’ OFFlCEOFTHEATTORNEYGENERALOFTEXAS 

AUSTIN 11 

OROVER SELLERS 

*TroRNEY OENERAL 

Honomble B. S. p:oreman 

County Auditor 

Jefferson County 

Sea-ant, Texas 

Opinion No. O-7391 

Ber Deduction of c 

We have yeur letter of 

oplnicm of this offloe en the abo 

letter read6 l&l part as tollovs¶ 

or*6 otfloe 

the State A 

vall Distrl 

t AMhur SeaMy question Is, 1s it 

cost, vhen apparently the entire cost of collscting delinquent taxes should be borne out of penalties and interest collected.” 
By Acts ef th,o Rog\ll.w BIrrlen of tho hlst hglsl~- 

turn, 1929, Page 656, Chaptar 292, 8/9ths of th5 Btato ad 

valop*P tarcrs on all prepertr, both real and pwm~l, eoliee0a In C55m155lonor5 ' Prealnct le. 2 of Jeffenon County, 

Texas, vom dowted and panted te the City of Port Art&w 

ror th6 purpwe of ceastruatingandaaiIltalnln~a sea vall. 

This act ves eaendod by Aets of tho Regulas Se8sisn of the 

47th Legialatum, Pw 1308, Chapter 584 and br the 

49th Legirlatum, Page 615, Chapter 353, and as amended, 

pmriAo5 ln part as 

%aation 1. Thatoonoz’o~rlththe fireal 

4 

ea* k@all~ Sopteabor 1, 1929, and en4lzig A\teust 

1, 1961, tboro b5 rad honbl l domtod as4 gmatad by the Stat& of %?omu to tbo Ctty of Pert Arthur, 

TOXM , l ltua ted b J~efror sGec n tua eTUi~, M , o ig h ttith s ( S/ 9of ) tk tno et 

rrlomm t8x*5 oollocG?i 

urd jt0~8rarf in ~ID~s~~uw~* b05bet’h 2, 0r 

Jofrorson Cm&r, Texas, a# it uirtd on Jaaualy 1, 

lg&, rhish s&l1 bo rsc5rhinod 8nd apportiowd as 

new 9rolrided br lw; pr?ofded that fx’m uad rStsr 

Aug4t.t Sl, 1949, 'IbFer mouuPd DollaS (43,oos) 

of the uaorrod WebI. valtiw of all nri~Wn5e 

kamotoatls, as nw Qofiaed by law, la 5ri4 Pmainct Ho. 2 shall bo 8xaapt frcrr rll tarattm for 

the pu3poser enwrated In this Act as rell a8 ferp 

rll 5kte purposes. 

%hC. 2. At the l d of uoh aemth, the Colleater 

of Taxes for Jeffomfm county, &all oa fOrrP5 to bo 

furnirhed br the Camptirellw oi I'ubltc Amounts me. 

an lteaiwd -part, Pador 5ath to raid C*9OWlL*, 

ahwlrrg eaoh and every itom of State ad valora 

tams eollectcsd by him as pmtidod for in tbla Act, 

open all pmpe)rt~, both ma1 and pmrsoml, &IS raid 

Ceaairsianors’ Pmc%n& Ao. 2 of Joffwnen County, 

Texas, as It exlBtud em Jsnum~ 1, 1.945, and (~ewmpanyfng seae with a sumwl5od stetawont shevizg full 

dlspositlon of all such State tmos aoUm?Aed1 maid 

Colliwto~ shall pnsent such nport tqethor with the 

tax nerlpt stubs, authotimd by law to be kept, to 

the h?ant)r Clorlc of Jefferscm huaty, ‘ibar, vho 

shall vlthln ten (10) daga 5olppll's said report vlth 
8 tubs, a.&, if the same sgme in every particular 

a8 r-al:ards names, dates and amount, the Clerk shall 

certify to Its c~rrecbnees for which examination 

and cartif'loate he shsll be paid by the Commissioners' Court, Tventy-five (2'5) Cents for each cortlficate and Twenty-five (25) Centa for each tvo hundmd 

(200) taxpayers nemed in said report. Ilhe said Collector shall then lsssediatelp forward his report, 

50 certified to the Comptroller and shall pay over 

by the treasurer of the City of Port Arthur, Texas, 

for such moneys to the Comptroller. The sald Collector sball rePit to the State Tmasury one-ninth 

(l/g) of all such taxes collected by him frae month 

to month.” (Undwscorlng Qurs) 

On January 17, 1945, the Cos~sl55loner5' Court of Jofferson County ontored into a oontract vlth E. 5. Prltcbwd for 

the collection of dsllnquant taxes In Jeireerson County. Under 

the facts as stated Ln your letter, and in the excellent brief 

prepared by ylr. B. T. kilarter, City Attorney for the City of 

Port Arthur, Texao, It would so- that the 9it.a of Port Arthur 

is being charged with a proportionate prrt of the ca1ml55lon 

psld to Hr. Pritchard for tbo collection of delinquent taxes 

and that this amount is being deduated from the amount of 

taxes donated and granted to the City of Port ArtFur. your 

question, therefore, is vhere, as here, the penalty and interest 

are collected, should tbe.ontire 0t?5s5155%on payable to Mr. 

