OFFICE OFTHEATTORNEY GENERAL OFTEXAS 

AUSTIN 

mzmrable J. I?. .Brgan 

County Attorney 

Angleton, %xas 

tete tare*’ be 

e and oi.amtp taxecr 

Is oouatyan to wbather 

a9.8 Qounty , wider t-he 

8, till bare to aocrept 

he dl6eonat proriaed for 

aot going to pass an 0Pder 

provisions of this Aetl, or 

II with the above plle#tlca, you sabdt four 

on, together tith oopr or a letter rrcun Yr. 

law18 B. Follett, dlsoussing rarioua aathoritieb of thM snd other 

states upoa thia qxiotion. 

brlere, you frera our thanks. 

And far the atralstanoaftordod bg the50 

Artidle 4644, Ileviaed ix?11 Btututss, Sactf,oa 6, antborieee the CeHnptrollar or Publia ao6otmta or the &ate of 'tens to 

*a&opt an&t regulf4tions not inaonsfsteat with the Constitutiorr an& 
JJMS as be rrzay deem essential tic the 6poedy and propor assessment 

aad CClloCtipz of the rQYenUeS Of't!~e C'tate." 

Section 3 of said krtiole 4344, iievfse4,Cl~l Statutes, 

requir&a tho Corptroller of Yublio AdeOuul;s to wsupsrintend the 

fisoal ooooerna of the state as the sole acoount.Ing ofifoer thtireof, 

an& manage the sari%% in the maMar required by la*.* 

section 10 of hrtlole 4344, Revised Civil Statutes, requires thio o:'fioial to "examine and settle the aooouats of all persons indebted to the &ate and oertlfy the amount or balanoe to the 

'Ireaaurer, and dlreat end supcrin$end the oollection of all moneye 

due the ~tatc.w 

Pursuant to the express statutory warrant above stated, 

and to avoid intermlnabls oonfuei~n in tho keepiry of l ocounts and 

the issuanae of receipts by tax assessors-oolleotors'or the tarlow 

counties or Texas, the Comptroller of Publlo Aaoounte promulgated 

a regulat:on that all a+ valorem taxes appearing upon the general 

tax rolls such.68 state, county and cwaeon school dilrtrlot taxe8, 

which the tax,colleoting otiioials of the county were oharged with 

collsotlng muat, aa to any one sqpiwately-aosessod par001 0r lanh, 

be paid at the same time. This low-atandlng regulntion o&the 

Comptroller has been, time out or mind, urilroraly observed by 

the tax-oollsctlng orrloials of various countlea, and urder suoh 

admlnlstratlte regulation and ruling they heve r6fuse6.to isauo 

receipt for part papent of ad valoreiu taxes appearing upon the 

t;ner& tax rolla a@ainst any separataly-aessased tract or parcel 

. 

The foreming regulation made and published by the C&ptroller of Public Accounts Is not nlthout suppofi in the authorltlas. 

In the case of Stuard et ux ~8. Thompson, 261 S. 8. 377, the Court 

reviewed the statutes hereinabove quoted, and held that a regulation 

by the Coraptrollsr thereunder, requiring a county tax oollsctor to 

rsluse a tender of stats and oounty ad valorem taxe6 without .ths 

paymsut &the same time. of the poll tax levied upon the wife, *aa 

valid as a reasonable and effectlre means of toroing payment of such 

tsx, and, not being in oonfliot with the Constitution arid Laws,.must 

be (;fven the arreot or le~lalatire enactment. 

fn the casaeof State v. Horriaan, 801 2,. w. 05Z, and Jutkin 

Land & Lumber Co. v. Noble, J27 5. R. 1093, the Court6 of Texas reooenizad the rights of a tax ooll8otor to refuse to aooept lees than the 

full emount of taxes asses&d. And thls~Eepartment, 'under former 

admi+etrations, haa ruled that a county tax oolleotor would not be 
euthorired to scoapt paymut OS c~cmm sahwl dlstriote ad va&mn 

taxee, or iriaopeoaent aohooi diatriot taxeli aoseesetl *Aa oollected 

under Arti fm8, ridoba Civil ztatutea, without paynmnt or tile 

Ltate end county taxee. lheeo dspartientel. ruMAge vrere breed upon 

t::e &lain& of s~tuera vs. 'ihompocn, aupra, upholding ana rocagcllting 

tfio rule-zckine euthorltjr ci the Ccrrperoller of ?ublic Aooomata, 

wCer Xrticlo 4344,. (2). kevleed Civil ::tatuteti, lQi!&; i.A oonrteotlon 

with the apoeaysna proper asaemmeAt tina oolleotion or the re~onued 

of the Stata. 

