and receivingbenefitsthtrtundtr. .61 **Tax.Ju.r.24** 431-433, 8 277. As 

### a result of her tltctlon,the survlvluguldow rtctlved proptrtltsof a valut greater thau the value OS her one-half of the commnlty plus her $25,000txtlhptlon.
The attorneyfor the estate takes theposition that in computingthe lnhtrltancttaxes due, tht eurvlvlngwidow should 

### be allowed to off-s& tht 

### value of her commnlty one

### half interestagainst the value of the proptrtlttl she received under the will.

-2777-Hon. Robert S. Calvert, Page 2 

### OpinionNo. C-575

In Calvert v. Fort Worth National Bank, 163 Tex. 405, 356 S.W.2d 918 (1962), the court held that the community Interest of the wife did not pass by "will" to beneficiaries other than the wife within the meaning of the Inheritance tax statute (Art. 14.01, Title 122A, Vol. 20A, Taxation-General, V.C.S.) where the husband's will bequeathed the home and certain personal property to his wife and the remainder of his separate and all of the balance of the community property **was** devised and bequeathed In trust for the benefit of the wife, who elected to take under the will, with remainder interest to the other beneficiaries.
The owner of one-half of the.communlty property in the Fort Worth Natlonal Bank case was the surviving widow. In that case, no tax had been assessed against the widow since what she took under the will did not exceed the value of her community interestplus the $25,003 statutory exemption.

You 

### are advised that in this case, as the wife received, under the will pro erty of a greater value than her community Interestplus the $25,000 exemption, the value of the property received by the wife In excess of the value of her community 

### Interestless the $25,000 statutory exemption Is subject to the Inheritance tax at the rates provided In Article 14.02, Title 122A, 20A, Taxation-General,Vernon's Civil Statutes. Likewise, under the holding of the,Fort Worth National Bank case, the tax, If any, dut from the other beneficiaries under the will should be computed only upon the value of'the property received from the deceased husband's one-half community Interest less the applicable statutory exemption.

SUMMARY ------- 

### Where the deceased husband's will disposed In Its entirety 

### of some of the community estate, and the 

### survlvlngwidow elected to take thereunder, receiving, as a result of said election, property in
excess of the value of her one-half Interest in the entire community, the value of the property received In excess of the value of her community interest less the $25,000

**-2i78-**.

.

Hon. Robert S. Calve&, Page 3 Opinion No. C-575

statutory exemption, Is subject to an Inheritance tax at the rates provided In Article 14.02. The tax,i'lf any, due from tht othtr btneflclarlta under the will should be computed'konly upon the value of the property re&elvtd from the dtceastd husband's one-half community Interest less the applicable statutory exemption.

Yours very truly,
UAOQONER CARR Attorney General

HMcGP:dl

APPROVZD: OPINION COMMITTRE

W. V. Gepptrt, Chairman J. H. Broadhurst Gordon C. Cam Wade Anderson Y. 0. Shultz

APPROVED FOR TRE ATl’ORN’EY QERERAL BY: T. B. Wright

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