Pritchard, be paid out of the penalty and fnterest and no 

part of It deducted from the aaount donated and granted to 

the City of Port Arthur. 

Artlole 733’56, V. A. R. C. 3. provides in part: 

%ec. 1. No contract ahell be made or entered 

Into by the Ce1m5l5sloner5 *Ceurt in connection vlth 

the aolleotien of delinquent taxes vhere the coPpensation under such contract, 15 more than fifteen per 

cent of the amount cof.lectsd.” 
Hanorable 2. S. PO-, page 4 

Article 7264a, V. A. R. C. S,, Sec. 2, pxwiaea in 

part: 

%bet of aolleat%ng deli.nqmnt taxes shall 

not exceed the amount of’ the penalty end interest, 

or m amount equbl to ottah penalty and inkore~t of 

all delinquent tnms aolleoted.” 

As Ve oaoBtm0 the80 statutes, they eperate -1~ as 

a lfriktlon Ed the amount vhiuh mat k paid to the oollecting 

attorney under & contract to aollect delfnqueat taxes. 

ID Momiron v. law, 157 8. U. (26) 466 (G. C. A., 

&wPont) a 01180 vhere the Legislature hsd remitted the mlty 

MQ interest, the oonrt rlloved the aarl~slen to be paid out 

of the tax. Ia tbrt aaBe, 8peaking tbrougb Obief Jueitiae 

Walker, Ehe Court saMa 

“Artlale 733% is aothlng mere than s llmfktlen upon Q&e POWOF of the court in flxm the eapenutlon ef the 8htoaey uplefed un&er the oentnat 

authorized by Article 7335. Soctioa 2 of Article 

726h Is nothing OOFO than a pov%mlan to the efteat 

that the C)o8t oi’ col&eatirq dellw@ent taxse rhll 

aet exceod t&e ueunt of penalty ead Interest, or 

an ueunt equal to muuh penalty and iaterert OS all 

dellnqumt taxem oolleoted, that &B, at.. 7264a empovered the Ceu188ienena Court to m&e a, contmet 

otl the cODditt0nB tbenein 8tipl&tod, utd no a-teation 18 made that when executed tbe centnrat was ia 

violation of hv. There ie nothing 3.n bhere artiolee 

to the offeat tbet the attorney employed to oolleat 

dollnquent tam8 8hsll bo pal4 ui!ilt Fran the Snten8t 

*ad penalty due en Qeltiquent tbaxe8i 4isb this beep 

kho intonk cf khe Legl.rt*ture, it w@U%d not bare 

been provided by Article 7335 that the attorney 6oul.d 

be paid ‘a per oent en the tue8.‘* 

s*hwe htiole 7335a aad Beation 2 of Article 72644~ 

ope,nte only as a Umiktien on the ameunt vhiah may be prfd to 

the aolleating atteraey, It i8 the opinion sf this 0SftQe that 

the City of PO& Arthur. is pcoperl? ohargssble with lta preportS.onate part of the aorta of aollectinpl delinquent taxen,. As 
Honorable X. 5. FONSIM, mge 5 

ve o enstr ue the l ut, donating and granting to the City of’ Pert 

Arkhaw a / g of í8 the State ad valaxes~ taxes ~olleeted in cam- 

~ir~ionem~ Pncinct go. 2, this deduction is ~pecifieally 

provided for. The underraorod portion or the above-quoted 

aat provides that 8/9’s of, the not slouut of the taxes (that 

ia, the groar amuut oelleotid ~B~uthorised exxpetadltuma) be dauated and granted to the City of Port Arthur. 

Fprthec, in the act this expeadituwe wks mtlcipeted aad authorlsed by the following lm%guagB : 

““*Bight-ninth8 (8/9) or all moneys colleated 

by him dwing maid month under the previsions of 

this Aat, exempt 8Wh uountr a8 8ra allawed by 

l&V fBX' 88848BiDg aad COllOQttng the We.* 

In vlov of the lauglaage ei the sktutn, it iB U&bpukd that the various UOWltB 

of tuea, we pmmerly 

OOVON dOl& q UODt, & B Wll l B WFFMt -08. -0 Q~BBiC#D dUS 

NF. PrltahediB eukueunt allovrd& v fop the oolloctien 

of delinquatt taxes and thue a part or this GOBRIBB~OZI 18 properly deduatible from the ummt do?mted te the 

ClZJ or Pert Al-thuo. 

Robert T. Denahue 

A6BiBtrnt 

RTD/JCP