($0 recognize tie hardahlpe which might be vi8lted UDOA the 

taxpayer by tCa applicaticm of the above dlaousaed rule when aooh taxpayer elects to pay hie state ad *e&rem taxeu mlnr Benate Bfll~?~. 

408, i&a, Ifaguular ~00810A, 46th bgialatum'in order to raotsivo 

the dlsoourrt thsroby provided. But wc ere not prepared to ra in 

thcr Sac0 or the foregoing admfol6'tratioe ana juaiai61 arrtborl to 

ttet tho Lsgisloturo intantisd by the eztaotmoat OS the dl8ooWi 

x, 

statute for pronqt payslent of tbxee, to overturn this.authorlty and 

upset the time-honored spetca ot tax oolleotions which obttiaed In 

this :.kbta et ths the6 Of the QAEaa6e of ?&is bati Oited l t,‘and 

with utloh tie LegirlAture la preouwa to hwe barn tul~. W&iAlUAt, 

The feat that this sicrlutsry regulation, ptcaeolgW&l by the 

Cosiptroller, unasr aktutory authority, end uphela by the~oourtr 

and tto opinions of this %NwtrseAt, has, iu thS pa&&, been in fhs 

tied or th0 ~glalature, Oan be denronstratoa by a-reforenoe to brt101s 7336e. ~~~AoA*O tiotatea Clvll Ststutes., grorldi~g QII ioUowA: 

"%OtiOA 1. =n~oaabl v&here 002lPiOA school~dl.etrlOt 

tnxes and/or $AdOpOAaOnt sahool alstrlot texes are oolleotable from the .eaas roll with any other tax, any 

texpeyer of e~y.con~~on sohool aletrlot or'S.ndopsnQant 

sot001 district ir suthorlzea to pay one-halr or all of 

said sohool tare8 prior to tte paynvtnt or any oth@4? tuti 

and U~OZI mob pameAt or tmder of pa@eAt~ of one-h%lf 

or all oi.suoh oomam echool diotrLot tex end/or any 

l.Aaeper?aant aohool.aiatrtot tax, together wrth penalty, 

lntere~at, and ooats therean, if any, auoh Collootor 18 

authorizac¶ and directtea to receive the ease and exeoute 

iu d~Xc&,te a mmorandw reoelpt thar,eFor 6~4 doliver 

CAB oopya, the texpapar and kee the othhr a8 part 0r the 

records ot hi0 offLoe, aad the 8 ax Collcotor ehall onter 

the date ana amount paid Jm 05me mmeAauA forrs on tP0 

tQx rolli sna therosf%er 00 ruil payment of all.ot $he 

rcmeinlng tares togbther with iAtereat, poaalty and ooete, 

lf any, aa way ba shovfn to bo &uc on such roll, he ahtil. 

~issuci his.offlolal tax reoelpt or oertifloate of raEemQti.on, es the ease may be, $n the mmner pro+ldcd by low 

bed iuolude therein t&e amount or amount8 iwrmerly paId. 
-:.eo. 2. Zllhs Y;ex Co;leoto? my .:n r.13 cliocretion 

pre:m:e n sa;:arate ml?. ehowlng tta robocl taxen only, (sf 

imy aomac sahool dlstr!ct zr axy independent 5obOal distr?at rio. ah.ma on ttla o;*fialsl tax roll deliv0rea to hia 

by thn w8ebnor r%~d in ;uch overt, lertuo tlr, reoalpts 

ttifmax or ii,iot: ached tax pqyki+ntc. 21 the event the 

co~~~isst~nem court or tha county and/or Board of Trurrtae8 

tf the ir,depandent i3ohooL distrlot authorlebe in writins 

prior theret., tha making of such spoclol roll, than they 

are himby empowered to contrcat for .noceseary expaneae 

tkrofer I:OL LO %XOWUi th% !~OIAUI~ Cost Of th0 8tEitlOIWy 

ana extra additional labor oaoasioned tbareby." 

