OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

QROVKR SELLERS 

Al-mnNmv OLNLIUL 

c 

n--sue John It. Ehook 

crl8laal MBtrlat Attommy 

mx8r county 

8M Antoalo, hnr 

Attentlonr L. s. oittlqger 

Proi your CeQue8t fmItCument8, ve rate the follov 

ion 18 based; 

l r r lt18ro y dated ?ebruU both deed8 were filed 

nty clerk OQ krch 14, 

d tlrCt Va8 pUNbr8ed frCR the Cfty Of 

\ 

. 

cribed c8 tract8 number8 One (1) @ad 

d Elovember 2, 1915, executed jointly by w 

io and 88ld Board of Trulteel, and re- 

, page8 72-75, of the Deed Record8 Of Beur 

0. Il. Pitshugh Secretary Of the Board of ‘haltee 

of the Ualverrfty, In 8 iette? dated kroh 14, 1945, 8t8teS 

that I 5ai8 property ha8 beNi W$Ubed to beCOW Wt Of tb 

campu8 05 the Triait7 Vtiverrlty. Ia l letter dated April a, 

1945, pitthugh reQue8t8 the comml88lau9r8’ court to exert 
Honor~le John R. Woo&, page 2 

the prOP8rtf dercrlbed ln th8 petltlon and "e-e1 any aad 

al.1 tUe8 WiNiort @bid Property bes[iaafag Jaauu~ 1, 1925.' 

ëlOU lk the OpitiOil Oi thi8 depArtnot Whether the 

propert deroribed above a8 ‘flrrt trhot’ an13 %eoond traata 

18. exe-t from the wy’B8nt Of kua, 

~ue8tloMbl~, the fir8t trot cannot be exempt 

ire0 taxer for the J*u 1945. Uader Artlole ?lSl, 811 property %eld Or ovned OR Oha firrt day of Jaa~ar2 In tb yeu Sor 

vhlc~ tk property 18 FOqrrired to be 118ted or readered" rurt 

be llrted for taxation betvoen Jenuuy 1 a& Apdl 30. The 

ovnership of property 011 the SirIt Qay of January of l uy mar 

create8 b ll~blllt~ OrA the gut of the cvner for tUe8 levied 

upou ruch propert for that em. Vlnterr v. Itiepen&at 

School Dlrtrict of huh, 205 8.V. 574. 

Slnoe thir property ~18 prlmtely ovard on Jan-y 1, i 

1945, the tU u8rUed a8 b@inat th8 caner8 on t&t date MI! 

the7 ry not bc curcelled or removed from tkm tu roll8 regUdle88 of 8ny UIY to vhleh it Uy thereafter b8 dediarted. A8 

V8 Mid in ~itiioli BO. o-49%1 

-either the cOII8titUtiOn nor the 8tatUte8, 

hovever, releUe or authorire the releme or cuIcellation OS 8d valorem tuer vhlch amWmd prior 

to the date on vhiah luch propert 18, by 8UCh 

polltlacl 8ubdiri8~oo, devoted to public U8e.' 

It should be noted that ?rinitj OUlrer8ity Va8 C&ted by a rpecl81 ChUter goUted by the 12th h.Si8kture Of the 

&ate of T~XW in1870. Special ull8, 12th Xagl8%tkWe, Cal&d 

&3881OIi, 1870, p. 160, ah. 83. sea tioo 13 of thir ohuter 

provider: 

*phb propert uvned aad held by Hid imtitution being 8et apart eXelU8lvel7 rar educational puTpO8e8, 18 herob deobred to be exe@ from 

both St&te 4uLd CoUty TU4tiOk’ 

&otion 56 of Article XII of the Con8t~tutIo~ Of 

~~-8 (1876), vhich 18 in Sub8tMti~llJ the 8- mw%e l 8 
, 

c 

155 

Boaorable John 8. 8hook, wge 3 

8 *ail&r Pmi@ioQ In the CoB8tItUtim OS 1869, vkioh vav ;a 

effect V&n thi8 clnrtw va8 granted, pOvide8: 

Ve therefore hold that the provl8loa 0s 8e8t:oa 15 

of the URlterrit~~r ohrter i8 ineffeotual, la ltrels, to 

CrWte the 8Xemptloa Of thin Droperlj rougbt v t& Va:rer8:tf 

in it8 ~tit:OlL 

The PollOy Of the 8tate regarding the lurptlon ooafained Ia AdiCb 7150, 8eCtiOll 1, Revlaed Civil 8t8tUte8, p8rtaiala(l ta mho018, 18 Very OtUly 8t8tOd by Jurtlae Aobwt8on 

in Ca88iaao V. Pr8ullM Academy, (1885) 65 Tex. 673, 675: 

“It ti8 been the policy of the rtate 8fnee 

la9 to encourage edueatloml l aterprl8m by oxl rptlag them from any &are of thv burtin of 

government. . . . - Om8titUtior. Of 1876, 80 

far from wdlf~lrrg thlr policy, mker 8unlSloent 

~ovl8lon8 for the ulntenaaae of free rohoolr. 

There h a been s ao l atbgooia botveea the public 

and private 8cho018, to varraat the inference that 

the framers of tbo aomrtltutloa, in the we of the 

vord bulldlag, fatended 8 rplteful &lrerlmlMtim 8gcia8t privct& 8chOOl8. 

