TEZEATTOX~NEY GENERAL 

OFTEXAS 

Honorable Joe Resweber 

County Attorney 

Opinion No. C- 360 

Harris County Courthouse 

Houston, Texas 

Re: Whether certain 

property owned by 

the Lutheran Student 

Foundation of Houston 

.is exempt from ad 

valorem taxes under 

Dear Mr. Resweber: stated facts. 

You have submitted a Memorandum Brief eon the above 

captioned question. We quote the ~fbllowlng excerpt therefrom: 

"The facts as presented by the 

said foundation ,&t ran Student 

Foundation of Houston 7 are as follbws: 

*At present, the Pastor serving 

the University of Houston, Rice University and Texas Southern University 

is the Reverend Milton E. Mayer. He 

resides for the present at'~5774 Heron 

Drive and he Is acquiring this property 

‘, in his own interest. 

'Under obligation to the Division 

of College and University work of the 

Natlonal.Lutheran Council, the Foundation however, is required to provide 

a dwelling place or parsonage for the 

;r?Ft?;;Ed minister called to this 

The trustees of the foundatlon 

have no; elected to provide the dwelling 

place for Pastor Mayer. He will then 

dispose of his property according to his 

wishes. The trustees have entered into 

a contract of purchase for property at 

3910 Julius Lane. 

'No single chapel, church or meeting house in the area 1s exclusively 

dedicated to his practice, but he has 

access to any of the churches, chapels 

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Honorable Joe Resweber, Page 2 Opinion No. (C-360) 

or meeting places of the confessions 

subscribing to the Lutheran organlzatlon~s program. The parsonage will 

be used at times by the minister In 

the administration of the sacraments, 

spiritual counseling and guidance, 

ceremonies consistent with Lutheran 

worship and for Christian fellowship 

meetings. Even though there Is no 

direct association of this ministry 

,to any one congregation, we believe 

this property should be considered 

tax exempt as any other of the 

parsonages In the community.'" 

You have also furnished us with a copy of the Charter 

of the Lutheran Student Foundation of Houston, hereinafter 

referred to as the Foundation. We quote the following 

excerpt from the Charter: 

” I .The purpose of this aorporatlon*siall be, nlthout pecuniary 

gain or profit to Its members, and in 

all ways which are lawful, to maintain, 

develop and promote the ministry of the 

Lutheran Church to students and faculty 

In the lnstltutlons of higher learning 

In Rarrls County; TexBs, In accordance 

with the policies of the Dlvlsi6n of 

Student Service of the National Lutheran 

Council. . . .n 

Section 2 of Article VIII of the Constitution of the 

State of ;ews authorized the Legislature to exempt from 

taxation .actual places or fif7 religious worahlp, 

also any pio;erty owned by a church or by a strictly 

religious society for the exclusive use as a dwelling 

place for the ministry of such church or rellg$ous society, 

and which yields no revenue whatever to such church or 

rellglous society; provided that such exemption shall not 

extend to more properCy than Is reasonably necessary for a 

dwelling place and in no event,more than one acre of land; 

Pursuant to this authorization the Legislature has 

k&ed Article 7150, Title L.22, Vernon’s Clvll Statutes. 

The pertinent portion of Article 7150 reads as follows: 

*The following Property shall be 

exempt from taxation, to-wit: 

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Honorable Joe Resweber, Page 3 'Opinion No. (C-360) 

8, .Publlc school houses and 

actual'piaces of religious worship, 

alS0 any property owned by a church 

or by a strlctLiy religious society, 

for the exclusive use as a dwelling 

place for the ministers of such 

church or religious society, the 

books and tirniture therein and the 

grounds attached to such buildings 

necessary for the proper occupancy, 

use and enjoyment of the same, and 

which yields no revenue whatever to 

such church or religious society; 

provided that such exemption as to 

the dwelling place for the ministers 

shall riot extend to more property 

than Is reasonably necessary for a 

dwelling place,and In no went more 

than one acre of land. . . .* 

We think that~ the charter purpose of the Foundation, 

quoted supra at page 2 of this opinion, States In plain and 

unamplguous language a purpose which necessarily constitutes 

the,Foundatlon a .strlctly rellglous~~soclety* rlthln the 

meaning of Section 2 of Article VIII of the Constitution and 

Article 7150. 

In the Memorandum Brief, It Is submitted that exemption 

cannot be accorded because the dwelling will not be used 

exclusively as a dwelling place for the ministry of a church 

or religious society. We think that the requirement of 

exclusive use Is met. The fact that the parsonage may be 

used at times by the minister In the administration of 

sacraments, a practice which may not be followed by all creeds, 

1s not Inconsistent with the use by the minister of the 

parsonage as his dwelling place. Certainly it may be presumed 

that in many, If not all, faiths spiritual counseling and 

guidance, aeremonles consistent with the particular faith 

Involved and the pursuit of fellowship In such faiths through 

meetings of Its members occur in the dwelling places for the 

mlnlstry. 

In Attorney Qeneral's Opinion No. S-197 (May 14, 1956), 

this office held that the separate residence of an assistant 

rector of a church was exempt from ad valorem ~%axas even 

though the residence of the rector was also exempt so long as 

both residences did not'occupy more than one acre of land, the 

limitation imposed by both the Constltutlon and statute. In 

that opinion two dwelling places were exempt and two rectors 

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Honorable Joe Resweber, Page 4 Opinion No. (C-360) 

mlnistered..to ,one,,,otiutich. :In the':lnstant case, we have the 

converse of this situation In that the pastor has access In 

the area to any of the Lutheran churches, chapels, or meeting 

places of the confessions subscribing to the Lutheran organization's program. We think that the Constitutional provltilon 

Is br~oad enough to authorize the exemption of the dwelling' 

place for the ministry even though the mlnlstratlons may be 

performed In more than one plaoe provided ,the dwelling plaae 

occupies not more than one acre of land and that the statute 

Is equally comprehensive. 

SUMMARY 

------- 

The Lutheran Student Foundation of 

Houston, a non-profit corporation organized 

for the purpoee of maintaining, developing 

and promoting the ministry of the Lutheran 

Church to students and faculty for higher 

learning In Harris County, Texas, Is a 

%trlotlg religious society" within the 

meaning of Seotlon 2 of ArtWe VIII of 

the Texas Constitution and Artlole 7150, 

Title 122, Vernonts Civil Statutes. The 

dwelling place purchased by the Foundation 

for an ordained Lutheran minister Is exempt 

from ad valorem taxes even though no alngle 

chapel, ohurch or meeting house Is 

exoluslvely served by his ministry. 

Yours very truly, 

WAQGONER CARR 

Attorney General of 9!exaa 

APPROVEDi 

0PINIoNcoMKxTEz 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Pat Bailey 

Brandon Biakett 

Paul Phy 

Harry Oee 

APPROVEDFORTltIEATTORNEYQENERAL 

BY: Stanton Stone 

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