To our aind, tlifn ntcltut8 8tar;ds an 8 rtwcgrr~t~an of the 

rule that ad valoram. taxes appoarlag upon ths Renaral tu roll.8 0r 

8' county r-iust be paid in thalr entirety, aad a tax ootleokrr OS l 

aounty 10 authorlzed.taa required to refuee a part priyamnt of mot: 

taxee. ii the Leglelatura desired end lntandod to renmve oou&ty 

ad V&Or%!% ta%efJ Xrom the OpcrtttiOIi Of this Nle, t&i8 it Ootflb 

easily have done by the enaotment OS a statute ruch a8 the on6 above 

Quot~@Ub deelgned t0 remove dosaon SOhOd di*triot tars8 U36 Inbepea&at cohoof diBt.rlat taxer on t&s genera1 rolls tram mob r4O.e. 

But we think that hirats Bill No. 408, ZiEfr81y prorid,&& ,fOr a die8ount In +z prompt payment of teXe8, 8hould riot, by.inteX-fil%Oa aX& 

impUcotlon only, olfoct this raau.It and overturn d8tabUrrhrd prooadent and pcliop. 

But ah do not hold by tble oplnloa that a property ovm8r 

doea got hnva the privllree of paying tax66 assesaad and due upw 

any epto:flc pie06 of property owned b;: him wl,thoyt the payamt 0r 

tams due upon any one or mom othsr unita of t.axabl.o pr~pcrty tbot 

he OWM. The Guprurw Covrt,of lierae in ~Utibay vs. Eoor, 24Q S. a. 

19e, aha In other a0cm0ns, has olearlydeolared theri&ht of a 

taxpayer to pay his taxerr eswsssd sl&slaut onr tmct or paroel of 

his proparty without at the a.aXm time paying taxes emSeS8ad agird 

other property. But unlelrs o'chcl'uiso allowed by statute, the tax- 

+ayer rmat pay all of the taxem eaaosaed upon the county t8X TOUR 

;Fplntbhis panaufar piece af propsrty,,,aM such is the extent 

idi- h $ * the oafm c;f fiichay v. S!oor, sups, 

may be cons&a?% a$b$?.iy for our holdice rethar than opposed' 

cdieryto, under t&a f~fl~lhlihg language: 

Whiln ths pxaral rule f8 tJict tax& %MSh be p8fd 

in full olt ooe tlma, and, unless otherviea provided~by 

statute,~a taxpayer oannot tetier a oartim of the tax 

,,,, 
269 

Ron. J. '. ijryan,~#a 

and demtr,d a raslyt tbareim, yet t;.le rule is zubjaot 

tt~ s01ro qdiriOati0n. The citizen alwaya tmi tho rlgbt 

to ply tC* arecunt al- any C"C tex ileted a&nat hia, or 

es field In ecm !urisdlotions, to pay the wx on any on4 

1%~. cr piecs: or property rblch bae bran separately 

BBI)CSB~~$, witbout of?crin& Lo, pay th? trxee on ::thr?r parts. 

37 Cyc. pp. 1164, Uat; E7 kmer. E F.nr;. :noy. of X.W, p. 

781. he last olauas in the statement :ust meda finds 

support in tha authorities cited in the notes, but in 

nest lnetancns the statute directly or lapliedly pamitted 

the appilcotlon of the exceptions t:? the rule. There are 

other sraeptioss to ths gmeral rule xhlch are racofgdzed 

in May, if not in all, jurfadlctions." 

Trustlog tho forogofng aatlsfeetorily miewers 

we are 

Yoiire very truly 

your intuiry, 

BY