"The educ~tlOa of the 8b88e8 18 WV reoog- \. 

afred a8 & fuactloa of 8tbte gorerturat. Those 

vho, iron charitable oon8ider8tioa8, to forvard c. 

8ectmlti 7lev8, or for private profit, &are orpniged or oouducted 88hOol8, h&v8 888i8ted the 

atate in the performuSe of 8 duty it We8 to it8 

Citf8ea8, VbiOh CaaDOt be to0 tkOWhl7 perfo-# 

&Ud vh:ch the 8tate b8 ua vel r 88Uwd tht it had 

e;thvr the me&D8 OF the rohlaery of dOW v~ffiolvatly veil vlthout private l vvivtmWv* Thv 

m8ulim Academy 18 perforuirrg ft8 plrt 18 fhl8 

branch of the public 8ervice, cad lt 8bould vatiMr 

be ewowae& bz ald8, thaa -tied la lt8 U8etulaa88 b y l tU UPOa it8 PitflU revenU88. 
c 

156 

. 

Hoaorablc John R. Shook, mge 4 

(I 

. . . , 

"All the building8 and all the lmd 80-t 

to be 8old by l ppellaat Vera mCe88UJ and u8ed 

for thb ProPer and eeoaomlcal conduct of the 

rchool. . . . The grow&d8 vu8 ured for the 

recreation or the pupll8, and to 8upp17 the 8ch001 

vlth v8get8bh8. Author%7 18 aot mating to oxted the l Up tfOn to bid much lerr direct17 l aPloYct to iorvud the lnterertr of the rchool.. 

. . . 

&ate ~iaevvil& v. beMu college, 150 Ca. 156, 103 

9.B. 164, vhloh cite8 aad reliee upon the brr;ano case. the 

Court, vhf18 reCOgQi8lrrg 88 rblutuy the rule tht a statute 

exempting ProPertJ from tubtloa 18 to be strictly eba8trued, 

88ld t \ 

'~8V8rth81088, bulldl.ngr erected SOP and U8bd 

a8 col1.agr8, lmeorporated ~bdellel, and 8emlnarle8 

0s barnlag br8 oru811~ perunent la character. 

In 8 rel8tlve 8ea8e the7 8re iaov8bl8. When, 

ther8fOre, 89 8OleM l a iit8trWOtit 88 8h@ cOn8tftution SUtbOl’im8 the exemption Of 811 Such bulldlag8, 8ad vhea the general l 88embly la l xer a l8- 

la g it8 pwer 80 corrferred upon it ex8mptr from 

taxation all 8uCh bulldlQ~8, a aoartructloo 0s 

the rtatute COa8ormat vlth the pUFpO80 of the exemption and the 8ettled policy of th8 date, 88 

reflected by the exemptlag rtatute, mU8t be adopt- \. 

ed. Bulldlagr ~111 therefore be COQ8trued to embr8ce the 18ad upon vhich they 8re loc8ted and the w 

18nd 8d.lacent thereto aece88arv for their Dp?oDcr 

U8C. occumitm~ and ealommat, provided, of coW8e* 

'the property be oat Used for purpore8 Of Pitate 

or corpor8te profit or Income.*' t-818 our81 

Ia thi8 and many other aa8e8 it V88 held th8t reCre8- 

t;oa ground8 aad campus ere Included vithia the exeaption. The 

&termimtioQ 88 t0 the are8 of laud vithfn 8 tu exemtion extended to pr0pertp used for eduo8tion8lpurpa8e8 18 governed 

generally by the aecer8ity, or lack of neCe88ltlr. of the land 
e 

157 

Honorable Joha R. bheok, pap 5 

fa the r rui aur~if4~ out 0s ruoh purpo8er. 3% l xemptloa h88 

been held In rffeot to extend to land thus found to be reason- _ 

ably moerur~ to the.r ul xerol8v ll UrU enjoymat 0s 8uCh purPOHIe 

See 134 A.L.R. 1176~ 143 A.L.R. 274. 

Our Oplaloa lo. O-3083, approved ?ebraaq 15, 1941, 

pertrlalag to brrd8 brloylry to the College Of Ramhell, 18 

la keeping vfth th8 above-cited rullwr, &ad 8tate8, la part: 

'&cm the above our opltIloa follovr that 'the 

load on vhlah th8 8ahool plant 18 loo&ted and which 

18 used exclu8lvel~ for l ducatfo~l pWpO808, laaludlag the aOve88Ur ~u-&r &ad recreatloaal *oundr, 

fr exempt frdm taxation. . . .' 

Therefore you are adrl8ed thbt if the Board Of tiU8t8ee 

h a ve r r de l rhovia& 8uiffOf8nt 80 COavfaCe th4 001111188~oaerl' 

court that there ha8 been a dedlaatloa of the property referred 

t0 &I tF8Ct tV0 (If) ib OUF 8tmMIt Of f&t8 t0 the PUWO8e8 

for vhloh it 188 acquired, aad IS the court 18 aoatlaced that 

8Wh propart 18 r8~8CMbl~ mOe88Uf t0 the flrii l xerof8e urd 

l ajopeat 0s the oduaatfoaal purporer 0s the Ualterrlt~, it 18 

exempt from tuatioa bad should act b8 eatered on the roll8 by 

the Tax A88e88Or M&d COlle@tOr. 

eUlti.Iig that thir ruii~ au8vu8 four inquiry, ve l e 

Yery truly your8 

\. 

ATTORRETIIalLDlBULOFTRXM